About the Area

The former Chequamegon and Nicolet National Forests, established in the early 1930s, were officially combined into the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest in February 1998.

The Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest covers more than 1.5 million acres in northern Wisconsin, managing lands for multiple uses including forestry, wildlife habitat, outdoor recreation, fisheries management, special forest products gathering, wilderness and natural areas management all of which help contribute to the local and regional economy. The Forest includes land within 11 counties—Ashland, Bayfield, Florence, Forest, Langlade, Oconto, Oneida, Price, Sawyer, Taylor, and Vilas—and 65 townships.

The Forest is part of the treaty-ceded areas for 11 American Indian tribes that retain hunting, fishing, and gathering rights on National Forest lands. Other lands within the Forest’s boundaries include more than 1,200 separate parcels owned by the Wisconsin Board of Commissioners of Public Lands, the State of Wisconsin, industry, and private individuals.

Interspersed around National Forest lands are more than 2.5 million acres of publicly owned properties including state and county forests. This mix of public and private lands offers numerous opportunities for collaboration and partnerships.

We manage as “one forest” with two zones and five ranger districts. The east zone includes the Lakewood-Laona Ranger District with offices in Lakewood and Laona and the Eagle River-Florence Ranger District with offices in Eagle River and Florence. The west zone includes the Medford-Park Falls Ranger District with offices in Medford and Park Falls, the Great Divide Ranger District with offices in Glidden and Hayward, and the Washburn Ranger District in Washburn. The Supervisor’s Office is in Rhinelander. The forest is also home to the Blackwell Job Corps Civilian Conservation Center near Blackwell and the Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center in Ashland.

The forest is often one of the top timber-producing national forests. We sell about 130-150 million board feet of timber annually, 30-40 million of which is sold through a Good Neighbor Authority agreement with the State of Wisconsin.

The forest offers a full spectrum of outdoor recreation opportunities. With developed campgrounds, primitive camping, beaches, boat launches and picnic areas, non-motorized and motorized trails, and thousands of miles of roads open to vehicles, the forest provides a variety of outdoor experiences for locals and visitors alike.