Why I won’t be going back to Devil’s Lake State Park

Devil’s Lake has been on my bucket list for awhile now, growing up in Wisconsin it was definitely well known but somehow not somewhere I had yet visited. Unlike most State Parks I have visited Devil’s Lake is not free entry which in theory should mean they have more funding to make it a good experience for it’s visitors but unfortunately for us it was not to be. We certainly made the best of it but we had a fairly frustrating experience which is why I won’t be going back to Devil’s Lake State Park.

An Outrageous Wait

When we first entered the park we were on the North Side and quickly found parking and paid for our visiting pass. However, we knew we wanted to go down by the trails and picnic area on south end of the park so we headed in that direction. We got caught on a road for TWO HOURS trying to enter this section. Yes you read that right. Now I understand that we went on Memorial Day Weekend which was probably a poor choice on our part but I haven’t been in traffic for that long ever and I live and work in the Chicago area. The reason it was so backed up was that people were waiting in line from both direction to pay for a pass, which we already had but could not but were still caught on the road. The worst part is that as we got through the ranger was telling people the lot was about to be closed which means some poor bastards out there also were stuck in that wait but in the end didn’t even get in.

Practically No Trash Cans

Ok so this one may sound a little petty but hear me out. Once we finally got into the south end of the park we went ahead and had a cookout lunch in the grassy area that is just outside the beach. This is a very large space, I would give an estimate but I am terrible with estimating size. When we finished eating, we obviously had a few bits to throw away and I could not for the life of me find a trash can. This is an area with several barbecues for people to use so they know people will be cooking out and having trash. Luckily for them, I am very much opposed to littering and went searching until I finally found one of those big industrial garbage bins which apparently were to service the entire area. But with how hard I had to look you just know many people will have given up and left their trash on the ground which is a shame.

Dangerous Pet Swim Area

We always bring our dog Memphis with us on camping and hiking trips if at all possible so we were pretty excited when we saw on the map that the park even had a pet swimming area where you could let your dog off the Leash. But we were quite disappointed with the actual site. It is actually a boat launch that they have just additionally designated as a pet swim area which wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t directly off the road which made it rather dangerous.

Extreme Vertical Hike

Devils’ Lake has some truly amazing views, they are undeniable. But you have got to be willing to work for them. They are steep hikes up rocky terrain to get to those views and are completely impassible to anyone not fully physically able. We struggled with having the dog as it felt like we were at risk of him tugging us down.

There are tons of people who visit Devil’s Lake State Park every year for its stunning views and hikes. And ultimately I wouldn’t want to put people off entirely but to let other people avoid some of the pitfalls we experienced. You can make the best of it and had a good time but I don’t think we will be going back. We have seen it now and it’s just too much of a hassle to make it worth a return visit. We will just keep checking off new places on our list.