An oxbow lake, shrub-carr, bottomland hardwood forest, oak barrens, and oak savanna are among the 1 variety of plant communities compose Smith Slough & Sand Prairie SNA. There are a couple gravel parking areas and boat launches associated with the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway that provide starting points of exploration. Getting around this site, however,…
Ferry Bluff, SNA #217 (10/674)
Ferry Bluff, along with its sister bluff Cactus, rise more than 300 feet above the Wisconsin River at its confluence with Honey Creek and provide stunning vistas. The gravel road to reach the site is rather narrow but there is ample parking. From there a trail follows the river before beginning a climb to the…
Parfrey’s Glen, SNA #1 (9/674)
A deep sandstone gorge dominates the site at Parfrey’s Glen, Wisconsin’s first State Natural Area. Designated in 1952, the area contains Parfrey’s Glen Creek, having cut through the Cambrian sandstone to form the gorge. The wet rock walls provide the environment for a more northern type of forest containing yellow birch, mountain maple,and red elder…
Baxter’s Hollow, SNA #82 (8/674)
Blankets of wildflowers fill the gorge at Baxter’s Hollow and avian melodies fill the air around Otter Creek. Perhaps a reflection of its glacial origins, Baxter’s Hollow is a site that is in seemingly constant flux. Heavy spring rains flood the gorge and wield immense power. During my first visit, I came upon a washed-out…
Pewits Nest, SNA #200 (7/674)
Shaded cliffs overlooking a 40-foot gorge with Skillet Creek flowing below await you at Pewits Nest. So-named for “an individual who lived in the solid sandstone, like a gnome in a cavern. His abode was some ten feet above a deep pool of water. This dwelling resembled the nest of a phoebe (or peewit, an earlier…
McGilvra Woods, SNA #206 (6/674)
Rich displays of spring ephemeral wildflowers greet visitors to McGilvra Woods, though a visit in any season is a treat. My visits were in summer and fall, the latter providing a colorful display of autumnal sugar maples. As there are no trails, I leisurely meandered around the site, working my way aroudn the occasional downed…
Ableman’s Gorge, SNA #75 (5/674)
Rising 200 feet above the Baraboo River, Ableman’s Gorge is a 3/4 mile long gorge cut through quartzite. It contains world-famous erosional impacts of an ancient sea on the Precambrian quartzite and has been well-studied by geologists, especially at UW-Madison, over the years. My visit here predates the installation of a trail and therefore it…
Cady’s Marsh, SNA #72 (4/674)
Cady’s Marsh is a bit or a misnomer. Although some marsh is present, the focus of preservation at the site is an interesting mix of prairie types (wet/dry) and sedge meadow. It is a site that I have been to twice and still feel I need to see again to see it at its peak. …
Tower Hill Bottoms, SNA #33 (3/674)
Tower Hill Bottoms is located, appropriately enough, within Tower Hill Sate Park, one of Wisconsin’s lesser known state parks. The park is so named due to its mid-1800’s usage as a lead shot production facility. The trail to reach the top of the hill is quite steep. At the base of the hill, is a…
Hemlock Draw, SNA #535 (2/674)
Hemlock Draw is a property owned by The Nature Conservancy and the site of recent invasive species control efforts, in particular buckthorn and garlic mustard. The site is seemingly hemmed in by agricultural fields, but natural beauty awaits within. There is a narrow hiking trail that leads beyond a TNC gate through the forest and…
Follow My Progress
There are various ways to follow my progress: This blog Flickr, where the bulk of my photos are posted SNA’s Alphabetically SNA’s by County Instagram, where I post a photo per day in the order of my visits so far Capture Wisconsin, where I post mostly, but not exclusively, SNA photos Facebook, where I post…
SNA’s by County
Adams Florence Marathon Rusk Ashland Fond du Lac Marinette Saint Croix Barron Forest Marquette Sauk Bayfield Grant Menominee Sawyer Brown Green Milwaukee Shawano Buffalo Green Lake Monroe Sheboygan Burnett Iowa Oconto Taylor Calumet Iron Oneida Trempealeau Chippewa Jackson Outagamie Vernon Clark Jefferson Ozaukee Vilas Columbia Juneau Pepin Walworth Crawford Kenosha Pierce Washburn Dane Kewaunee Polk…
IAT: Merrimac
This segment begins near the outer reaches of Devil’s Lake State Park, specifically the Roznos Meadow. I was able to serve as a field editor for the latest edition of the IAT Field Guide and Atlas. Here is the description I wrote, as modified from the 2011 version:This segment highlights the diverse landscape of Riverland…
Life Bird List
Current Life Birds: 237 Endeavoring to post photos of from my lifebird list, in alphabetical order. Links to be added as I post each page. Acadian Flycatcher American Avocet American Bittern American Black Duck American Coot American Crow American Flamingo American Goldfinch American Kestrel American Oystercatcher American Redstart American Robin American Tree Sparrow American White Pelican…
Birds A to Z: American Coot
Endeavoring to post photos of from my lifebird list, in alphabetical order… Common Name American Coot Scientific Name Fulica americana Lifebird # tbd First sighting 7.11.09
State Natural Areas of Wisconsin 