Necedah National Wildlife Refuge

About Necedah National Wildlife Refuge

The prehistoric lands that make up Necedah National Wildlife Refuge sat at the bottom of Glacial Lake Wisconsin more than 18,000 years ago. Flowing glacial rivers fed the vast lake depositing sand and silt in ribbons across the lake bottom. Fast-forward through time as the glacial runoff changed course drastically from a northwest flow that moved toward the Black River, changing to a southeast exodus and flood. Water cascaded through breached moraines and fractured, glacial ice dams helping form some of the cut sandstone gorges near Wisconsin Dells. Catastrophic draining of the lake’s water exposed sand deposits and the washed topography of the lake bottom. Those sand deposits and scours formed the mosaic of dry ridges and wetland braids that now create Necedah National Wildlife Refuge.The shallow water table that remained gave rise to a vast complex of peat bogs and sedge meadows edged with tamarack and interlaced with upland forests, savannas and prairies along the remnant sand ridges. Elk and bison roamed through the refuge as prairie chickens and passenger pigeons made their homes here as well. Vast wildfires reset vegetation communities periodically across large expanses of what we now know as Wisconsin.By the 1700s, human interactions increased with the land that we know now as Necedah National Wildlife Refuge. Humans living on the landscape tried to mimicked nature with fire and water to gather food, raise plants for harvest while living a nomadic lifestyle alongside wildlife. As more people arrived in the 1800s and started to put down roots year round. They devised ways to try to control the water and use the resources around them. Logging operations started and row crops were planted to support settlements and domestic animals.Nature’s pendulum continued to swing between dry and wet periods. Dried out peat burned relentlessly and cleared the way for more crops. As the drought subsided in the late 1800s the area became increasingly wet, with relentless water

How to Get There

The refuge entrance is located off of Hwy 21, four miles west of Necedah, Wisconsin or 18 miles east of Tomah, Wisconsin. To reach the visitor center, turn onto Headquarters Road and travel two miles north into the interior of the refuge.Navigation Note: There are many township roads that crisscross the 40,000 acres of refuge, not all are passable. This sometimes confuses navigation apps. The visitor center is located at N11385 Headquarters Road, Necedah, Wisconsin 54646. Please be sure you are routed from Hwy 21 onto Headquarters Road. Many local seasonal roads are dead ends.The refuge is located 150 miles from Milwaukee, Wisconsin and 180 miles from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Most of the refuge lies north of Highway 21 and west of Highway 80, with all property in Juneau County.

Plan Your Visit to Necedah National Wildlife Refuge

Heading to Necedah National Wildlife Refuge? A few things to know before you go:

• Reservations: popular sites fill up fast — check Recreation.gov 6 months in advance
• Fees: day-use and camping fees vary; check current rates on the official park page
• Trash & pack-out: follow Leave No Trace principles
• Wildlife: store food in bear boxes where provided; never feed wildlife
• Weather: the 5-day forecast above is updated every 6 hours; verify just before you go

References & Official Resources

• Official Recreation.gov page
• View on OpenStreetMap
• Driving directions (Google Maps)