Mead Conifer Bogs includes northern wet forest, shrub-carr, and bog habitats spanning the intersection of 3 counties in central Wisconsin: Wood, Portage, and Marathon. The larger eastern parcel spans the northwest corner of Portage County and crosses into south-central Marathon County while the smaller western parcel rests in the northeast corner of Wood County. It is part of the George Mead State Wildlife Area, a massive property with great birding opportunities as well.
Access is available near the northwest and southeast corners of the larger parcel via parking areas at the ends of County Line Road and Blueberry Lane, respectively. I first attempted reaching the site from the first access which leads into a northern wet forest community and quickly encountered high water that would have breached the level of my rubber boots and precluded a reasonable route deeper into the area. Easier access is available from the Blueberry Lane parking area, where the initial route is through shrub-carr. Unfortunately, I did not have as much time to spend at this site as I would have liked and it lands firmly on my ‘must revisit’ list, probably in 2018.
More of my photos (and full-res) from Mead Conifer Bogs can be viewed here.
400 more blog posts to go! Well, actually a few more than that remain; counting SNA’s delisted since I started and a few SNA’s to be designated, the current total is 687, though hopefully, that will increase!
If you would like to help support this project, please consider a donation. There are many SNA’s yet to visit and even more to revisit and I ultimately plan to write a book about my adventures. Thank you!
Additional Information
| SNA # | 373 |
| County | Wood, Portage, Marathon |
| Natural Communities / Geology | Northern Wet Forest, Shrub-Carr, Bog |
| Size (Acres) | 932 |
| Parking | Parking Areas |
| Trails | No |
| Easy to Find | Yes |
| Best Seen By | Foot |
| Marked Boundaries | No |
| Ownership | Wisconsin DNR |
| Located Within | Mead Wildlife Area |
| Dates Visited | 6.14.13 |
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State Natural Areas of Wisconsin 
Joshua,
Very cool what your trying to accomplish. As someone who is also enamored by WI’s SNA’s (I spend the majority of my free time exploring/”botanizing” in these areas), I look forward to seeing more of your posts this coming Spring/Summer/Fall. A note about your trip to Mead Conifer Bog: I recently accessed the main unit (nearest the visitor center) by hiking there from the centers gravel parking area. It was a bit of a trek, but I ended up in a gorgeous portion of the bog, dominated by black spruce. I couldn’t tell from your photos if you had reached such a place, but If you return there I highly recommend searching for similar spots within the SNA (There was a TON of Pink Lady’s Slipper).
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