FOND DU LAC COUNTY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Downed trees and flooding forced one Fond du Lac County campground to close during a normally popular time — Labor Day weekend.
The news was better for folks headed to the Long Lake Recreation Area in the Kettle Moraine State Forest.
It took a lot of hard work but the campground will remain open.
Extra help and equipment are what it took to keep the campground open for the holiday weekend.
Crews have been working around the clock to ensure the safety of campers and visitors.
“Significant staff efforts from six different properties in the local vicinity, bringing in efforts of manpower and heavy equipment, upwards of 600 to 700 hours in the last two days, forecasting into tomorrow, as well,” said Kettle Moraine State Forest superintendent Jason Quast.
There are roughly 200 campsites at the Long Lake Campground.
All but about 10 sites will be open to campers, but there are still some closures within recreational and picnic areas.
“Some of the recreational trails, such as the equestrian trails closed, because we have not had time to access how many trees may be down, the significance of the safety hazard and they are saturated,” Quast said.
It’s one of the busiest times of the year for the campground.
Quite a few people are expected this time around, including last-minute campers.
“As of five hours ago, we didn’t know if we were going to be camping or not, so we’re actually kind of lucky!” Joe Damico of Sheboygan said.
Others won’t be so lucky — campers who planned a trip to Waupun County Park will be disappointed.
With no power and limited water, directors decided the park wasn’t safe enough to open.
“We didn’t want to do it, but we thought, ‘Well, let’s go ahead and call it as soon as possible, so that people have advanced warning and, if they can, make other arrangements,” Fond du Lac County director of planning & parks Sam Tobias said.
The campground has a number of downed or hanging trees, and trails are still flooded or very muddy.
Directors say the park may not even be ready for a meet that’s supposed to take place there in two weeks.
Refunds or promo codes are being offered to those who have already made reservations at Waupun County Park.
