Five stars, and this is based on a one day visit, of approximately 3 hours! We were heading home from our stay at Peninsula State Park, and stopped in to check it out, since I had never been here before. What a lovely park! We picnicked down by the boat launch, which looks out over Sturgeon Bay and Sawyer Harbor. Our view actually consisted of two islands and the homes thereon. There is a shelter, of sorts, very near the boat ramp, and we learned that it is actually a place to process your catch....there are metal tables there to do what you need to do. After eating, we drove through the park to take in the sights and get a feel for it. We headed up to the tower, and as of our visit, it is still closed. We continued to the Old Ski Hill Overlook and got out to take some photos. We drove through more forest and ended up at the Nature Center and Park Store. Here you can rent bikes, canoes, kayaks, and paddle boards. You can also pick up a souvenir or two, or some snacks. We made a pit stop at the toilets (flushable and with nice showers) before heading out and on our way home. This park is located within a decent distance of Sturgeon Bay, but is also remote enough that you won't get the sounds of the city disturbing you at night. It is an easy drive up the peninsula from this location, and day trips are definitely doable. The only downside, as others have mentioned, is that there is no beach at this park. If that is a deal breaker, there are 4 more state parks in Door County to choose from. I don't know if we will ever camp here, but I can definitely say that I am not opposed to another visit! 49/2022 read more

Potawatomi State Park - Parks Near Me - Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin

Lovely camping spot in Sturgeon Bay! My family and I stayed over the 4th of July holiday weekend, and really enjoyed our stay. We had an RV and a tent, so we chose an electric camp-site. However there are plenty of options without electric dedicated to just tents, too! The grounds were very well-kept, including the pathways that are paved around the grounds and the trails, which are easily accessible. Plus, the main check-in cabin at the entrance seemed brand new! Would say that the bathrooms/showhouses could use an updated, but they were still indeed cleaned daily. Also worth noting that the 'beach' on-site is all rocks, so it's not the sandy kind where you can park your stuff on for the day. Instead, we made our way into town to access the beaches there. Overall great location and nice park we would return to! read more

Potawatomi State Park - Parks Near Me - Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin

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Pretty large state park. We got a $16 day pass and drove around. We attempted to do a hike through one of the forested trails but there were just so many mosquitoes that we had to abort. Even the mosquito repellent couldn't keep them away and I got bit through my clothes. We got a great view on top of the tower. And then ventured towards the dock where apparently sometimes you can catch the fisherman come back with their catches. read more

Potawatomi State Park - Parks Near Me - Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin

Exquisite. Very large state park, well cared for, with attractions that will keep visitors busy for a week. Large, private, wooded campsites. Many trails and paved roads with 25 mph speed limit for walkers, bicyclists and meandering car tourists. The water ways will offer access to Sturgeon Bay, Green Bay and eventually Lake Michigan as well as beautiful slower paddling around smaller islands just off the shore. Looks like phenomenal birding possibilities. The highlight was the view stop "the tower", a must when visiting the park read more

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Another fabulous WI state park on the southern part of the peninsula. I drove over to the lookout tower - many many steps to the top but sooo worth it. What a view! $16 for a day pass. Also fabulous hiking trails and spots to camp. read more

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Go into the forest and explore nature Being in and around nature is Just Good GO Outside read more

We had never been to this park before but an organization we are part of held their annual spring picnic here. We were very impressed by this park which is right on the shore of Sturgeon Bay. It really helped that it was a beautiful late May day. The shelter was large and very nice and was right near the bay (we were surprised that this appeared to be the only large shelter you could rent). We hiked a number of the trails and scoped out the Eastern terminus of the Ice Age Trail. All trails were in good shape. The only disappointment was the look out tower is closed. It appears that there is some controversy about how to rebuild it - hopefully they will because I am sure the views would be great since it is such a beautiful area. Definitely worth a stop when in the area! read more

Potawatomi State Park - View from the old ski hill - Parks Near Me - Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin

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Nice park and facilities all around. Great place to visit with family for camping, fishing, kayaking, etc.

Established in 1928, Potawatomi State Park is a 1,225-acre Wisconsin state park northwest of the city of Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. It is located in Door County along Sturgeon Bay, an area of stunning natural beauty. The park is open year around. Hours are 0600hrs to 2300hrs. There will be an entry fee. You can buy a daily pass or a yearly pass for all state parks. The best deal is for seniors. A $13 yearly fee will get you into all state parks for an entire year. $28 dollars a year for the younger set, and $38 for out-of-staters. If you want to camp, "Two loops of the Daisy Field campground offer a total of 123 campsites, 40 with electricity. Four group sites can each accommodate 30 people. Two of the group sites can accommodate trailers and motor homes and the other two sites are available for tent campers. Showers and a sanitary dump station are open in season." Firewood is available in the nice park store. Also, at the store, you can rent bicycles, kayaks, and canoes. There are drinks, snacks and camping supplies. If you want to hike, there are miles of trails for you to explore. Ask a friendly ranger for a park map when you enter the park. Just pull up to the window. Make sure you bring your binoculars because the birding is fun. If you don't mind chilly water there is a nice swim area with a spectacular view of the far side of Sturgeon Bay. For a grander view of the area make sure you climb the observation tower (if it is open). Also worthy of mention is the fact that the Eastern terminus of the 1200 mile Ice Age Trail is in this park. But that is another review for another day. My favorite time to visit is in the fall. It is a bit nippy; but the mobs of people are gone. Bottom line, this is a beautiful piece of Door County you won't want to miss. If you like getting out in nature in a safe and relatively remote bit of paradise it would behoove you to take the drive north. There are also several other parks on the peninsula that are worthy of visit. They are all beautiful. read more

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This was the second time I visited this state park. I love that it's in the Sturgeon Bay Area so your close to many things and also feel like you are getting away. I recommend combining a couple of the trails for a longer hike. Much of the terrain is flat with a few spots that have a little more incline. Great for all levels. If you like to bike, they also have some odd road trails and many bike the main roads too. Also a fun fact, the start of the famous ice age trail is in this park. read more

Potawatomi State Park - Parks Near Me - Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin

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This a beautiful, peaceful (at least in winter) park! Hubby and I recently took a quick weekend getaway and rented a home adjacent to the park. We had no idea that the park was there or what wonderful hiking trails it held. It was a beautiful sunny winter day. We had our dog (on leash) with us and the air was cold and crisp in our lungs. The park was pretty much empty except for a few locals that were out for a Sunday walk in the park. The ice glimmered on the branches that had splashed up from the lake. We spent a bit of time walking along the lake then we headed up into the wood. We had the absolute joy of seeing a pleated woodpecker flying and landing on trees overhead. The whole experience was just the right tonic for the pandemic blues! read more

Potawatomi State Park - The woods are beautiful, even in winter. - Parks Near Me - Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin

We have been to Door County countless times over the years, but had never made it here as we usually spend all of our time farther north. We had a "bonus day" though that was supposed to rain but turned out beautiful so we had to do something else outside! This park is great and I definitely want to come back to spend more time. We just did a short hike along the far end of the Ice Age trail and enjoyed some beautiful views. Be aware the cell signal gets sketchy so your maps app may fail intermittently while driving here...the signage is good though so we managed even without a paper map. The fire tower was open! We didn't climb it, but looks like there are great views based on others' pictures. As I've mentioned in other reviews, if you're planning to visit 3 or more Wisconsin state parks, the annual pass is a great deal! You can easily come out ahead on a week long trip. read more

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We bought a state park sticker this year specifically for hiking and camping. This state park is right out our back door. We decided to vheck out the hiking. They gave us a map which didn't help much. The trails were confusing. We ended up hiling the bike path. The trail markings are either colored arrows or rectangles. The observation tower is closed indefinitely. No indication of that until you get there. The park is clean and not to crowded. We'll be back to do another hike since we are so close. read more

A beautiful camping spot. One of the coolest things about this state park is it is where the Ice Age Trail originates. The trail along the bay is amazing, and the water is so clear. The woods walls are also beautiful. We stayed at campsite 100. It was a little rocky but still nice. My only criticism is that there is a road right next to the campsite, so if you are a light sleeper, it may be an issue. read more

Hiked some of the ice age segment and tower trail! Very pretty trail system especially hiking near the shoreline of Lake Michigan. Cool scenic spot at the ski outlook spot. There is a travel Wisconsin selfie stand too! We also kayaked from the boat launch area. The water was clear and saw lots of fish of different sizes swimming throughout near the shoreline waters. read more

Great park to hike for a few hours, nice options for canoe/kayak or bike rentals, well labeled signs on the trails, and beautiful views. We even spotted a mama deer with her two fawns! read more

Potawatomi State Park - Parks Near Me - Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin

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Took two of my kids camping here in mid-August from Wednesday thru Saturday and we had a great time. The trails are beautiful, although I think there are only around 9 miles of hiking trails. We rented mountain bikes at the park store ($18/4 hours with helmet) and hit the biking trails for a morning, which was fun. Biking seems to be a huge thing at this park. There are two campgrounds, we stayed at site 100. The campground that we were at had a couple of pull behind campers, but mostly tents and was quiet-even when it filled up for the weekend. The other campground was overrun with crowds and RVs and bigger campers-total turn off for us. That being said, there are park roads that run along the outside of the campground we stayed at. Be aware that if you are a light sleeper, you may want an inside campsite-one of the roads leads to the boat launch and apparently early fishing is popular here. Sites 104 and 105 seem to be just out of headlight range for the roads and don't back up to them. There are a couple of playgrounds for kids and several picnic areas, if that is your thing. The pit toilets are clean and don't smell at all. Also there is a building with showers and flush toilets, these are also very clean and well maintained. There is water here, we didn't drink it as it seemed to be heavy on the iron. Large picnic tables, rectangular fire pits with grates, and a moveable small sitting bench at every campsite. There are some ranger lead activities here, look for signs. Also, poison ivy does exist here-know your plants. read more

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Potawatomi State Park, outside of Sturgeon Bay, is good for tent camping, RV, hiking, running, with adequate fishing. Camped here and can't say enough good things about the Rangers. Their pride and care of the park and campsite is evident, from their knowledge of the area, to dedicated planting of seedlings throughout the camping area. We reserved online, and you can see pictures of your site before booking. The inner ring of sites have electric, good for RV camping, or hooking up that Fender and jamming out (witnessed that). The Rangers troll the camp area heavy here, by truck and on foot. They make new people feel welcome, and we even witnessed one re-planting a maple seedling at 8pm at night! The camp host came by to say hi, and made sure we were enjoying our stay. My son is big into fishing, but the windy rocky shore of Sturgeon Bay along the State Park was a complete miss on Day 1 (nobody on the pier was getting any bites) but was pretty good on Day 2. Schools of Perch, Rock Bass, Warmouth Bass, and the invasive Goby can be had here. I caught my first fish, ever- a red-eyed Rock Bass! We hiked the 2.5 mile Hemlock Trail here, which is also good to run, if you're a runner. We also went to the lookout Tower, but that was closed for repair (woh woh). Where Potawatomi falls short is lack of beach. The rocky cold shores of Sturgeon Bay along the Park offer no beach front property. Beaches can be had in the city of Sturgeon Bay, 3-5 miles away. We also used our visit here to take a day trip to Peninsula State Park and Door County, and "downtown" Sturgeon Bay is close enough for a pop-in for breakfast, gas, and groceries. read more

I absolutely loved my stay here!! This park offers so many fun activities during your camping stay, we fished, biked along their many mountain biking trails and hiked a bit too! The park is super close to Sturgeon Bay, which is cute and fun in itself, and the park is also close to all the other Door County must see's, fish creek, sister bay, what have you. Potawotomi was very well kept and the workers were all ulta friendly. read more

Potawatomi State Park - Parks Near Me - Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin

One of our favorite Door County parks to unload the bikes & enjoy! Bring a sharpie, look for the rock cave & sign a rock...the cave is not marked but is on the left after the first 3 parking lots...leave your sharpie for the next visitor... The tower is a bit rickety so we didn't make it to the top...again, one of our favorite bike trails & a must stop to find our rock from the honeymoon... read more

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Four of us went for a walk through the woods recently. It cost $11 for an out-of-state car. We started at the South Camp area and sent north along the Ice Age Trail. It's a good trail, but there are many rocks and roots, so your eyes are pointed down until the trail takes a sharp left and head toward the Observation Tower. There are places along the way to get down on rocks to take in the Bay views. We were thoroughly disappointed to find that the Observation Tower is PERMANENTLY CLOSED, especially since the point of our visit was to climb the tower and view the islands and Sherwood Point. It's particularly irritating because the Map that they give you shows the view that you are not permitted to see. i.e. a photo taken from the tower. Grr. On top of that, the DNR website features a similar photo. Worst of all, TravelWisconsin.com has a similar photo and describes "For a great overview of the bay, climb the 75 foot observation tower on Shore Rd." This is salt in a wound because we own a vacation rental house in Door County; paying over $5,000 in real estate taxes AND we pay income taxes as well. Meanwhile, the State, rather than maintaining this and other towers, has allowed them to fall into disrepair. The map that they hand out is not useful for walking. We became lost on the way back from the tower. The problem is that there are many trails that criss-cross, but they do not appear on the map. In general, the trail markings can't be trusted, so allow time to stumble around. Once you get away from the camping areas, it's quite peaceful and pretty, with some surprising elevation changes along the way. read more

Great park. Horrible camp hosts. Stole our wood and table clothes when we left the site tor 30minutes that we had booked for several days. Accused us of speeding when the vehicle hadn't left the site. Was rude about our dogs. Soured the entire experience read more

This park is perfect for beginner hikers. My husband and I loved the walk by the water on the tower trail. My dog even managed to walk in the cold water a bit. The wooded parts of the trail are beautiful even with all the leaves fallen off of the trees. I love that this is only an hour away from Green Bay and it was not jam packed like some of the other state parks. We will be back on a less windy day to go into the observation tower for sure. read more

Potawatomi State Park - Windy but fun trails. Good for beginners. - Parks Near Me - Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin

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Wow! This place has some amazing views and wonderful trails. The Ice Age Trail cuts through the park along the bay and is a super beautiful hike. The overlook tower gives a gorgeous view of the water and panoramic view of the area. We rode bikes through the park and it was a fun roller coaster ride of ups and downs. Lots of different recreation possibilities including camping. Definitely one of Wisconsin's better state parks! read more

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Awesome awesome awesome! Great big sites, great hiking paths Nx beautiful shoreline vistas. The tower view is not to be missed. Less commercial and equally as tranquil as Pennisula State Park. We went for the fall colors and were not disappointed! read more

Great campground, beautiful scenery, well maintained trails. What more could one ask for?

These reviews seem pretty inflated. The overall vibe of this campground is what you expect from parks in the Chicago burbs, not an actual woodsy, out-in-nature park. One big contributor to that feel is the municipal airport next door, with flights going over frequently in the daytime. The sites are quite close together and aren't particularly screened off by vegetation, so you are right there in your neighbor's business. There's not a good place to wash dishes, and the number of showers for the campground is well below adequate to the number of campers. Worst for me was the irritating suburban subdivision mentality that hit me like a slamming door from the time I got there. Within literally 5 minutes of arriving onsite I was asked for my camp tag, which I had yet to hang on the post because I was feeding my hungry kids. Leaving the site the first time, I went the wrong way on the camp loop, which was not marked as one way except at the beginning of the loop. I had missed this, but was driving about 8 mph the wrong way when a fellow camper on foot who I was passing whirled around and comically put up her hand in a traffic cop "halt" gesture, flagging me down to berate me. For the love of Mike, it's an honest mistake, and about as consequential as going down a parking lot row the wrong way. Ease up, dear, I know you're the treasurer of your association, but at the campsite you're just a pain in the rear. No thanks, Potawotami Park. No thanks, Door County, for that matter. I'd rather camp and vacation somewhere I can relax. Somewhere I can get away from city jerks. read more

What a SWEET place to hike and really get away from the crowds. We went hiking on Labor Day Weekend and barely even saw anyone else there. Expansive hikes, great water picnic views, highly recommend this park. read more