Wild Reads

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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.

Passing the torch in land protection means enduring conservation value.
Conservancy Stories
Hikes
Sightings
Hiking at Tunnelville Cliffs southeast of Westby, Wisconsin, began with an email from Tom, a hiking buddy I have known for many years. He wrote, “It's been too long. We…
Climate Change
It is harvest time in the Coulee Region. Food is more than something we eat to survive. It is part of how we thrive. To break bread together, to harvest…
GAYS MILLS, WI—Ellen Brooks and Dave Hackett have lived a sheltered life for some 40 years – sheltered by the woods and east-facing hill that rises from the homesite on…
What’s Cooking?
I like this drink with lots of ginger so I use the larger amount indicated, but feel free to use either. If you think you'd like it less-sweet (although I…
While in the field with plant surveyors from the Monarch Joint Venture, the team reported seeing more rusty-patched bumble bees than monarch butterflies! Tom Rhorer photographed them (above). The location…
Book Reviews
I have lived with Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac for years, listening to his monthly ecological reflections on tape, read by former Secretary of the Interior, Stewart Udall. I…
Climate Change
Conservancy Stories
Sightings
Sometimes I find myself surprised by what a little attention to detail and taking a pretty picture can tell about the resiliency of the habitats Mississippi Valley Conservancy protects. On…
Conservancy Stories
Hikes
There are certain advantages of getting “lost” in Wisconsin's Driftless Area – you discover a lot of territory and sights you wouldn't ordinarily see – stately chapels in small hamlets…
Climate Change
Conservancy Stories
The Conservancy's field crew has been busy these last few weeks of June and into early July working to combat an invasive specie that threatens our native prairie remnants and…
Climate Change
Conservancy Stories
Mississippi Valley Conservancy’s land management crew (Freddy Ragan, Jon Baranowski, Ben Halfmann, and Reece Mullen) has been busy as ever caring for our nature preserves as the summer has gotten…
What’s Cooking?
If you’re like me, you have basil bulging from your garden and pots! Here is a great way to use and even preserve the fresh yumminess without breaking the bank…
Conservancy Stories
News Releases
LA CROSSE, WI – MAY 5, 2020 – Each year, hundreds of individuals volunteer time and talent to support the land and water conservation mission of Mississippi Valley Conservancy. The…
Conservancy Stories
What’s Cooking?
It’s garlic mustard season! With all burning cancelled, due to the current health emergency, our habitat restoration efforts are now focused on other seasonal tasks. As land manager Levi Plath…
Conservancy Stories
Hikes
Sightings
Grant Smith shares insights from his visits to Holland Sand Prairie and Borah Creek Prairie. I celebrated the 50th anniversary of Earth Day by driving through the Driftless Region to…