This weekend, Devil’s Lake State Park is set to host the UW Rowing Championships. If you haven’t heard by now, this is considered a very big deal for the park and will mean about 1000 additional cars in the lots. Keep in mind, however, that even 1000 more cars in May are still less than a busy summer holiday weekend! Learn More. | Event Parking Information.
Big 10 Event Weekend Restrictions
On Saturday, areas along the south shore of the park will be restricted so teams can prepare their boats, called shells, and staging areas. On Sunday, the South Shore will continue to have restricted areas, and visitors to the park are encouraged to use the North Shore, Steinke Basin, and Roznos Meadow parking areas. On Sunday from 6 a.m. to noon the northwest portion of the north shore will be restricted for the race starting area.
Weekend Weather
I don’t know about you, but to me, it seems like weather forecasts have been way off recently. That said, it looks like we’re expecting a mix of sun and clouds with a high chance of thunderstorms throughout the weekend. We’ll see how it all plays out. Here’s the National Weather Service Forecast.
Campgrounds
As you know, campsites at Devil’s Lake State Park are reserved up to 11 months in advance and the park only has 10 non-reservable sites. This means it’s hard to get a campsite at Devil’s Lake if you haven’t reserved by now. However, you might have better luck at one of the nearby private campgrounds, many of which are opening for the season this weekend. Click here to check out our list of local campgrounds.
New Content! – This month I’ve been adding lots of campground amenities photos showing showers, restrooms, playgrounds, etc.. Each amenities gallery is linked from the individual campground page. For example, here’s a quick link to the Northern Lights Amenities Gallery.
I am also in the process of updating our campground drive-through videos. The Quartzite Campground driving tour just went up this morning. You can watch it here (scroll to the bottom of the page), or directly on Youtube.
Trail Conditions
As I sit down to write this, most of the popular trails in the area are in great shape with the exception of Devil’s Lake State Park’s Steinke Basin Trail which is well, nearly always muddy. Keep in mind that we offer detailed trail conditions updated regularly here. Also, we would LOVE your help with updates. If you hike any trails at Devil’s Lake State Park, or in the area, you can submit your own reports which we will use as well. To submit your trail reports just go here, scroll down and click on “Share your trail experiences!” to fill out the form. Thank you!
Featured trail of the Week: The Sauk Point Trail. Sauk Point is 4.5 miles and runs between Devil’s Lake’s Uplands Trail and Parfrey’s Glen State Natural Area. Click here to learn more.
Birds & Wildlife
We’ve had the privilege of watching a family of foxes at Devil’s Lake State Park this week! What an amazing experience! See the photos here.
This Saturday, May 18th you can join the Devil’s Lake State Park park naturalist for a “Lawn Chair Bird Watch” on Steinke Basin from 6 pm to Sunset. All you need is a comfortable lawn chair and a pair of binoculars for this bird watch. We’ll “park” our lawn chair near the parking lot in Steinke Basin and watch for meadowlarks, sandhill cranes, red-winged blackbirds, and much more. It gets chilly as the sunsets, so dress warm or bring a blanket to wrap up in. This program is best for adults and children 10 and older, but open to all ages. Click here for more park events.
Weekend Events & Activities
At the Park: As you can guess, this weekend is all about UW Rowing. That said, the park is also putting on a “Learn To Fish” program on Saturday at 9 am as well. This is a great opportunity for the kids to learn. Just keep in mind that anyone over 16 will still need a fishing license. Go to the park events page.
Go Paddling: Baraboo Canoe & Kayak Rental opens for the season on Friday, May 17th! This is the perfect weekend to get out and paddle on the Baraboo River, since Devil’s Lake will be pretty much off limits due to the rowing championships. Go to Baraboo Canoe & Kayak’s Website for details.
You’ve Got Options!
The bottom line this week is that if you’re into watching the race it should be a crazy, busy and fun weekend. If the Big 10 championship is not your thing, you might want to explore the many other possibilities that Sauk County and the Baraboo Hills has to offer.
For nearly 2 decades the Skillet Creek blog has focused on 3 main goals; To inspire you to visit and explore the Devil’s Lake region, to help you get the most your visit by sharing tips, events, and other helpful information. Lastly to advocate for our environment & wildlife and talk about how we can keep our natural areas amazing now and into the future! That last goal can sometimes cause controversy, but it’s the only way we can accomplish the first two. – Derrick Mayoleth, Owner.
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