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Niagara Escarpment Ledge Tour held at Bayshore Blufflands Preserve

The Lakeshore Natural Resource Partnership (LNRP) will hold a ledge tour of the Niagara Escarpment and wetland complex at Bayshore Blufflands Preserve. The tour is set for June 29, 9:30 am – 2 pm.

The hike begins at 5517 Reynolds Road at Bayshore Blufflands Preserve in Sturgeon Bay. The morning hike is moderate with a 300-foot section that is steep. Hosts Nancy Aten & Dan Collins of Landscapes of Place will combine present day observations about natural plant communities with information from the 1835 Government Land Office survey of the site. Using copies of old land surveyors’ notes and maps, they will compare information of the landscapes as they are today to those that possibly were there prior to European settlement. Hikers will try to understand how the land might have looked to Sylvester Sibley and his crew of surveyors in April 1835 and will traverse some of the exact section lines they did long ago. 


The tour concludes with an exploration of a black ash ephemeral wetland complex, below the escarpment on a 500-foot boardwalk. This variety of landforms and hydrology creates niches that support more than 280 plant species and 17 species of herpetofauna.

The tour is $15 for NERN/LNRP members and $25 for non-members (includes lunch). Registration deadline is June 14. For more information visit lnrp.org.