CAMPANAC.
U.S. Forest Service · WI

Bear Lake Recreation Area

OpenSeason 05-02 – 11-30
UnlistedAccess

The place

The Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest has an abundance of outdoor recreation opportunities at the Bear Lake Recreation Area including camping, fishing, swimming, kayaking and canoeing. Only electric motors are allowed on Bear Lake providing a quiet and relaxing environment. The Rat River Recreational Trail is a good nearby hiking opportunity and popular with grouse hunters and fall color enthusiasts. The Bear Lake Campground sits on the southwest corner of 68-acre Bear Lake with some sites located along the wooded shore and ridge with outstanding views of the lake. The campground is a mix of hardwoods and pine. Keep reading

Bear Lake Campground has 27 sites. A majority of campsites can accommodate campers as long as 30 feet and longer. The campground also has five tent-only walk-in sites on a wooded peninsula jutting into the lake. Drinking water, vault toilets, swim beach, picnic area and a boat landing are also provided at this location. All roads are paved with blacktop. Bear Lake is in close proximity to the Rat River Recreation Trail. Trout fishing opportunities are also nearby on the Peshtigo and Rat Rivers.

SRC · USFS Enterprise Data Warehouse · 2026-08-24

Booking

183 daysBooking window before arrival

Recreation.gov default: most campsites can be booked six months prior to arrival date. Most campgrounds go on sale at 7am PT / 8am MT / 10am ET, but not always; check the facility Seasons and Fees tab. Some locations also offer shorter supplemental booking windows.

SRC · Rules verified against recreation.gov · 2026-08-24

Fees

Individual campsite fee is$15, or $7.50 with the use of an Interagency pass (access or senior). The interagency pass applies only to the fee for the campsite physically occupied by the pass holder, not to any additional fees or campsite(s) occupied by members of the pass holder's party. There is a $5 day use pass for the boat landing beach. This does not apply to registered campers. The Forest also has an annual pass available for $30. To learn more visit https://www.fs.usda.gov/main/cnnf/passes-permits/recreation .
SRC · USFS Enterprise Data Warehouse · 2026-08-24

Your representative

This campground sits in WI-07. This member’s public-lands record →

SRC · U.S. Census TIGER · MTJP Scorecard