There were many things about this trip that were unconventional for us. The biggest unconventional decision was deciding to look for a private campground. We usually avoid them (except when traveling long distances and needing overnight accommodations to stay hitched) because we don't like the resort feel of organized activities and crowded grounds where campers are parked on top of their neighbors.We truly wanted this trip to be one of relaxation and fishing. We wanted to take the time to breathe! It's been hectic year (again) and we truly needed to just grab a book, drop a fishing line into a lake or sit in the company of ourselves and each other.
North Central WI is a wonderful place to do just that but there is a lack of State Parks in that area and the Nation Forest Campgrounds available were just a bit more rustic than we wanted to go this time around. We also had a wedding to attend that we did not want to miss so we knew we wanted a more secure environment for our camper considering we'd be away from the grounds for a couple days. So the search for a campground was on.
It was our fortune to have found Patricia Lake Campground located just outside the city of Minocqua, in the north central part of the state. This campground, for us, was the perfect size for our taste. It was located on a small private lake, had large sites and very friendly people. They were extremely helpful and accommodating when I explained we had a disabled son and were looking for something that would make this fun for him and a little easier on us. They helped us find a site that was better than I ever anticipated. We were able to get a site overlooking the lake where our son was most comfortable and still experience all the wild life. I could still fish and enjoy the water within eye site and ear shot of him. In trade we were a little far from the bath house (one of the reasons we purchased a camper with a bathroom so it was no big deal) and there was no adapted showers to make bathing our son easier. With that said, we have no complaints as they did have movable plastic benches which were a god send and helped make showering him doable. In addition we were extremely impressed that the bathrooms were very, very clean and well tended as were the grounds themselves.
I mentioned the wild life and the joy I had that our son could experience it from the site. The lake had its very own resident Loon. If you've ever heard a Loons calls you'll know what I mean when I say its loony laugh as well as it's haunting wail are really something to hear. The echoed throughout the day but were especially prevalent from dusk to dawn. I find them both so relaxing.
There was also a resident beaver who freaked the crap out of us the first night as he tail thumped the water under the guise of darkness. We had speculated a dear, as the campground was also full of those every evening, but we thought that we'd be able to see one so close. It wasn't until we grabbed a flash light and went searching along the shore that the culprit was revealed first in the classic gnawing on small branches close to the water and then the critter itself. Later, my husband found the den he was building while out on the skip he rented for the week.
If you know us, or have read any of my blog entries over the past years, you'd know that we love eagles so much so that we sometimes travel just to experience them in their natural habitat during every season. Every single day, everywhere we went was saw them. I cannot tell you how happy it makes us to see the population increasing such as it is. There is no more beautiful, majestic bird out there in our opinion. That it is a symbol for so many important things from our country to our spirit is no wonder to us.
There was a small platform dock right in front of our terraced site. The terraces made it easier to walk our son down to that dock. The water was so clear we could look over the edge and see dozens of blue gills (and the occasional bigger fish as you see in this photo) swimming right there below us. This meant I could put a worm on a hook, let our son drop in a line, and know he'd catch something. Let it be said that our standard practice in fishing is catch and release. This kept me busy hooking worms and releasing fish. Of course he LOVED that. While my husband is always going for the "big one" (musky) he did catch a good size northern and a small mouth bass, both impressive to me.
Put it all together, we had a fantastic vacation that even an epic rain and hail storm one morning could not defeat. We came through unscathed, the campground did not. True to what I've already said about their obvious pride and attention to the grounds, it took no time at all for the management to get on the job of repairing the washed away roads, sites and boat ramp. This was truly a gem of a campground, one I hope continues to flourish (without getting too big) and one that put itself among our top favorites. We'll certainly return.
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