Awesome day on the island! We took the inaugural ferry of 2026 and had the inaugural tour at the…read morelighthouse! Just a really nice day hiking and having a picnic lunch. The lodge/boat house is really cool; take time to review the exhibits inside. (Enjoy some great soup at Jackson Harbor Soup Shop afterwards!)

This island is definitely worth the ferry rides to get there. You can tour the lighthouse and hike…read morethe entire island. The lighthouse attendants are so friendly and knowledgeable. Very beautiful place to see.

So beautiful! It was snow covered today but still worth a…read moredrive through and stop at the gorgeous beach! We will certainly return in the summer.

I'm writing an update since apparently it's been 4 years since I last reviewed this park. Please…read moresee my older reviews too since much still applies! This is a great park for finding some peace and quiet in nature including no cell service in much of the park. I mean the SOS function will still work if an emergency arose, but there will be no incoming texts or notifications to detract from the birds and sounds of the waves. All of the trails are lovely here and they're all easy so no worries if you're not a seasoned hiker. We saw some mergansers on the lake during this visit and, as usual, lots of garter snakes which are fun to watch. We usually bring a picnic lunch to enjoy by the beach after a morning of hiking and never have trouble getting a table. Pro tip: there are flush toilets in the visitor center!

To be fair, I've only walked far enough into this park to visit the lookout tower, and that isn't…read moretoo far from the parking lot. The view isn't much, other than you can see nothing but trees and fields. You might just barely be able to see the water, if you look in the right direction. In fall, it's stunning, but the rest of the year it's just ok. 10/2025

We were up in Door County for our anniversary and someone told us about new tower inside park. We…read morewent to the park and hiked around for hours, then assended the tower. The views were just awesome, we took the ramp and then again the stairs. We spent about an hour admiring the views from this vantage point. Try it and you will love it. I am scared of heights and I enjoyed the visit here.

Free parking and park usage fee is only $1!…read more There's a sandy path that leads to a beach area. The area looked clean, and free of litter. There are bathrooms available, but they smell horrible and rotten. The stench was noticeable just walking past on a not-so-hot and not-so-humid day. I'm not sure what the cleaning schedule is like, but I'm sure some times it smells even worse.

Door Bluff Headlands was an unexpected find during my visit to Door County. It's off the beaten…read morepath, with just a small turnaround/parking area, a portable toilet and some trails. The trails take you along the bluffs overlooking the water, and meander inland. There isn't signage and I'll admit that I ended up taking a bit longer of a hike that I planned on because I lost track of where I was. Because of it's location and amenities, you're not likely to encounter a lot of other people on your hike (but the ones I did were friendly). There was some fog on the day I visited, which gave the trail and view of the lake a mysterious air, and I joked that it looked like I'd found the edge of the map as the view just disappeared a short way out into the water. Per a handwritten sign on one of the trees, the park is also home to the highest point in Door County!

Read through the reviews to get an idea of the trail and any markings. We did not and gave up…read moreafter 15 minutes as we had no idea where the trail was taking us. Other than that if you like paths through trees that go up and down then this is for you.

Visiting the historic Norwegian church (church of Staves) on Washington Island is a quick but…read moreworthwhile stop. It's only a 2-3 minute drive from the lavender field, and we noticed many visitors doing both back-to-back. There's free parking nearby, and it's just a short walk to the wooden church. The interior is simple and charming, and if you take your time, the visit won't take more than a few minutes. They also hold services on certain days, which would be a unique experience to witness. A nice, quick stop while exploring the island.

Very cool old Viking church. Recommended to visit by island adventure company! We only went inside…read morechurch and around it for photos. So cool. We signed guest book. They have weekly sermons here still. Lots of history in the place. It's worth checking out while in area!

This is in an area on the very northwest corner of Washington Island. Not too many people get up…read morethis far. Finding this place was not helped by Yelp's erroneous location. At first we ended up on Allouez Trail. Gets you close but ends in private property. Google Earth took us to Little Lake Road (duh!), which is quite south of where you think the right road should be. This road takes you to the Jacobsen Museum (worthy of a visit, if you can catch it open) with this pretty little lake just to the east of the museum. There was once a large Native American encampment here. Most of the northern part of the lake is in preserve And it is a pretty lake...a lake on an island in a lake. A few artifacts are scattered about..an old rock wagon and a salvaged rudder among them. You can lauch a canoe or kayak here. The preserve around the lake is 32 scres with an easy 1.25 mile hiking trail. Birding is great! We had permission from the owner of the Hotel Washington to access her property and we walked to the cliffside of Green Bay. All in all a pretty place to visit. I'm sure there's a ton of fish there, too. If you're on Washington Island and looking for a lesser known place it would behoove you to drive or bike here. Two asides...the bird you hear singing in the woods is likely a red eyed vireo, they are everywhere on the island. You will see an unfamiliar flag around the island. It is the flag of Iceland, many of the early folks who settled on Washington Island came from or had ancestry from Iceland. The tradition continues.

Little Lake is a part of Washington Island that, for some odd reason, tourists rarely check out…read more None of the guided tours of the Island stop here, and every time I have ever visited the place has been completely deserted. Odd when you consider that School House Beach located nearby is often jam packed with visitors. Frankly, this is precisely why I like paying a visit here. I come to the Island to get away from people and keep to myself, not to bask in crowds. What you will find at Little Lake, as you can see from my attached photo, is gorgeous landscapes and peaceful tranquility. Despite what would be conventional wisdom given it's location, Little Lake is not an inland harbor from the bay. It is landlocked, although barely. There is unique plant and wildlife abound to check out. The area is chock full of peace and natural beauty, with wetlands and wildlife all around, as well as hemlock (a road on the east side of the Island is also called "hemlock") and cedar trees.This park is a bit of an oddity as far as ownership goes, as it is not maintained by the Wisconsin DNR. The Door County Land Trust acquired much of the property in the mid 2000's and it is also surrounded by numerous plots of land which are privately owned by islanders. There is a long dock after you park which extends out into the lake which is ideal for photos and for relaxing. There are a couple of native American and Danish structures, including the Jacobsen Museum, at the entrance which are (as of May 2017) still in the process of being renovated as display pieces. If you pay a visit to Washington Island, this place is definitely worth a stop.

A relaxing beach on Washington Island, one of only a few in the world known for its white rocks…read more Whenever we come to the island, we always make sure to stop here. There are bathrooms and changing rooms, but no concessions, so bring in any food and drinks you require. There are plenty of picnic tables and you can grill out here. The beach is fairly large for such a small park, so you'll be sure to find a place to lay down a towel and soak in the sun. There is a rather large floating raft not far from the beach that can accommodate at least 8 people, and many people prefer to swim out to it and jump off into the deeper water, rather than lay out on it. The rocks extend quite a few feet into the water from the beach, and I have learned that wearing water shoes or sandals while swimming is preferable to walking all wonky on the stones and hurting your feet and stubbing your toes as you exit the water. You may not collect the stones here, as they are protected, and as you exit the park, there is a sign and drop box to deposit any stray stones that may have "accidentally" found their way into your pockets. 5/2025

I grew up in South Florida so a beach to me was the sand and the ocean. I was a bit surprised when…read moreI moved to the midwest and they talked about going to the beach. Geography was not my best subject, but I knew we weren't a coastal state. When locals say they're going to the beach what they really mean is the lake. While it's not the ocean, it's still beautiful and relaxing. When I headed to Door County in Wisconsin with some of my friends we were told by so many people that we had to check out School House Beach on Washington Island. They weren't kidding - the beach is beautiful. My favorite part was the actual "beach" - it's made of white, smooth stones. They were so smooth. I totally would have taken a few back with me, but you can actually be fined for it. Really, they have a sign posted warning you not to take any of the stones. We had such a great time there. If I lived closer I could totally see myself spending lots of time there reading a book.

Wonderful small nature center focusing on native plants and animals. The art center side has many…read morepieces (most for sale) by local (and seasonally local) artists in many mediums. While the art can be hit or miss, the nature side has been great for years. I've been coming here for 30 years and it's always a hit with kids. The ANC is nothing fancy, but for a volunteer-run island entity, it's marvelous.