As part of the March 2025 Wisconsin Land Trust Conference, Gathering Waters partnered with Groundswell Conservancy and the Ice Age Trail Alliance (IATA) to co-host a field trip in the Black Earth Creek valley just west of Madison.
The first stop was Wolf Run Trail, a two-mile trail along Black Earth Creek in Mazomanie. Fred Wolf’s family partnered with Groundswell Conservancy and Dane County to protect 45 acres along Black Earth Creek. Funded in part by the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program, a conservation easement protects the land and provides public access to the creek.
The next stop was Salmo Pond, a former rock quarry located west of Cross Plains, which has been reclaimed as a county park. It was the perfect place for Dan Rolfs to share his family’s quest to protect 136 acres just down the road from Salmo Pond, which have been in the family for over a century. Working with Groundswell Conservancy, they chose to protect the land and its bluffs for future generations to enjoy.
The final destination, Swamplovers Preserve, exists thanks to the efforts of three friends who purchased 433 acres for conservation in 1987 and protected it from development. Over the years, they managed the remnant prairie and oak savanna and restored wetlands before donating the land to the Ice Age Trail Alliance in November 2020. The sedge meadow gives way to open water where waterfowl nest and raise their young. Pale purple coneflower, shooting star, and prairie smoke dot the restored prairie’s native grasses as they ascend 200 feet through a bur and white oak savanna revealing dramatic vistas. Today, the preserve is part of the Table Bluff Segment of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail.
We hope you find the time to visit these special places when you’re in the Dane County area!