Mornin' to all the ‘Sconnies excited about the Special Olympics Fall Games being held in the Wisconsin Dells this year. This is the Wiscampsin Weekly - the email that gets you in the know on the Wisconsin outdoors in 5 minutes or less. New reader? Subscribe here.

This week’s weekly:

• State park sticker design winner 🏆

• Turtles need some help 🐢 

• Biking across Wisconsin 🚴 

State Park and Forest Vehicle Admission Sticker Design Contest Winner Announced

Phew. What a headline.

If you’re not out of breath from reading that, your heart rate will surely jump when you see the 2024 State Park sticker design!

“Feels like I ate a double Butterburger from Culver’s!”

The “shtick” on the sticker design contest:

• Open to all Wisconsin high schoolers

• Goal of increasing youth engagement with the outdoors

• Wisconsin is one of seven states with a park sticker design contest

How it works

Launched in 1991, the State Park sticker design contest is an attempt to get teens off the couch—and TikTok, Twitter, beating up their little brother, etc—and get ‘em out ‘der in the Great Wisconsin Outdoors.

The statewide contest, sponsored by the DNR, is open to all high school-age students attending Wisconsin public, private or parochial schools (or homeschooled).

Artwork entries are due by the end of April for the following year, and should revolve around Wisconsin plants, animals, or outdoor recreation.

The lucky winner gets to see his or her artwork as the State Park and Forest Vehicle Admission Sticker! How neat, eh?

Cripes, what a beaut!

Ok, ok, as promised—the winner. Drumroll please!

This year’s winner hails from none other than co-founder Forrest’s school of Slinger High, way out ‘der in Slinger, Wisconsin: Congrats, Samantha Williams!

A sophomore, Samantha won out of roughly 150 entries with her Loon + chick design.

Her design will be used for all Park and annual State Forest stickers, which go on sale November 24th, 2023.

But cripes, we can’t forget about the 2nd place, 3rd place, and honorable mentions (personally a huge fan of those critters sitting around the campfire).

Co-founder Kevin would also like to point out that co-founder Forrest’s school won in 2019 and 2022. Is it the water, or perhaps something more nefarious…?

Want to see all the past winners’ designs? Check ‘em out at the bottom of this page!

Other state park news

At a recent board meeting, Paul Neumann, Management and Budget Section Chief for the DNR made quite an announcement:

He doesn’t like tartar sauce on his Fish Fry. Wait—wrong notes. Ah, here it is…

Neumann said that the cap of 35% of DNR campsites being outfitted with access to electricity will be removed due to high demand for more electrical sites. A one-time spend of $1.5 million has been authorized for the renovations.

In addition to that, State Parks will be equipped with more payment tech, such as kiosks and credit card terminals to make purchasing permits easier.

Now get out ‘der and visit a State Park!

Other great Wiscampsin reads…

Wisconsin's Lifetime Fishing License

Wisconsin's Forgotten State Park

State Park Availability Alerts

Shop Wiscampsin

Wisconsin State Bird Art Print: “Very nicely made, great colors and design. It looks amazing in my home. Keep it up Wiscampsin ❤️” - Peggy

Wiscampsin Badgers Tee: “It’s the perfect t-shirt to show off my love for camping and Wisconsin at the same time :)” - Emily

Wiscampsin Recycled License Plate Frame: “Love it! Get out der! Makes my Mazda look even better” - Alex

Wiscampsin Mug: “Awesome mug, very lightweight, the mug doesn't get piping hot if you need to microwave your coffee either.” - Matthew

Wiscampsin Weekly Poll

Well folks, it was our most popular poll to date.

A whoppin’ 74% of you said you support the new proposed bill to make annual state park passes valid an entire year after the purchase date.

Nuts and Seeds 🌰 

🛥 Merrimac Ferry Reopens: … and why is the Merrimac Ferry relevant to all outdoors enthusiasts? You can officially complete the USBR30, the cross-Wisconsin bike route that starts at Lake Michigan and ends in Bluff Siding, Wisconsin on the Mississippi River! Fall is a perfect time to execute this 270ish mile route (the Wiscampsin founders chose to do it in three days). It even includes the famous Sparta-Elroy Trail!

🐢 Protect the Turt’s: Wood turtles across the country face population decline, so ‘Scon conservationists are trying to protect nesting sites. The DNR is prepping a yearlong survey to present to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which will decide if the wood turtle should be placed on the federal endangered species list.

💨 Our air stinks: The 2023 wildfires caused the worst air quality in Wisconsin in more than a decade. The DNR issued a “very unhealthy” air quality warning this year, the first time ever. See the full report on the air quality this past spring and summer here.

 Sponsored by Campnab:

⛺️ “Honey, you made a campsite reservation, right?”

Aw cripes.

Not only is your spouse totally ticked off, but now you might be stuck inside this weekend (instead of camping at your favorite State Park).

Or… you could sign up for Campnab. Campnab texts you when sold-out campgrounds become available, so you can snag last-minute reservations with ease.

As seen on Outside Online and RV Travel:

• Just drop in your phone number

• Pick your fav campsites or State Parks

• Get a text as soon as a canceled reservation opens up

TL;DR–you’ll spend less time searching for reservations, and more time camping.

Sign up for Campnab and get text alerts at your fav campsites this summer!

Want to sponsor the Wiscampsin Weekly?

Reply “Sponsor” and we will get back to you with the details!

Meme of the Week 😂

A review from the trail… A brat would taste good right about now!