What to Expect on the Walk
Length & Pace of Walk
The pace will be moderate with stops for education about the effigy mounds, local geology and bird migration. The walk will be about a 3 mile walk. The walk will take about 2.5 hours. The length of the walk and the time it takes to complete the walk will depend on the informational stops we make along the way.
Walk Difficulty
A three mile walk along a several trails along mixed hilly and flat terrain. There will be opportunities to shorten or lengthen the path, depending on group interests and abilities.
On a scale of 1 to 5, where 5 is very steep, the trails are rated 2.5.
Handicap Accessibility?
The trails are not particularly handicap accessible. They may be manageable with someone to assist you. Please call me at 608 257-9164 to further evaluate the trails
Driving and Parking Information:
We will meet at Frautschi Point parking lot to start our walk. The following directions will help guide you to the trailhead parking lot.
Directions to Frautschi Point Parking Area:
From the campus, take University Bay Drive towards the entrance to Picnic Point, and continue on a short distance, make the right hand turn onto Lake Mendota Drive. Drive about 0.2 miles up hill to where Lake Mendota Drive curves sharply to the left. The Frautschi Point parking area is on the right at the curve.
From University Avenue, take University Bay Drive at light at Farley St., go up the hill, and sharp left at the top of the hill onto continuation of University Bay Drive (Highland Ave. continues straight). Continue down along soccer fields, then take left onto Lake Mendota Drive, across from soccer fields. Turn left onto Lake Mendota Drive, drive about 0.2 miles up hill to where Lake Mendota Drive curves sharply to the left. The Frautschi Point parking area is on the right at the curve.
Additional parking is available by the University housing, across the road.
Attached is a sketched map showing how to get to Frautschi Point. The map is available at the Lakeshore Nature Preserve website (lakeshorenaturepreserve.com) under Trails.
To learn more about Lakeshore Preserve Nature Area, go to the following website: https://lakeshorepreserve.wisc.edu/visit/places/picnic-point/
Highlights of the Walk
Native Americans and the Preserve
For more than 12,000 years, Native peoples have lived on the land that is today the UW-Madison campus. Evidence of this long human occupation is inscribed all across the campus landscape. Earthen burial mounds, including unique effigy forms constructed over 1000 years ago, can be visited in several parts of the Preserve. Learn about the more than 40 archaeological sites across campus.
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Geology
In the Madison of 50,000 years ago, the Yahara River flowed sweetly at the bottom of a steep river valley perhaps as much as 600 feet deep. Resilient sandstone layers formed extensive ledges and spring fed streams issued from limestone caves to cascade to the river far below. Incredibly, a natural event of unimaginable scale literally wiped this entire ecosystem from the face of the Earth—glaciers.
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Watershed
Hydrology and hydrologic process within and around the Preserve greatly influence the quality and health of its diverse biotic communities. Additionally, the Willow Creek Watershed—which is much larger than most people realize—has a substantial impact on the quality of water in Willow Creek and University Bay.
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Prairies
Prairies are grasslands dominated by native grasses associated with a diverse assemblage of flowering herbaceous plants known as forbs. UW-Madison's Biocore Program has been carrying out tallgrass prairie restoration in the Preserve in the field between Picnic Point and the Eagle Heights Community Gardens since 1997.
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Wetlands
Wetlands have water at or just above the surface of the soil for much if not all of the year. Known for a distinctive set of plants, wetlands support a wide variety of animals, and provide essential services such as flood and stormwater abatement and water quality management. The Preserve has two major natural wetlands—Picnic Point Marsh and University Bay Marsh—as well as a wetland restoration, the Class of 1918 Marsh.
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Woodlands
The Woods in the Preserve typify the broadleaf forest common to relatively moist, upland sites in southern Wisconsin. You'll find a common set of tree species occupying the overstory throughout the woods, but the relative abundance of each varies with slope and aspect (the direction the slope faces). Common species include Bur oak, White oak, Northern red oak, Shagbark hickory, Slippery elm, Hackberry, White ash, Black cherry and Basswood.
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