Silent Sports Shorts: November 2007 Favorite Wis. parks, trails awarded Minnesota conserves over 51,000 acres Vast northern Minnesota forest plan under review; public comment sought Hayward ski swap set for Nov. 10 Cross-Country Skier mag revamps website New boardwalk, bridge on North Country Trail

Favorite Wis. parks, trails awarded

Visitors to Wisconsin State Parks and Trails are asked to vote for their favorite parks and trails each year. And the results for 2007 are in.

The winning parks, trails and features in 10 categories received Gold Seal Awards from the Friends of Wisconsin State Parks at the group's annual meeting on Oct. 19.

The winners are:

• Best groomed ski trail: Kettle Moraine State Forest, Lapham Peak Unit

• Best picnic area: Devil's Lake State Park

• Best view of a waterfall: Copper Falls State Park

• Best mountain bike trail: Blue Mound State Park

• Best electric campsite: a tie between Wyalusing and Peninsula state parks

• Best viewing of a moonrise: New Glarus Woods State Park

• Best playground: New Glarus Woods State Park

• Best interpretive display: Devil's Lake State Park

• Best walk-in campsite: Rock Island State Park

• Best prairie: New Glarus Woods State Park

The Gold Seal results were gathered through a summer-long online survey.

The state friends group also named its "state park heroes" – individuals and groups whose leadership and service best supported the state park system in 2007. The winners are:

• Outstanding land manager: Carolyn Rock from Whitefish Dunes State Park, Sturgeon Bay

• Most accomplished friends group: The Friends of Lapham Peak, Delafield

• State park hero: Bob Birmingham, Friends of Aztalan State Park, Lake Mills

More information about the Friends of Wisconsin State Parks can be found at www.fwsp.org.

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Minnesota conserves over 51,000 acres

Agreement will protect wildlife and outdoor recreational opportunities

Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty announced last month more than 51,000 acres of forest – almost 80 square miles – in northern Itasca and Koochiching counties will be conserved. It cost $12 million in state and private money to buy a working forest conservation easement that precludes development of the property.

This is the single largest conservation project in Minnesota in at least a decade. The governor's office said the agreement will protect jobs, preserve wildlife habitat and guarantee public access for recreation.

"A key aspect of this landmark agreement is that the land will continue to be managed for timber production and continue to provide jobs and revenue for local economies as private land," Pawlenty said. "It will be open to the public for a wide variety of uses, including hunting, hiking and fishing. Minnesotans have always taken great pride in our vast forests and this achievement is a testament to our long-term commitment to responsible stewardship of our heritage and future."

Public funding for the easement purchase comes from $6.6 million in bonds appropriated by the Minnesota Legislature in 2006. Private foundations and conservation groups contributed $5.4 million.

The newly conserved lands are located near almost 440,000 acres of state-owned lands – Koochiching State Forest, George Washington State Forest, Myrtle Lake Peatland State Natural Area and Scenic State Park. Because of its proximity to the two state forests, the project is being called the Koochiching-Washington Forest Legacy Project.

The newly conserved lands include coniferous forest and peatland along with 13 lakes and more than 90 ponds totaling 46.9 miles of shoreline. The properties also encompass 43.5 miles of rivers and streams as well as 18,971 acres of wetlands.

The conservation easement allows for sustainable logging under a state forest management plan. The easement also ensures that the lands can be used by the public for outdoor recreation including hunting, fishing, hiking and cross-country skiing.

Snowmobiles and ATV use will continue subject to future trail designation.

Forest Capital Partners will retain ownership as well as the right to continue to manage timber production. Forest Capital Partners is a private forest landowner that acquires and manages working forests across North America for long-term sustainability, including more than 290,000 acres in northern Minnesota.

For more information, species profiles, downloadable photos and a map, go to www.mndnr.gov. Click on the "forest legacy" banner on the right side of the home page.

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Vast northern Minnesota forest plan under review; public comment sought

The first step in a planning process for state land in north-central Minnesota (the St. Louis Moraines, Tamarack Lowlands, Nashwauk Uplands and Littlefork-Vermilion Uplands) is available for public review until October 31, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

These four areas cover approximately 5.5 million acres in an area from near Tower on the east, to Blackduck on the west, and from Aitkin on the south, to International Falls on the north.

Recreation, forestry and tourism are major uses of land. Public agencies administer 50 percent of the land with the state portion being 1.24 million acres or 22 percent. Approximately 1.17 million acres of the state land is timberland. Other state lands totaling 70,000 acres include state parks and scientific and natural areas, which will not be considered under this plan.

At this stage in the planning process, DNR forest planner Lynn Sue Mizner said the most useful input interested citizens can provide will be to identify issues they believe the North-4 Team should address in the plan if they're not already included in the preliminary list.

The current comment period is not intended to provide time for conducting more in-depth data analysis, a task the team will tackle between November and December. During the next public review period, early in 2008, stakeholders and interested parties will have 30 days during which to conduct more in-depth analysis of the draft plan and provide specific comments on goals and strategies for the next 10 years.

The public has three options for reviewing the document and associated maps. View or download the document and associated maps at www.dnr.state.mn.us/forestry/subsection/north4/index.html, request a paper copy of the 213-page document or request a CD-ROM copy of the document. Maps and paper copies of the assessment document can be viewed at the Minnesota DNR Regional Headquarters, 1201 East Highway 2, Grand Rapids.

Requests for a paper or CD-ROM copy of the plan, questions or comments should be sent to lynn.mizner@dnr.state .mn.us; mailed to Lynn Sue Mizner at DNR Division of Forestry, 1200 Minnesota Ave. S, Aitkin MN 56431; faxed to 218/927-4121; or called into 218/927-7511.

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Hayward ski swap set for Nov. 10

Hayward Area Ski Trail Association (HASTA) will hold its annual "ski swap" fund-raiser on Saturday, November 10. Bring your silent sports equipment – skis, bikes, paddle boats, clothing; anything for the outdoors – to sell or come to buy gently used "new to you" silent sports items.

The system works like this. Included your name and desired price on your equipment and bring a price list. Label all skis with the ideal weight, height and ability level of skier for which they are intended.

HASTA charges a 15 percent fee from the price you set on each item. All proceeds are directly re-circulated to support local cross-county ski trails. HASTA volunteers will be available to help set prices and determine ski sizes.

The SWAP will take place at the Hayward Veterans Community Center, 10534 Main Street, in Hayward, Wisconsin.

Drop-off your items between 7:30 a.m. and go until 9:00 a.m. Shopping time will start at 9:30 a.m. and continue until 11:00 a.m. Pick-up for all unsold gear and/or cash at by 11:30 a.m. HASTA will not be responsible for any items left after 11:31am.

For more info, call 715/634-8079.

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Cross-Country Skier mag revamps website

Cross-Country Skier magazine, based in Cable, Wisconsin, has revamped its website, www.crosscountryskier.com, to include web-only features, previously posted training articles as well as the events calendar and trail reports. Additional interactive features are planned, too, including forums and podcasts.

Cross-Country Skier's new website was developed by Dean Woodbeck of Hancock, Michigan. Woodbeck runs Self-Propelled Communications out of Hancock, Michigan .

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New boardwalk, bridge on North Country Trail

The Brule-St. Croix Chapter of the North Country Trail Association was set to dedicate a new bridge and boardwalk through a unique northern Wisconsin natural, geological and historic area on October 20. The dedication, which was scheduled after press time, was to take place at the St. Croix Lake boat landing trailhead, four miles northeast of Solon Springs on Douglas County Trunk A.

The St. Croix Creek bridge and boardwalk leads the North Country National Scenic Trail across part of the Brule Spillway State Natural Area. The Natural Area is a spring-fed cedar bog located on the Laurentian Divide. The water from its springs flows both south through the St. Croix and Mississippi rivers to the Gulf of Mexico, and northeast through the Brule River, Great Lakes and St. Lawrence to the Atlantic. Once the site of a glacial river, the spillway became the historic travel route between the Lake Superior region and the Mississippi.

Those who attended the dedication were expected to walk along the new trail to the St. Croix Creek bridge and witness the unveiling of a plaque dedicating the bridge and boardwalk to the memory of Marlene Cornelius and Tom Cornelius, mother and son outdoor enthusiasts from the Milwaukee area. Memorial contributions from members of the Cornelius family to the North Country Trail Association helped fund the new trail.

The North Country National Scenic Trail will be the longest hiking trail in North America, crossing the northern tier of the United States from New York to North Dakota. Managed by the National Park Service, the 4,600-mile trail is being developed by a partnership of federal, state, and local agencies and volunteers.

For more information about the trail dedication, contact Lynne Nason of the Brule-St. Croix Chapter at 715/378-4412 or visit www.northcountrytrail.org/bsc.