Red Sands Beach is one of two designated swimming beaches in South Wood County Park, a Wood County park of a little over 300 acres that wraps around most of Lake Wazeecha just east of Wisconsin Rapids. The lake is a reservoir formed in the 1930s when Fourmile Creek (also called Buena Vista Creek) was dammed, and the Wisconsin DNR puts it at about 140 acres with 5.3 miles of shoreline. Red Sands sits on the south shore along South Park Road, toward the east end of the lake. The park's other beach, White Sands, is on the north shore near the dam off Wazeecha Avenue.

The park address is 7111 South Park Road, Wisconsin Rapids. From town, head east and pick up South Park Road, which runs along the south side of the lake past the campground and the boat landing. The Red Sands area has its own paved parking lots right behind the beach, a playground, an open picnic shelter and a stone enclosed shelter. A Wisconsin Historical Society marker for the State Water Ski Show Championships stands just west of the beach.

The swim area is a sand beach facing north onto the main body of the lake. Lake Wazeecha is shallow for its size, with a maximum depth of about 20 feet and an average of 8 feet, so the water warms quickly once summer arrives. There's no current to speak of, though the lake gets steady boat traffic and water skiing outside the beach area. Wood County's park pages say nothing about lifeguards, so plan on swimming without one. Swimming is a summer-season use, so expect the beach to be quiet outside it. The DNR samples water at a station it labels the South Park Road Red Beach, and its assessment of the lake found phosphorus and chlorophyll levels well under the thresholds for recreational use, and the lake is not listed as impaired.

Swimming at Red Sands is free. Wood County's fee schedule lists no beach or park entry charge, and the parking lots are open to anyone. You'll only pay if you launch a boat ($7 a day or $25 a year, with the pass displayed on your windshield), camp, or reserve a shelter. The Red Sands open shelter rents for $250 a day. Call the Parks and Forestry office at 715-421-8422 for current park hours.

The biggest thing to plan around is the Wisconsin State Water Ski Show Championships, held every July at Red Sands. The tournament dates to 1967. The beach closes for that week, usually in mid-July, and the lake itself sees closures during the tournament. If you show up during ski show week, expect crowds and no swimming at Red Sands. Otherwise watch for boats and skiers, and check the county's announcements page before a trip.

The rest of South Wood County Park makes a full day easy. There's a 4.1-mile multi-use hiking and biking trail around the lake (free, and not groomed in winter), the Willow Run Disc Golf Course just east of the beach, an accessible fishing dock, and a 73-site campground on the south shore. The lake holds walleye, bass, northern pike, bluegill and crappie, and canoes, kayaks and paddleboards are a common sight.