Overview
- Park officials announced July 9 that Three Mile Campground will be closed to tent, hammock and group camping through July 31 with the possibility of extension if the wolf continues to return.
- The closure responds to an individual wolf that over the past week was observed sniffing and pawing tents, dragging backpacks and entering a tent, behavior officials say shows habituation and growing reliance on human food.
- During the closure staff will step up daytime nonlethal hazing methods such as shouting, stomping, clapping, airhorns and firing paintball rounds to deter the animal from developed areas.
- Noise-producing alert devices will be installed at Three Mile, Rock Harbor and Daisy Farm campgrounds and visitors are being urged to follow 2026 food storage rules to remove food and scented attractants from campsites.
- The incident sits inside Isle Royale’s long history of wolf research and fluctuating wolf numbers, and park managers say changing visitor behavior and continued monitoring will determine whether campsites can reopen on Aug. 1.