As the 2026 camping season reaches its midpoint, Pine View Campground at Fort McCoy continues to see strong visitation, with full weekends, increasing extended stays, and steady demand for outdoor recreation.
The campground, managed by the Fort McCoy Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation (DFMWR), opened for the season May 1 and is celebrating its 54th year of providing camping and outdoor recreation opportunities at the installation. Located within the Pine View Recreation Area, the campground offers campsites, cabins, hiking trails, fishing, boating, swimming, miniature golf, equipment rentals, and numerous other recreational activities for military members, their families, Department of War civilians, veterans, and members of the public.
According to Alex D. Karis, supervisory recreation specialist (facility manager) with the DFMWR Business Recreation Division’s Outdoor Recreation program, the 2026 season has gained momentum after a slightly slower start.
“There was a couple of weeks right after Memorial Day that were a little bit slower than we’re used to,” Karis said. “Memorial Day was early this year, so I think there were some people who didn't have their campers out yet because of graduation season.”
Since then, campground activity has increased considerably.
“The last couple of weekends we’ve been fully booked,” Karis said. “Today we had people here right at 9 o’clock in the morning getting their campers ready to go off site, and we're renting things out on the water.”
Karis said one encouraging trend has been the return of longer camping trips.
“We’re starting to see a little bit more of a pickup of people coming back on Thursdays, which is nice,” he said. “A couple of years ago we were averaging around 70 to 75 percent occupancy on Thursdays. This year we're back up in that 40 to 50 percent range compared to last year when we were closer to 20 or 30 percent.”
That increase suggests more visitors are choosing extended weekends rather than limiting their stay to Friday through Sunday.
“We’re starting to see people taking a little bit more of an extended weekend type thing and making it a three- or four-day weekend instead of just coming out Friday and Saturday and going home on Sunday,” Karis said.
The campground remains one of Fort McCoy's premier recreational destinations. With more than 170 campsites, multiple cabin options, access to the La Crosse River and Suukjak Sep Lake, and nearby attractions such as Trout Falls and Whitetail Ridge Ski Area, Pine View Recreation Area welcomes approximately 65,000 visitors annually.
In addition to camping, visitors can enjoy kayaking, canoeing, paddle boating, fishing, hiking, disc golf, miniature golf, volleyball, basketball, playgrounds, and seasonal special events organized by DFMWR. Throughout the summer, the recreation area also hosts weekly movies, equipment rentals, and family-friendly activities.
Karis also discussed improvements to transportation around the recreation area with the completion of a new bridge crossing the La Crosse River. While operational details were still being finalized, he said the bridge is expected to improve efficiency for staff members once fully available for authorized use.
“It will definitely make things more efficient for us,” Karis said. “When we’re having to run back and forth from the ski hill to the campground, we won’t have to drive all the way around.”
The bridge will improve access for campground and recreation area operations while helping DFMWR staff better support activities throughout Pine View Recreation Area.
The campground has also benefited this summer from support provided by volunteers, including Soldiers attending Regional Training Site-Maintenance at Fort McCoy. Soldiers assisted with preparations for the annual Down & Dirty Trail Run in June, helping set up obstacles and supporting race-day operations while allowing campground staff to continue serving visitors during one of the area's busiest periods.
As the camping season continues through the fall, Karis said the strong weekend occupancy, growing number of extended stays, and steady use of recreational amenities indicate another successful year for Pine View Campground.
Pine View Campground remains open through the fall camping season to Nov. 30, while many of its lodging options and recreational opportunities continue to support year-round outdoor recreation at Fort McCoy.
See more about Pine View Campground by visiting [https://mccoy.armymwr.com/programs/pine-view-campground or call 502-898-3517](https://mccoy.armymwr.com/programs/pine-view-campground%20or%20call%20502-898-3517).
Learn more about Fort McCoy online athttps://home.army.mil/mccoy, on Facebook by searching “ftmccoy,” on Flickr at https://www.flickr.com/photos/fortmccoywi, and on X (formerly Twitter) by searching “usagmccoy.” Also try downloading the My Army Post app to your smartphone and set “Fort McCoy” or another installation as your preferred base.
Fort McCoy is also part of Army’s Installation Management Command where “We Are The Army’s Home.”