Black Tern Bog features a quaking sphagnum bog mat surrounding two seepage lakes, just a stone’s throw from USH 51 in Vilas County. Park along, but well off of the highway, wand walk east toward the bog and lakes. This was another site in which I was uneasy about where I had to park. Traffic…
Trout Lake Conifer Swamp, SNA #21 (220/675)
Trout Lake Conifer Swamp is a small, northern wet-mesic forest on a carpet of sphagnum moss found northeast of Woodruff in Vilas County. It is part of the Northern Highland-American Legion State Forest and can be reached via CTH N to Perch Lane, just northeast of the intersection of CTH M and CTH N. A…
Allequash Lake & Pines, SNA #508 (219/675)
Allequash Lake & Pines encompassees a mostly second-growth northern dry mesic forest surrounding the southern basin of Allequash Lake in Vilas County. Part of the Northern Highland-American Legion State Forest, this site can be reached by parking at the boat launch at the end of an access road heading east from CTH M. There are…
Coon Creek Cliffs, SNA #201 (218/675)
Coon Creek Cliffs encompasses a series of north-facing and seeping cliffs rich in mosses, liverworts, and ferns. Park along Jore Road, east of CTH P. The natural area lies south of the road. Take care in moving through the site as conditions are typically slick at any time of the year. Water was freely dripping, seeping, and…
Tunnelville Cliffs, SNA #542 (217/675)
Tunnelville Cliffs features a series of sandstone cliffs above the East Fork of the Kickapoo River southwest of La Farge. Access is via Tunnelville Road where the road bends sharply north. Park on the roadside near, but not blocking, the DNR access gate. Walk west into the site. From the road, the access lane passes…
Sugar Creek Bluff, SNA #338 (216/675)
Sugar Creek bluff features a dry prairie and southern dry-mesic forest overlooking the Mississippi River in Crawford County. Access is via Lagoon Street. Park beyond a gravel driveway and walk ~100 feet to the trailhead going north. A series of long switchbacks eventually leads you to the top and the dry prairie and scenic overlook….
Rush Creek, SNA #170 (215/675)
Rush Creek features a series of dry prairies on southwest-facing bluffs along a 2 mile stretch overlooking the Mississippi River. The namesake creek meanders through a portion of the site and a floodplain forest surrounds it. There are numerous points of access for the 9 separate parcels of land. The DNR-recommended access points are a…
Battle Bluff Prairie, SNA #177 (214/675)
Battle Bluff Prairie features a dry prairie on a steep slope and a bluff-topping southern dry forest overlooking the Mississippi River. The natural area is located along STH 35 north of De Soto. Park along Battle Hollow Road and get ready for a steep climb. After working your way through a band of shrubbery and small…
Romance Prairie, SNA #418 (213/675)
Romance Prairie features a dry prairie remnant and overgrown oak savanna and forest overlooking Cox Creek and the nearby town of Romance. The site is located nearly 6 miles east of Genoa on STH 56 and approximately 1/2 mile east of the North Fork of the Bad Axe River. The DNR site references an access…
Bergen Bluffs, SNA #415 (212/675)
Bergen Bluffs features a southern oak forest on and below the bluff slopes. Park at a wayside/scenic overlook on STH 35 between Stoddard and Genoa. There are no trails to be found at Bergen Bluffs aside from the occasional deer trail, so the degree to which you explore this site is really at your discretion….
Borah Creek Prairie (211/675)
Borah Creek Prairie features dry prairie remants on land surrounding Borah Creek in eastern Grant County, south of Fennimore. Park on the side of Mt. Ridge Road and walk in on the access lane heading west. This was the last stop on my latest weekend excursion to southwestern Wisconsin. As such, fatigue had set in…
Adiantum Woods (210/675)
Adiantum Woods features a gradient of forest types from mesic to dry on a slope overlooking the Wisconsin River across from Wauzeka. An access road leads north from CTH C to a parking area. Walk 1 mile north and then west on an old two-track logging road through a field to the southern boundary of…
Woodman Lake Sand Prairie & Dead Lake (209/675)
Woodman Lake Sand Prairie & Dead Lake features a sand prairie and barrens complex and the very shallow Deep Lake, all part of the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway. Access is via Woodman Lake Road north of STH 133 and the town of Woodman. A parking area is located on th east side of Woodman Lake…
Hogback Prairie (208/675)
The focus of Hogback Prairie is a ridge with a narrow crest and steep slopes of equal gradient. Dry prairie is found on the eastern and western slopes, while oak woods and an overgrown oak savanna are found to the south. The natural area is composed of 5 separate parcels accessible by local roads. Three…
Kickapoo Wild Woods (207/675)
Kickapoo Wild Woods encompasses forest types ranging from dry to mesic and floodplain strecthing from ridgetops down to the Kickapoo River 350 feet below. The site is comprised of two parcels north of Wauzeka with parking areas available from STH 131 and Badger Lane. Well, the rain that had begun at my previous stop, Wauzeka…
State Natural Areas of Wisconsin 