Snake Creek Fen encompasses fen, wet prairie, and sedge meadow communities along a short stretch of Snake Creek in . Put your walking shoes on, so to speak, as this site is 1 mile from the nearest intersection, Swamp Road to the west and Saint Marie Road to the east. Follow the grassy Snake Creek Recreational Trail to the natural area.
On both of my visits, I approached from the west. That said, I would recommend approaching from the east. The best fen portion of the site is the eastern portion, north and east of the creek and coming from the east will shave a few tenths of a mile off of your journey. A narrow moat of water separates the trail from the bulk of the natural area and was not difficult to cross. I wore rubber boots just in case I encountered any wet spots. Spotted joe-pye weed and various goldenrods and asters domianted the western portion of the site, but then graded into more shrubby cinquefoil, bottle gentian, nodding lady’s tresses, common foxglove, and field milkwort. I enjoyed this site and found it particularly nice this time of year (my most recent visit was this past weekend), despite a mile + walk in 85-degree weather in rubber boots. There is also a tamarack swamp located on the south side of the trail (not within the natural area boundaries) that would be interesting to explore earlier in the year. Snake Creek Fen is definitely a site that I will be returning to explore.
More of my photos (and full-res) from Snake Creek Fen can be viewed here.
Additional Information
| SNA # | 281 |
| County | Green Lake |
| Natural Communities / Geology | Fen, Wet Prairie, Southern Sedge Meadow |
| Size (Acres) | 18 |
| Parking | Roadside |
| Trails | Yes (to reach); No (within) |
| Easy to Find | Yes |
| Best Seen By | Foot |
| Marked Boundaries | No |
| Ownership | Wisconsin DNR |
| Located Within |
n/a |
| Dates Visited | 7.8.12 / 9.5.16 |
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State Natural Areas of Wisconsin 