Our Story
Lake Arrowhead is a family built, owned, and operated campground. In the 1960s, Bea and Arnold Malsack decided they wanted to start a campground business and moved their family from their small appliance store in Slinger, WI to a beautiful plot of farmland and forest in eastern Marquette County. Lake Arrowhead Campground, named after the arrowheads found years ago around the area, opened in 1971 with around a dozen campsites and a small camp store.
The campground was nearly entirely staffed by four people, Arnold, Bea, their son Phil, and Phil's fiancée Linda. Linda and Phil had met in college and were married in 1973 on the campground property. Each worked another full time job in addition to the campground, with Phil spending 22 years at the Marquette County Sheriff's Department primarily as Sheriff and Chief Deputy Sheriff. The campground was officially purchased by Linda and Phil in 1975 and the couple lived in a small house attached to the campstore.
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In the early 1980s Phil and Linda began having children and in 1989 built a new home adjacent to the campground for their family of five. Their children, Emily, Jessica, and Adam would grow up on the campground property, spending nearly every waking hour in the summertime out on the grounds with their camper friends.
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In 1998 the family had the opportunity to purchase Puckaway Shores Campground, a small ten acre park a mile and a half down the lakeshore from Lake Arrowhead. After a complete renovation of the campground, Lakeside Campground opened in spring of 1999 as an all seasonal park right on the shores of Lake Puckaway.
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In 2016 the family purchased Lighthouse RV Park, on the west side of Lakeside's lagoon, and rebuilt that park to be added to Lakeside Campground. They also purchased Puckaway Shores Manufactured Housing Community.
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In 2019 the family purchased property directly to the west of the Lake Arrowhead boat launch and swimming area, adding over 300 feet of frontage on Lake Puckaway. As of fall 2021, we've added 17 additional sites in this area, as well as a waterfront vacation rental cottage.
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Currently the Lake Arrowhead and Lakeside campground operation has grown to over 71 staff members and more than 360 sites. All four family members are part owners and still actively involved in the operation of the campground.
Adam Malsack
Owner
General Manager
Eldest of the Malsack children, Adam grew up catching turtles and camping in the woods behind the campground. Adam became a paid employee of the campground at age 9 when he began helping with Sunday trash collection. He stayed the closest to home for his education, attending college in Ripon and Madison, earning degrees in Computer Science, Mathematics, and Electrical Engineering. In fall of 2016 Adam married Rachelle, an ICU nurse, on the grounds at Lake Arrowhead near where Linda and Phil were married. They live near the campground with their two children, Anna and James. When he isn't working at the campground, Adam enjoys volunteering and spending time in the outdoors (including camping), and is involved in local theatrical organizations.
Jessica Malsack
Owner
Recreation Manager
Jessica is responsible for everything fun at the campground. She books the bands, she plans the egg tosses, she organizes Father's Day breakfasts. Jessica and her son Ekow live in Portage, making them the family members who live furthest from the campground. Also the most artistically inclined of the family, Jessica is great at the creative component of campground planning and management. She has a keen interest in people which led to her degree in Anthropology while in college in Texas and makes her especially good at understanding the needs and wants of a family of campers. In her free time Jessica enjoys reading, volunteering, traveling, and spending time outdoors.
Emily Truell
Owner
Administrative Manager
Emily Truell, the manager formerly known as Emily Malsack, handles the office, retail space, and site reservations. Emily is very precise with her work and an excellent keeper of "the details," making her ideally suited for keeping track of reservations and financial transactions. She's also the Malsack you are most likely to come into contact with first, as she takes the majority of the phone reservations throughout the year. Emily graduated from Western Washington University with a degree in Recreation. In her spare time she loves to read, volunteer, ski, bike, kayak. In 2013 Emily brought into this world the first member of the fourth generation, Audrey. Emily and her husband Alex live near the campground with their two daughters, Audrey and Ivy.