Tiffany Wildlife Area – Free Dispersed Primitive Camping (free permit required)
FREE, but a (free) PERMIT IS REQUIRED, and this is DISPERSED boat/canoe-access camping -- read this before you go. The Wisconsin DNR's own Special Camp Registration Permit form (2500-002A, rev. 02/2024) states in its notice that the form "serves as a permit to camp WITHOUT CHARGE at the special use area, per ch. NR 45" -- so there is no camping fee, but you MUST complete the form first and mail it to "WI DNR, PO Box 88, Alma, WI 54610" (or email it to the property manager per the DNR page), keep a copy at your campsite and post a copy on the dash of each vehicle in your party. Wisconsin does NOT require a vehicle admission sticker on a wildlife area (that sticker is only for state parks, forests and recreation areas), and no licence is needed for general recreation here. Tiffany Wildlife Area is a roughly 14,010-acre bottomland of the lower Chippewa River in Buffalo County (near Nelson and Alma, where the Chippewa meets the Mississippi). Camping is DISPERSED and PRIMITIVE: there are no numbered or reservable sites -- per the permit rules you pick your own primitive site, sites must be at least 100 yards apart, a site may not be left unoccupied more than one night, and camping is NOT allowed in parking areas or boat landings. Permits are issued for UP TO 14 NIGHTS, maximum 10 people per permit. NO GENERATORS; only small attended fires (the DNR may ban fires in emergencies); pack out everything you bring (garbage, tables, tarps) and do not cut living trees or shrubs. There is no drinking water and no toilet -- come fully self-contained. Access is chiefly by boat/canoe onto the river bottoms and islands; a public boat landing on the property is at about 44.4373, -92.07185. CAVEAT ON THIS PIN: because camping is dispersed with no published campsite coordinate, this pin is an AREA LOCATOR for the whole Tiffany Wildlife Area -- it marks the property, not a specific campsite. When you go, get your free permit first and use the DNR property map and the posted signs to choose a legal primitive site out in the bottoms. This is working wildlife land -- the camping season overlaps fall and spring hunting seasons, so wear blaze orange or plan around them. Rules can change -- confirm the current camping rules and any closures with the Wisconsin DNR before you go.
Everything you need — measured from Tiffany Wildlife Area – Free Dispersed Primitive Camping (free permit required) · public land · WI
- FFuel5 mi
- GGrocery5 mi
- @Mail6 mi
- ShShower7 mi
- WWater7 mi
- +Urgent care8 mi
- RxPharmacy11 mi
- LLaundry13 mi
- MMechanic16 mi
- DDump16 mi
- OOutfitter19 mi
- HHardware20 mi
- EVEV fast charger25 mi
- AAir-up27 mi
- PPropane60 mi
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 5 mi out.
One dot per need — the nearest of each kind, straight-line from camp. Places from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors); the EV fast charger from the US DOE station locator. Open in Google Maps ↗
The site — Tiffany Wildlife Area – Free Dispersed Primitive Camping (free permit required)
Nearby & resupply — around Tiffany Wildlife Area – Free Dispersed Primitive Camping (free permit required) · public land · WI (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureBuffalo Slough (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townMisha Mokwa · ~1.8 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~7.1 mi
- FuelMarathon · ~7.4 mi
- Propane / LPGSuburban Propane · ~20.0 mi
- Dump station~15.8 mi
- GroceriesHarbor Hill General Store · ~6.1 mi
- PharmacyKennedy Hallmark & Pharmacy · ~11.4 mi
- Hospital / clinicSaint Elizabeth Medical Center · ~6.7 mi
- HardwareAce Hardware · ~19.6 mi
EV charging — from Tiffany Wildlife Area – Free Dispersed Primitive Camping (free permit required) · public land · WI — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger25.0 mi straight-line W — Red Wing - Public Parking Lot (at a parking lot) · Non-Networked · CHAdeMO, J1772, CCS · 1 fast port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2025-12-12 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reachnone within 25 mi · 36 within 50 · 215 within 100 · 298 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)29.3 mi — Menomonie, WI - Tesla Supercharger, Menomonie
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)6.9 mi — EV UNDER BRIDGE CITY OF WABASHA · ChargePoint Network · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Pricing at the fast chargerFree (as listed by AFDC)
- Power (kW)not listed by AFDC — “DC fast” spans roughly 24 to 350 kW, so ask the network.
- Read this honestlyStraight-line miles, like every distance on this site. Roads run longer than this, and you have to get back. We know where a charger is listed. We don’t know if it works today, how fast it is, or the road miles. Check the network before you commit.
Snapshot 2026-09-16 · AFDC record 104986 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Tiffany Wildlife Area – Free Dispersed Primitive Camping (free permit required) · public land · WI — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Highway rest areaLake Pepin Rest Area · ~13.5 mi W
- Highway rest areaRest Area #61 · ~29.9 mi N
- Highway rest areaRest Area #62 · ~30.0 mi N
Open Tiffany Wildlife Area – Free Dispersed Primitive Camping (free permit required) elsewhere
How we know this — Tiffany Wildlife Area – Free Dispersed Primitive Camping (free permit required)
What we don’t know about Tiffany Wildlife Area – Free Dispersed Primitive Camping (free permit required)
A land record can put you within a few meters of a spot. It cannot tell you any of this — so check it yourself, and treat anything below as the open question it is.
- Road surface & last-mile access
- How many rigs actually fit
- Cell coverage by carrier
- Seasonal & winter access
- Current fire restrictions
- Whether any water here is drinkable
- Shade & wind exposure
- Noise and who else shows up
- Whether a listed EV charger works today, or the road miles to it