OCONTO COUNTY – Most of the 65 registrants for Oconto Falls’ Dri-Tri triathlon on July 12 brought bikes to pedal in the race, but for those who didn’t have a two-wheeler or a kayak ready to go, local merchants were stepping up to provide loaners.
Oconto River Rafting and Tubing LLC in Gillett planned to truck up kayaks to the riverfront in Oconto Falls for the timed event featuring kayaking instead of swimming, along with cycling and running.
For a prior race, participants were expected to pick up kayaks at the shop, said Jason Giese, proprietor at Oconto River Rafting LLC and Pulcifer Pub on WI-22 in Gillett. But this year, he decided to bring the kayaks to the race.
“It’s getting bigger and bigger,” Giese said.
The Dri-Tri is just one of the events in Oconto County that tourism marketers hope will draw people to see the area’s natural beauty. Tourists help to drive the local economy, according to data from the Wisconsin Department of Tourism, also called Travel Wisconsin.
In 2024, direct visitor spending totaled $102.3 million, up 1.5% from $100.8 million in 2023, according to Travel Wisconsin. The total economic impact, including employment income and taxes, was about $142 million in the county, up 1.5% from $140 million in 2023.
Tourism also contributed to about $8 million in taxes in Oconto County in 2024, TEDCOR said.
Just what will float tourists’ boats is what TEDCOR aims to find out in a survey it’s sending out, said Kelly Schwartz, director of marketing and communications for the destination marketing organization known for its “Visit Oconto County” marketing effort.
TEDCOR is working with Wisconsin’s Office of Outdoor Recreation on an economic impact study on fishing and other outdoor activities throughout Oconto County, she said. The study aims to collect demographics and other data on visitors.
Schwartz said TEDCOR hopes to help promote activities, lodging, restaurants and events visitors will enjoy.
The county has competition from Brown County, which generated a total tourism economic impact of about $1.41 billion in 2024 and from Marinette County, which generated about $272 million in total tourism impact.
Local municipalities, tribes and nonprofit organizations operating Travel Information Centers are eligible for special grants from Travel Wisconsin. The City of Marinette received a $9,000 Tourism Information Center grant for fiscal 2024, which ended June 30, and one for $13,000 for the upcoming fiscal year, said Logan Wroge, senior communications specialist at Travel Wisconsin.
Travel Wisconsin also offers Joint Effort Marketing (JEM) grants.
Marinette received a $10,125 grant for an event called “Blues, Brews and Barbecues in Marinette,” Wroge said, while Oconto County received a $9,562 grant for a destination marketing effort, “Oconto County, Who?”
Travel Wisconsin awards about $1.13 million in joint effort marketing annually to fund events, sales promotion activity and destination marketing, Wroge said.
“Ultimately, the JEM grant program assists tourism partners in marketing efforts that attract visitors, drive economic impact and elevate Wisconsin tourism,” he said.
Tourism grant programs are funded through the state budget, with about $34 million in the previous biennium contributing to an estimated 114 million visits to Wisconsin in 2024, including those for the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, according to the governor’s office. About $1.7 billion in local and state tax revenue from tourism supported about 182,000 jobs.
To hone in on top tourism interests for Oconto County, the TEDCOR survey includes several questions on angling, because sports fishing is a prime lure for many Oconto County visitors, said Schwartz, who also is an advisory member of the City of Oconto’s Tourism Commission.
“The focus is largely rooted in the underlying statement [that] Oconto County is the unofficial walleye capital of the world. We wanted to see what kind of meat and potatoes is behind that,” Schwartz said.
Anglers head to Oconto County year-round, with ice fishing popular in the winter and angling on inland rivers or the Bay of Green Bay a favorite summer pastime.
TEDCOR also wants families to be aware of how much wildlife Oconto County offers, she said. Bird-watching for purple martins, blue herons, snowy owls or turkey vulture roosts draws people to the area, Schwartz said.
The survey, available at https://bit.ly/ocontocountystudy, asks respondents what brings them to Oconto County to visit, what fish they try to catch, how many nights they stay and how many times they’ve visited the county in the past 12 months for fishing or other outdoor recreation.
TEDCOR worked with a consultant to create survey questions. “A lot of people ask what’s the impact of wildlife fishing or ATVing in your neck of the woods,” Schwartz said. Other destination marketing organizations in the state also are studying the impact of outdoor recreation, she said.
While Oconto is a large fishing community, people also visit for other purposes, she said. “Are they coming over to hike or to look at our birds?” The information the survey provides will be interpreted to help TEDCOR better target prospective visitors. In turn, the efforts should help increase foot traffic in local communities.”
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