Snake Creek Walking Trail Project

SNAKE CREEK TRAIL

Badger Mining Corporation had a unique opportunity to expand the Snake Creek Wetland Trail, a 2.5-mile public “wetland trail” extending between Swamp Road and St. Marie Road in central Green Lake County, Wisconsin.   

The Snake Creek Wetland Trail was transformed from an old railroad grade.  The railroad line was discontinued in 1979 at which time the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad Company sold the ties and tracks for salvage and offered the abandoned right-of-way to the adjacent landowners and other prospective buyers.

This particular segment of the railroad line was built upon wetlands of the Snake Creek Corridor.  The Snake Creek Corridor, named from the spring-fed stream, Snake Creek, is arguably one of the most scenic and biologically diverse stream valleys in the state.  The corridor is home to a variety of native plants and animal populations, notably wetland species, some of which are rare state threatened and endangered – small white lady slipper (Cypripedium candidum), Wisconsin’s most delicate lady slipper orchid, false aspohodel (Tofieldia glutinosa), a rare member of the lily family and bulrush tussock (Scirpus cespitosus var. callosus), a low-growing sedge that is common to the Arctic, but is an ice age relict at Snake Creek.  Every late May, a population of the state threatened Blanding’s turtle (Emydoidea blandingi) uses the gravelly trail bed as a nesting site.

In 1980, the Green Lake Area Chapter of the Izaak Walton League of America purchased 1 ¾ miles of the abandoned railroad right-of-way, which begins east of Swamp Road and adjoins a ¾ mile segment owned by Badger Mining Corporation.  The goal of the Izaak Walton League was to aid in the preservation of rare species and wetland habitats, promote wetland education, serve as a site for environmental field studies and offer a location for public outdoor recreation.  The Green Lake School District, headed by Thomas Eddy who is also a member of the Izaak Walton League, contributed their time, talents and labor to the construction of the “wetland trail.”

TRAIL EXPANISION

In 1997, Badger Mining Corporation teamed up with the Izaak Walton League and the Green Lake School District to lengthen the trail.  BMC owned the ¾ mile segment of the old railroad line, which allowed the trail to be expanded to the St. Marie Road.

Badger Mining Corporation’s goals were directly in line with the Izaak Walton League’s – preservation of rare species and wetland habitats, promote environmental education, serve as a site for environmental field studies and offer a location for public outdoor recreation. 

Badger Mining Corporation’s segment of the trail also provided a unique educational opportunity for a wide range of environmental issues in a short distance.  Visible from the trail are a closed landfill, reclaimed and active mine sites and a wetland restoration.  The St. Marie Processing Facility can also be seen from the trail.  This provided an excellent opportunity for BMC to explain what BMC does – mining, mine reclamation, silica sand processing and using/reusing of silica sand.

TRAIL EXHIBITS

Badger Mining Corporation and the Izaak Walton League developed interpretive trail exhibits to be installed along the trail. The Izaak Walton League Swamp Road segment emphasizes the natural beauty of the wetlands, their benefits to humans and wildlife.  This segment of the trail also focuses on habitat types, endangered resources, wetland ecosystems and preservation. 

The Badger Mining Corporation St. Marie Road segment of the trail starts out focusing on the issues of landfills -- how they are constructed and capped, how stormwater is managed and how monitor wells are constructed and sampled to address groundwater issues.  Other trail exhibits describe how BMC conducts mining of silica sand in an environmentally responsible manner, reclamation of mine sites and the use and beneficial reuse of silica sand.   In addition to the signs, Aldo Leopold style benches are located along the trail for visitors to rest and enjoy the natural surroundings and wildlife.

For the commemoration of Earth Day 1998, the new ¾ mile BMC St. Marie Road segment of the public “wetland trail” was opened.  Students from Green Lake School District and associates from BMC volunteered their time and labor to install the exhibit signs along the Snake Creek Wetland Trail.  Not only is the ongoing volunteer activism indispensable for accomplishing the trail work, but volunteers are also rewarded with a sense of achievement and “ownership” for the trail. 

Trailhead kiosks were constructed as an Eagle Scout Project and were erected at the trailheads at St. Marie and Swamp Roads.  Birdhouses and bat boxes were also installed during the Earth Day celebration.