We have one backpacking campsite open year-round at the Lapham Peak Unit of the Kettle Moraine State Forest.
The campsite is along the Ice Age National Scenic Trail, about a 0.25-mile, downhill hike from the Tower parking lot, or about a 1-mile, uphill hike from the Evergreen parking lot.
Enjoy a private location for your tent or hammock and we have a covered shelter there as well for inclement weather!
The site has a fire-pit with a cooking grate top and a few benches, a large picnic table, and an enclosed outhouse close by. We offer split firewood for donations at the site; all donations help us maintain our prairies and woodlands.
You will need to bring your own water; there is no electricity at this site. Campers must practice "leave no trace" by carrying-in and carrying-out all supplies, garbage and recyclables. Please leave the site clean for the next hiker.
The main gate to Lapham Peak's property closes at 9 p.m and opens at 6 a.m. (You may exit sooner than 6 a.m. as the gate will open when your car gets close to the exit gate)
Lapham Peak's glaciated topography provides excellent hiking and backpacking opportunities! Within the park, we have over 17 miles of trails. As part of the 1,000 plus mile Ice Age Trail, we host a beautiful 7.8 mile segment that traverses hardwood forests, meadows, creeks, and prairies -- including the Kettle Moraine's glacial hills, kettles, kames and eskers.
This site must be reserved!
Select "Day-Use" and "Kettle Moraine State Forest - Lapham Peak Unit" on the State DNR's reservation system website.
For more information on the Ice Age Trail, see also the Ice Age Trail Alliance.