Wild Reads

To filter stories by category, select "article type" and click "apply."

Wild Reads is where we share stories about and from partners, landowners, and friends throughout the conservation community. Let us know if you have a story, book review, poem, or photos to share. We don't promise to publish everything we receive, but we'd love to know what you're reading, writing, and what you think is worth sharing.

Outdoor Life
A few years ago I had the big front windows on my little house replaced. This was to save energy and protect the value of the house. I soon noticed…
Conservancy Stories
In the News
News Releases
On May 29, 2026, Tom and Gail Novacheck signed a conservation easement with Mississippi Valley Conservancy, a nonprofit land trust in La Crosse, permanently protecting their scenic 121-acre property, which…
Conservancy Stories
Outdoor Life
Restoration work is gaining momentum at Wandering Rock State Natural Area near Nelson, where Conservancy staff, volunteers, and partners are helping one of the Driftless Area’s newest protected landscapes grow…
My name is Mitchell Hoffman. Over the past five months, I have had the privilege of working as the Environmental Paralegal Intern at Mississippi Valley Conservancy. During this time, I…
Conservancy Stories
Outdoor Life
Few summer sights are as quietly magical as fireflies flickering over wet meadows and shaded ravines—and the Driftless Region of southwest Wisconsin offers some of the best habitat for them…
Conservancy Stories
Outdoor Life
High on a bluff above the Mississippi River stands an eastern redcedar that first put down roots in the 1760s—decades before my family crossed the Atlantic in search of a…
Hikes
Outdoor Life
Join local hiker Olivia Schnur as she explores Greens Coulee on a trip to the top of the bluffs.
Tucked quietly in a patch of protected woodlands in the Driftless Area, a mother bobcat watches as her three kittens tumble in the underbrush, curious and full of life. Ever…
Climate Change
Conservancy Stories
Outdoor Life
Landowners can play a vital role in protecting grasslands and declining bird populations while successfully managing a cattle operation. Learn how...
Conservancy Stories
Outdoor Life
On a cold, mid-January morning, I bundled up in my coveralls, winter jacket, stocking hat, and gloves. You would have thought I was going out ice fishing, but I was…
Climate Change
Conservancy Stories
Since 2022, Mississippi Valley Conservancy has been deeply grateful to partner with Friends of the Blufflands on the ongoing restoration of Juniper Partners Prairie, a high-quality remnant bluff prairie overlooking…
Mississippi Valley Conservancy has expanded the Boscobel Bluffs State Natural Area with the acquisition of Bald Bluff, an 86-acre property adjacent to the existing nature preserve. The newly acquired land…
Since 2015, the Conservancy has partnered with the Prairie du Chien Correctional Institution to bring meaningful, hands-on conservation work to the Conservancy properties through the correctional institution's Project Crew.
When they acquired 87 acres of land nestled between bluffs near the Mississippi River in Vernon County back in 1993, Marilyn Adam and Ralph Tauke had a good idea of…
Climate Change
Outdoor Life
Not everyone has acres of land to protect or manage—but that doesn’t mean you can’t make a big difference for conservation. Whether you live in town, rent your home, or…