Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest's Wildflower Viewing Areas

By jan schultz on Jul 7, 2012

Where to find rare native plants and flowers on the Chequamegon-Nicolet.

Wildflower Viewing Areas are sites of high botanic interest selected by botanists for the native plants and flowers found within them. Fourteen of these areas can be found on the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest. Consider visiting these sites during your next trip to the forest. Don't forget your camera!

Argonne Experimental Forest (Eagle River-Florence District): Argonne Experimental Forest features the largest contiguous tract of old-growth hemlock hardwood forest on drumlinized ground moraine. These types of protected rich mesic hardwood forests are very scarce in northern Wisconsin and on this land type (Argonne Outwash Plains). More...

Barksdale Ponds (Washburn District): Barksdale Ponds are a unique aquatic feature on the edge of dry, glacial outwash plain. Situated on hilly topography, the numerous soft water seepage lakes and ponds are surrounded by their associate emergent, submergent and shoreline communities, maturing red pine (Pinus resinosa) and white pine (Pinus strobus) forest, and kettle bogs. More...

Bearsdale Creek and Hyatt Springs (Washburn District): Bearsdale Creek and Hyatt Springs is a diverse site with several excellent representative natural communities as well as numerous unique natural features. Two key aspects are its spring-runs and ponds and rich bottomland hardwood forest. The spring-runs and ponds (including Hyatt springs, Shunenberg Creek, and Bearsdale Creek) are small, hard-water, and landlocked. They emanate from springs and flow in a westerly direction, then disappear into fine sands. More...

Diamond Roof (Lakewood-Laona District): Diamond Roof is a large tract featuring upland hardwoods, fast rocky creeks, mixed conifer swamps, and lakes and spring ponds. The rich hardwood soil supports the largest and showiest spring ephemeral wildflower display on the Lakewood-Laona District. Small, picturesque creeks flow around moss-covered rocks and logs, under a canopy of sugar maple, basswood, yellow birch, red maple, and hemlock. Mixed conifer swamps follow McCaslin Brook and Ninemile Creek and are dominated by white cedar, black spruce, and balsam fir. Wild lakes and spring ponds found in the area include Upper and Lower Hiawanka Lakes and McCaslin Spring. More...

Drummond Woods (Washburn District): Enter nature's own cathedral: old growth hardwoods, towering hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) and majestic white pine ( Pinus strobus). This awe-inspiring area is interspersed with wetlands and a 3/4 mile section of interpretive trail, an opportunity to walk through a bygone era, with history both natural and human. The North Country Trail connects up with the interpretive trail and continues on. More...

Elk River Valley (Medford/Park Falls District): The Elk River valley, cutting through silt-capped drumlinized landtype, provides the most spectacular display of spring wildflowers on the Park Falls unit. The rich soil supports many ephemeral spring wildflowers growing so thick, you are not sure where to step. The action of flowing water cut many channels where large moss-covered rocks sing with the sound of trickling water in the spring. The area is known locally as "Skookum Valley" from a Chinook word meaning powerful, brave, or large. The name may have been coined by someone familiar with the Pacific Northwest, where the name is commonly used, because of the steep river valley. More...

Hagar Mountain (Lakewood-Laona District): Hagar Mountain features an excellent example of exposed igneous bedrock habitat with numerous fissures and crevices, which support some unusual plant communities and several rare plants. The steep-sided habitat varies depending on aspect and condition of the rock. Some south-sloping rock faces and exposed cliffs are virtually bare while north slopes are wooded with hemlock, and north-facing cliffs are often moss and fern-covered. Between these extremes are large areas on the tops of the outcrops that support an interesting lichen and moss flora. More...

Headwater Lakes (Medford-Park Falls District): Headwater Lakes features two unique soft-water lakes, Wabasso Lake and Cedar Lake. Wabasso Lake is a 49-acre deep, seepage lake with a diverse and unusual aquatic flora. The submerged aquatic plants are the principal features of interest, with several specialized sterile rosette species well represented. More....

Lauterman Lake Trail (Eagle River-Florence District): Lauterman Lake Trail is varied, challenging, and richly diverse in old growth hardwoods, hemlock stands, shrubs, and wildflowers. The trail meanders through three naturally and topographically different areas: east of Lauterman Lake, the walk is easy, over gently rolling terrain. Between Lauterman Lake and Little Porcupine Lake, the trail is more rugged, winding among hummocks and up steep slopes. At the south end of Little Porcupine Lake, the trail traverses the northern portion of an extensive braided esker system. Eskers are sinuous land ridges formed by ancient glaciers. More....

Moquah Pine Barrens (Washburn District): The Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest provides the avid wildflower watcher with some of the best viewing opportunities in Northern Wisconsin. Perhaps one of the most fascinating areas is the Moquah Pine Barrens. Wildflowers paint a colorful quilt of blooms that attracts native birds, butterflies and other wildlife. These hardy plants thrive in this sandy, arid environment. Maps are recommended for travel. More....

Namekagon Fen (Great Divide District): Namekagon Fen is a small, undisturbed, high quality open bog/sedge meadow community with a rich flora of sphagnum mosses, ericaceous shrubs, sedges, and insectivorous plants. Nested within the fen are a number of bog pools that support an extremely diverse flora typical of bogs with a higher pH value and a ground water influence. The fen is surrounded by a mixed forest of red oak (Quercus rubra), sugar maple (Acer saccharum), yellow birch (Betula alleghaniensis), and scattered white pine (Pinus strobus). More....

St. Peters Dome / Morgan Falls (Great Divide District): This area represents a large block of unfragmented forest, which includes exposed cliffs, streams, a 70 foot waterfall and a breathtaking overlook at the top of St. Peter's Dome (known locally as Old Baldy) which has an excellent view of Chequamegon Bay of Lake Superior and the Apostle Islands. More...

Twin Lakes Bog and Pine Forest (Medford-Park Falls District): The wetlands of this site feature an open bog/muskeg which is floristically more diverse than others in the vicinity. A bog lake and several ponds add to the considerable variety of this peatland habitat. The bog supports good populations of insectivorous plants including pitcher plants (Sarracenia purpurea), sundews (Drosera) and bladderworts (Utricularia). More...

Yellow River Ice-Walled Lake Plain (Medford-Park Falls District): An ice-walled lake plain is a relatively flat, fertile stone-free plain in an otherwise rugged, rocky moraine area. The Yellow River Ice-Walled Lake Plain site is unique in its topography and is probably unmatched in species richness for this type of landform anywhere else in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest. More...

Contact person: Linda Parker (715) 762-5169 or lrparker@fs.fed.us