Sierra Club x Land Trust - Lion's Den Gorge Nature Preserve Hike

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From Dan McKinley, Sierra Club Great Waters Group - Outings Leader: 

On Thursday, August 22nd, from 3:00 to 5:00 PM, in collaboration with our friends from the River Revitalization Foundation and the Ozaukee Washington Land Trust (OWLT), we will explore Lions Den Gorge in Grafton, WI.

We will meet in the designated parking lot off of High Bluff Drive, and hike along the bluff above Lake Michigan, and down to the lake, an easy hike of roughly 2 miles. The beauty of this park is enough to attract us, but the inspiring story of how this area became an Ozaukee County Park is equally compelling.

Here is a brief description of the collaboration between land trusts, government agencies, private donors, and Ozaukee County, and how the undeveloped lakeshore property was acquired from its private owner and transferred to the county to be protected and managed as Lion's Den Gorge Nature Preserve:

In 2002, the OWLT secured a contract to purchase the 72-acre undeveloped property along Lake Michigan from private owner Dr. Ghulum Dhar after lengthy negotiations led by Andy Holschbach.

The project received widespread support and funding from organizations like the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Town of Grafton, Ozaukee County ($300,000 contribution), Riveredge Bird Club, Wisconsin Coastal Management Program, and private donors.

The Ozaukee-Washington Land Trust obtained a $455,000 matching grant from the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program to help acquire the property.

After the initial purchase,  OWLT transferred the deed to Ozaukee County to manage as a park and State Natural Area, with the intent of establishing a "Nature Preserve" within the county park system.

OWLT Executive Director, Tom Stolp will be sharing the story of acquisition, and a stewardship staff person will join to talk about the management for the site that the County now oversees. 

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