WISCONSIN —Several areas across popular recreational sites on the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest received some needed maintenance, thanks to volunteers with the national non-profit Wilderness Volunteers. For a week, volunteers from across the Midwest cleared recreation trails and boardwalks in the Blackjack Springs Wilderness and Headwaters Wilderness.  

“It was inspiring to see nature and conservation enthusiasts from all over the Midwest come together here in Northern Wisconsin to help make a difference for others who love the great outdoors,” said USDA Forest Service Assistant East Zone Recreation Program Manager Brady Vaassen. “It is exciting to see the wonderful improvements that were made because these individuals pooled their dedication to address their shared objective of wanting to make improvements in these very special places.”    

In the Blackjack Springs Wilderness, volunteers leveled out an eroding section of the trail. They also removed downed trees and brushed a majority of the trail, including the first section from the Deerskin Snowshoe parking lot towards Whispering Lake. 

In the Headwaters Wilderness, volunteers repaired broken boards on the Giant Pine Trail and leveled out the 280-foot-long boardwalk. They brushed the trail and removed downed trees. They also leveled the Shelp Boardwalk, uncovering years of bog overgrowth. 

The volunteer group even stretched their reach outside the boundary of the Wilderness area, brushing the Scott Lake Trail. 

“They went above and beyond,” said USDA Forest Service Recreation Technician Valerie Knurr. “This wonderful group of volunteers definitely had a big impact on the trails and boardwalks.” 

The Blackjack Springs Wilderness and the Headwaters Wilderness are 2 of 5 Wilderness areas that are located across more than 44,000 acres in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest in Northern Wisconsin. The other Wilderness areas are:  

• Porcupine Lake Wilderness; North Country National Scenic Trail
• Rainbow Lake Wilderness
• Whisker Lake Wilderness

The Wilderness Act of 1964 created our National Wilderness Preservation System, including some of America’s most iconic wilderness areas. Today's wilderness system includes:

• More than 750 wilderness areas from coast to coast
• 111,706,287 million acres of protected wilderness
• Wilderness areas in all but six U.S. states

Wilderness Volunteers is a non-profit group that started in 1997 to organize service projects in cooperation with public land agencies. Each year, some 450 volunteers contribute approximately 20,000 hours of labor. The groups are self-contained with camping equipment, commissary gear and food.