DNR Parks And Recreation News
What’s Happening In Wisconsin's State Parks, Trails,
Forests And Recreation Areas
A group of friends enjoying some fishing in Madison. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR
Featured Activity: Free Fun Fishing
This weekend, June 4-5, is the 10th Annual Free Fun Weekend across the Wisconsin State Park System. State park admission fees and trail passes are waived for all visitors.
Fishing license fees and trout and salmon stamps are also waived this weekend! In addition to free fishing, several state properties are leading free fishing clinics and also offer free loaner tackle boxes and fishing equipment.
Fishing is a beloved Wisconsin pastime. Home to the Friday Fish Fry tradition and an abundance of rivers, lakes and streams, Wisconsin is a world-class fishing destination. Whether you're a seasoned pro, amateur angler or haven't picked up a pole in years, Free Fun Weekend is a wonderful opportunity to cast a line.
What’s biting? This is prime time for catching walleye, coho salmon and smallmouth bass, among other fish species. Last weekend, musky fishing also opened across parts of northern Wisconsin. You can fish from a boat, kayak, canoe, paddleboard, off a fishing pier (find accessible piers here), from shore or right in the stream.
Regular 2022 fishing regulations still apply, including bag and length limits. Read more about Free Fishing Weekend here.
Before you've worked up an appetite fishing for your Sunday dinner, join the Friends of Harrington Beach for a Sunday morning pancake breakfast!
FRIENDS OF HARRINGTON BEACH PANCAKE BREAKFAST
Harrington Beach State Park
Sunday, June 5, 8 a.m. - noon
Join the Friends of Harrington Beach State Park and enjoy a free pancake breakfast during Free Fun Weekend.
This is a great time to learn more about the Friends group and everything they do.
Meet at the Ansay Welcome Center.
Did you know? The muskellunge (Esox masquinongy) is one of Wisconsin's most important and unique fish. It is so highly valued that the state legislature proclaimed it the official State Fish in 1955. More musky world records have been landed in Wisconsin than anywhere else. The current state and world record is a tremendous 69-pound, 11-ounce fish taken from the Chippewa Flowage. Source: DNR
Outdoor News & Announcements
National Trails Day Is June 4
On National Trails Day, celebrate hometown trails and show your support for trail networks! Whether by foot, bike, horse, ATV, or watercraft, Wisconsin has over 24,000 miles of trails to enjoy. If you can’t make it to a state park, forest or trail, check out a local trail in your county or city.
On National Trails Day, it's important to get outside and recreate, but it’s also important to be a steward of your community. While you’re outside, be sure to help clean up trash, remove an invasive species or clear the trail of brush for others. Pledge to keep your favorite trails better than you left them. Remember to “Leave no trace” that you were there. And of course, have fun and enjoy the outdoors!
Sporting Events In The Park System
From biking to swimming to running to climbing, Wisconsin state parks and trails are host to competitive – and fun – events this summer. Here are a few to put on your calendar:
June 4 – Blue Mound Trail Run: Parks fundraiser trail race at Blue Mound State Park
June 19 – High Cliff State Park: Multi-sport festival
August 20 – New Glarus Woods Trail Run: Fundraiser race for mountain bike trails at the New Glarus Woods State Park
August 20-21 – Ride Across Wisconsin: Includes a section of the Elroy-Sparta Trail!
Multiple Dates – Golden Kettle Trail Series: Several runs through Kettle Moraine State Forest
September – Boulder Bash: Climbing competition at Governor Dodge State Park
October 19 – Red Granite Grinder: Mountain bike race includes part of Rib Mountain State Park
Do you have an event to share? Send us a heads up!
Photo: Runners at Kettle Moraine State Forest. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR
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Spotlight On: Buckhorn State Park
Buckhorn State Park is a paradise for water enthusiasts, hunters, hikers, campers and nature lovers – of all abilities. The park and two adjacent state wildlife areas cover more than 8,000 acres on a peninsula in the Castle Rock Flowage of the Wisconsin River.
Buckhorn offers many accessible amenities. The park has an accessible cabin, fishing pier, trails, hunting blind and a beach wheelchair available to borrow. A specially adapted kayak is also available.
Other amenities in the park include family and group campsites, unique cart-in camping, an interpretive canoe trail, abundant kayaking and boating opportunities, hiking, picnicking and more.
The Friends of Buckhorn State Park work on numerous park projects and events throughout the year, including an annual photography contest, candlelight hikes and summer naturalist programs. They also rent out canoes, kayaks and bikes.
Buckhorn State Park includes the Buckhorn Barrens State Natural Area, the Yellow River Oxbows State Natural Area and the Buckhorn State Wildlife Area. There, you can see oxbows and floodplain forests, wetlands and a variety of wildlife, including osprey.
Osprey suffered from the introduction of toxic chemicals in the 1960s and they've been on the Wisconsin threatened species list since 1972. They are seen at this park on a regular basis, often gliding above river, so keep your eyes on the sky while visiting Buckhorn.
Buckhorn State Park is located in Necedah. Read more here.
Photo: The beach at Buckhorn State Park. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR
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Upcoming Events
National Trails Day On The Red Cedar State Trail
Saturday, June 4, 10 a.m. - noon
Celebrate National Trails Day on June 4 with the Friends of the Red Cedar State Trail. Activities include a Snake Discovery Educational program, a bookmobile, free mini bike tune-ups and fishing activities.
Meet at the Red Cedar State Trail Depot Visitor Center in Menomonie.
Find more Nature Programs and DNR events here.
Photo: Bike riders on the Red Cedar State Trail, which runs from Menomonie to the Chippewa River State Trail. / Photo Credit: Bob Queen/ Wisconsin DNR
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Buckhorn State Park
by Parker, a young park visitor and budding poet, from Waterford, WI
Trees dancing in the wind
Fish jumping in the warm lake
Kids swimming and playing at the beach
Fire crackling get the s'mores
Don't forget to take one each
Set the tent, go to bed
Wake up in the morning enjoy the sun
Eat some breakfast, time to go
Pack things up and hit the road
That was a trip at Buckhorn Park!
How are you spending Free Fun Weekend this year? Tag your photos using #OutWiGo and #FreeFunWeekend to let us know which Wisconsin parks, forests or trails you visited!
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