Recreation

Schmit Wildlife Area

Observation towers and Trumpeter Trail of Sandhill Wildlife Area

The Trumpeter Trail is now closed for the seasonNorth Bluff Tower is closed due to safety risks. We apologize for the inconvenience and any disappointment you may be experiencing. Your safety is of the utmost importance. We are evaluating solutions…

Sandhill settlement era

Wildlife and native habitats of this region have endured incredible changes during the past 150 years. Prior to settlement, wildfires were a dominant force influencing the composition and abundance of plant and animal life throughout Wisconsin.…

Sandhill Wildlife Area's Natural history and management

Sandhill Wildlife Area is managed as a wildlife demonstration area, a living laboratory used by wildlife biologists and researchers who test new wildlife management techniques designed to increase the abundance and diversity of wildlife native…

Sandhill game farm and the Grange era

During the peak of the Great Depression in the 1930s, an entrepreneur named Wallace Grange and his wife, Hazel purchased 9,460 acres of abandoned, tax-delinquent "wasteland." Before purchasing the land that would eventually become Sandhill…

Geology of Sandhill Wildlife Area

Sandhill Wildlife Area lies within the bed of historic Glacial Lake Wisconsin, which covered parts of Wood County and six neighboring counties. The lake formed out of the yearly runoff of meltwater from the great continental glaciers that…

Sandhill outdoor skills calendar

The Sandhill Outdoor Skills Center provides a variety of educational activities in the wide and wild world of wildlife recreation. Wildlife staff, volunteers and guest instructors conduct various workshops each year, primarily on weekends.…

Bison herd of Sandhill Wildlife Area

A herd of about 15 bison lives in a 260-acre enclosure along the Trumpeter Trail. Current management attempts to restore native prairie and oak savanna habitats within this enclosure. Bison were once found in southeastern Wisconsin, but…

Sandhill Wildlife Area

Sampson Extensive Wildlife Habitat Area