Spring Green Prairie and Spring Green Preserve State Natural Area

Spring Green Prairie is known as “Wisconsin’s Desert” this 1000-acre landscape is a rolling sand prairie on an old terrace of the Wisconsin River. The Nature Conservancy opens this property to visitors for hiking, photography and bird watching. The dry sandy soils contain many desert-like plants that thrive in several sand blows with shifting dunes and open sand. There are also oak barrens, woodlands, high quality dolomite dry bluff prairie, and dry cliff communities. A population of pocket gophers lives here among interesting grassland birds and plants that are found in few other places in the state.

Directions: From Spring Green, go north 0.5 mile on Hwy 23, then east 0.75 mile on Jones Rd, then north on Angelo Lane to a parking area. Trails lead through the site.

Gazetteer: Page 34, C-3 (prior to 10th edition). | Page 84, C-3 (10th edition).

Phone: 608/266-7012 (Wisconsin DNR) or 608/381-0746 (Wisconsin Nature Conservancy).

Web site: The Nature Conservancy Spring Green Preserve | WDNR Spring Green Preserve State Natural Area

Signature Species: Prickly pear cactus, Dickcissel, Grasshopper and Lark Sparrow.

Rare Species: Six-lined racerunner lizard, blue racer lizard and bullsnake.

Parking: Parking area.

Nearest Food & Lodging: Spring Green.