RV Roadie
If you’re looking for a campground near Frederic, Wisconsin — the kind with full hookups, a wooded site to back into, and a genuine Wisconsin bar and grill just steps from your door — Sundown Saloon and Campground on Highway 35 is the one we keep coming back to. We’ve spent six summers here now in the little unincorporated town of Lewis, right where Polk County meets Burnett County, and while this is our last season parked on the grounds, it’s the place that taught us more about people than any spot we’ve stayed. This is our honest review: what the campground is actually like, what the food and the outdoor bar bring to it, and why a tiny dot on the map has held onto a piece of our hearts.
Where Sundown Sits — and the Highway 35 You Actually Want
Sundown Saloon and Campground sits right on Wisconsin Highway 35 in Lewis, about four and a half miles north of Frederic, whose name you’ll see on the mailing address since Lewis itself is too small to have its own. We’re at the very northern tip of Polk County here — Burnett County and the town of Siren are just a couple of miles up the road. And here’s a detail worth getting straight before you set your GPS: don’t confuse Wisconsin Highway 35 with Interstate 35 over in Minnesota. They’re two completely different roads. I-35 is the big multi-lane freeway on the Minnesota side of the border that takes you up to Duluth; Wisconsin Highway 35 is the simple, two-lane state highway you actually want — pretty much a straight shot up into the northern woods wilderness, heading towards Superior, roughly an hour and a half north of here.
It’s a road built for the scenic route, not the fast one. On a summer weekend you’ll hear the motorcycles before you see them — bikers love this stretch for exactly the reason you will, the trees and the water and the small-town quiet rolling by. If you’re the kind of traveler who’d rather take the beautiful way north than the quick way, this is your highway, and Sundown is a natural place to pull off it.
Right on the Gandy Dancer Trail — a Four-Season Stop
Here’s the detail that makes Sundown special beyond the highway: we sit right along one of the most popular trails in Wisconsin, the Gandy Dancer State Trail. Built on a former railroad corridor, the Gandy runs through Polk, Burnett, and Douglas counties, and its 47-mile southern segment connects a string of small towns from St. Croix Falls all the way up to Danbury — with Lewis right on the line. That means we’re not just a summer place. In the warm months, bicyclists and hikers roll through town on the trail; in winter, the Gandy becomes a snowmobile route, and we get a steady stream of sledders pulling in cold and hungry looking for a hot meal and a warm bar.
It makes Sundown a genuine year-round stop, which is rarer than you’d think up here. The trail runs right across the street from us — there are short paths that connect over to the campground, so whether you’re pedaling the trail in July or riding your sled through the January snow, you can hop off, cut across, and warm up with a hot meal and a cold drink.
This is big side-by-side country in the warmer months, too — the Gandy Dancer itself is people-powered in summer and doesn’t allow ATVs, but the surrounding area has plenty of routes and there’s always some kind of UTV run or event rolling through. We don’t have one ourselves, but watching the groups head out together, it sure looks like a good time. And come fall, this is deer country through and through: we run a deer weigh-in station during hunting season, with prizes for the biggest buck brought in. If you know northern Wisconsin, you know how big deer hunting is up here, and that weigh-in station is one more reason the locals treat this place as headquarters.
The Campground: Full Hookups, Shade, and a Spot for Passing Through
Let’s talk about the practical side, because that’s what you came here to know. The sites at Sundown are full hookup — water, electric, and sewer — set back in a wooded, shaded setting that stays comfortable even in the thick of a Wisconsin July. It’s a genuinely pleasant place to park a rig, quiet at night and green all around you.
Now, one honest note that matters for planning. The seasonal sites here are in high demand, and right now there’s a waiting list to lease one for the summer — which tells you everything about how much this little place is loved. But don’t let that turn you away if you’re passing through, because Sundown welcomes overnight and short-stay RVers too. For travelers making the run up Highway 35 toward Superior, that’s the good news: you can roll in for a night or two, plug into full hookups under the trees, and have dinner and a cold drink without ever starting your truck again. We’d just say call ahead — a small popular campground fills up, and a quick phone call saves you the guesswork.
The Bar and Restaurant: Where Sundown Really Shines
Here’s what sets Sundown apart from an ordinary campground: you’re not just parking at a campground, you’re parking at a genuine Wisconsin bar and grill with a kitchen that has won awards for its food. I’ve worked behind this bar cooking and serving over the years, and this summer Bob’s the one back in the kitchen — he’s cooking as I write this. So when I tell you the food is worth staying for, that’s not a passing tourist’s opinion. That’s six years of watching plates go out and come back empty.
This isn’t fussy supper-club fare — it’s the good stuff: burgers, fries, pudding shots, and their famous monkey balls, which we’ll let you stop in and discover for yourself. But the burgers are the headliner, and they’ve earned it. Sundown makes some of the best burgers around, and they don’t cut corners to do it: every one is a half pound of real ground chuck — not cheap hamburger — served on a toasted ciabatta bun. They are huge. Honestly, most people end up boxing half of theirs to take home, which around here is practically a badge of honor. Don’t just take our word for it, either — a fellow who travels around reviewing Wisconsin dive bars stopped in and captured it all on video: the bar, the burgers, the deer weigh-in, and the owners who make the place what it is.
There’s one more thing I can vouch for that most reviewers never can: this is one of the cleanest kitchens I have ever seen, and I know because I’ve worked in it. It’s not just my opinion, either — the health department told them they’d never seen such a clean bar and restaurant, and that’s not a compliment they hand out lightly. Anyone who’s read how particular we are about where we eat on the road knows we don’t say that lightly either — we’ve walked out of plenty of places over the years. Sundown is one spot Bob and I never have to think twice about. When you’ve scrubbed the line and prepped the food yourself, you know exactly what’s going on back there, and here it’s the real deal.
The real magic, though, is the beautiful outdoor bar and the band stage. There is almost always something going on — live music on a summer night, meat raffles run for a good cause, benefit fundraisers where the whole area turns out. The best way to see what’s coming up is to follow Sundown on Facebook, where they post their events, bands, and daily happenings. It’s the beating heart of these small towns, the place everyone ends up. If you’ve never experienced a northern Wisconsin meat raffle on a warm evening with a band playing, put it on the list. It’s the kind of thing you can’t plan a vacation around, but you’ll be glad you stumbled into it.
The People — and What This Place Really Taught Us
Bob and I have become friends with the owners over these six years, and we’ve always pitched in where we could — working the cancer fundraiser every summer, lending a hand when there’s a hand needed. That’s just how it works in these small towns, where folks tend to know what you’re up to before you do. And when we hit a stretch of our own one summer where we couldn’t make it back, this community showed up for us in a way we’ll never forget.
I’ll leave you with the thing Sundown gave us that has nothing to do with hookups or menus. I always believed you made your friends where you lived — that if you felt warm and settled with the people around your own home, you had it made. What full-time RV life has taught us, and what this little campground in Lewis proved, is that there are good people absolutely everywhere. We’ve made some of the finest friends we’ve ever known here, and in one stop after another all the way down the road. That’s the real review. The full hookups are great. The people are the reason we came back six times.
Planning Your Own Visit
If you’re mapping a trip through Polk or Burnett County up scenic Highway 35, or riding the Gandy Dancer in any season, Sundown makes an easy and memorable stop. The local spot where the food’s real and the room is full of regulars is almost always the one worth pulling over for — it’s exactly the kind of place worth building a slow travel day around.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Sundown Saloon and Campground located?
It’s on Wisconsin Highway 35 in Lewis, an unincorporated community at the northern edge of Polk County, about 4.5 miles north of Frederic, Wisconsin — with Burnett County and Siren just a couple of miles up the road. Because Lewis is so small, the mailing address uses Frederic (3508 State Rd 35, Lewis, WI 54837). Just don’t confuse Wisconsin Highway 35 with Minnesota’s Interstate 35 across the border — they’re two different roads, and the one you want is the small two-lane Wisconsin state highway.
Is Sundown on the Gandy Dancer Trail?
Yes. Sundown sits right along the Gandy Dancer State Trail in Lewis, one of the towns on the trail’s 47-mile southern segment. The trail is used for biking and hiking spring through fall and becomes a snowmobile route in winter, so it’s a convenient trailside stop in any season.
Does the campground have full hookups?
Yes. The sites offer full hookups — water, electric, and sewer — in a wooded, shaded setting.
Can I stay overnight, or is it seasonal only?
Both. There’s a waiting list for seasonal sites because they’re in high demand, but Sundown also welcomes overnight and short-stay RVers. Call ahead to check availability, especially on summer weekends.
Is there food on site?
Yes — Sundown has an award-winning bar and grill known for some of the best burgers around, made from a half pound of real ground chuck on a toasted ciabatta bun (they’re huge — plan to take half home). You’ll also find fries, pudding shots, and their locally famous monkey balls. There’s a beautiful outdoor bar with a band stage, plus frequent live music, meat raffles, community fundraisers, and a deer weigh-in station during hunting season.
Is Highway 35 a good scenic drive?
Very much so. Wisconsin Highway 35 is a two-lane state highway that runs a fairly straight shot up through the northern Wisconsin woods toward Duluth and Superior. It’s popular with motorcyclists for its scenery and makes a relaxed, pretty drive north — just don’t mix it up with Minnesota’s Interstate 35, which is a different road across the border.