Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center

02/12/2025

Cold weather has made ice too thick for the boats.

02/08/2025

Join us at 10am today for stories and a craft!

Read with a Ranger returns to the visitor center! Join a Park Ranger for story time followed by a craft. Geared for ages 3 to 7 but all are welcome! Every other Saturday at 10am. See you there!

02/05/2025

Mark your calendars for the exciting Northern Pines Sled Dog Race, February 8, 2025.
https://northernpinessdr.com/home-page-northern-pines-sled-dog-race/
The race features 50~60 mushers in four different classes and runs in Iron River located in Bayfield County. There’s plenty of activities for spectators and the race also provides unique volunteer experiences.
We looked back in our archives collections and found a photo from 1935 of folks enjoying a Bayfield County winter with a dog sled team and snowshoes.
Head to northern Wisconsin this winter to enjoy some fun in the snow!

02/04/2025

01/31/2025

Our Nature Journal workshops return!

Join us Feb. 8th, March 8th, April 12th, and May 10th for FREE Nature journal walks and workshops, led by Master Naturalist Jennie Beck and Forest Service representative Amanda Koval. In our first installment of winter journaling, we will learn about tree identification in winter and each participant will select a tree on the NGLVC grounds to observe over the following workshops.

Registration is not required! If able, please bring your own materials; however, basic materials (pencil and paper) will be provided if you cannot supply your own. For any questions, please call the visitor center at 715-685-2662 and ask to speak with Amanda. Hope to see you there!

01/31/2025

Join us in 2025 for the FREE In-Person Aging Mastery Program Workbook, Coffee & Refreshments provided Wednesdays~9:30 am–11:00 am~February 5th-March 26th, 2025 at the Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center go online to register https://buff.ly/3WpPDst or phone 715-373-3288

01/25/2025

Our homeschool program is back for another season! Join Park Ranger Ariana for fun, hands-on, nature based activities, geared for ages 5 to 10. RSVP's are strongly encourage to ensure there is enough supplies for everyone. Attendance is not required for all sessions- pick and choose what works for your schedule!

Hope to see you there!

01/24/2025

Join us tomorrow (Saturday) at 10am for Read with a Ranger followed by a craft! Hope to see you there!!

01/24/2025

“You can go fast if you go alone. You will go far if you go together.” This was Steve’s mantra as he brought together staff and community to build a partnership at the Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center. He led the NGLVC through the planning, construction, and opening of the Center, then serving ten plus years as Center Director. As a leader, Steve was known for his integrity, vision, compassion, collaboration and his unrelenting work ethic. It was apparent to all who knew him that Steve’s heart and soul were poured into the building and operation of the Visitor Center.

Steve had endless energy, being the first to arrive and the last to leave, whistling as he walked through the Center each day. He never stopped for lunch, surviving on a jar of peanut butter and coffee. Staff always enjoyed when Steve cooked a holiday turkey dinner, grilled out at farmhouse picnics, and best of all, shared his famous monster cookies.
While Steve was the utmost professional in his role as Center Director, he effortlessly became both a mentor and a father figure for many of the staff. Numerous times Steve took a leap of faith in the center and staff, such as when he re-financed his house to save the Center Gift Shop from financial ruin, or driving an RV across the country to make sure that a seasonal front desk volunteer could fulfill their season. Yet despite the rigors of being Center Director, Steve and his staff enjoyed many good laughs, including the time Center staff, collaborating with a Big Top performer, called him at midnight asking him to call 1-800-GOT-BAIL.
Steve had a special place in his huge heart for children, with staff joking that Steve often got to hold the newborn babies before the parents. Steve kept kids mesmerized with his American kestrel, “Gaia”, performing magic tricks, and being sure to keep quarters in his pocket for feeding fish in the pond.

“What is Steve up to now?” visitors and staff would wonder as Steve shared his excitement of viewing wildlife as he was hauling roadkill into the field for the raptors to feast on or placing loafing logs in the pond for turtles to sun themselves.

Steve was instrumental in the implementation of many of the Centers signature events including Bird and Nature Fest and Kid’s Fishing Day. He finalized his career at the Center with his hallmark project, the Community of Life mural, a project Steve never lost sight of during the more than ten years of performing a myriad of other duties as Center Director. These events and projects owe their continued existence to Steve’s enthusiasm. His “can-do” attitude is the reason for the success of the Visitor Center.

In lieu of flowers, it was Steve's wish to have memorials support educational programming at the Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center, a cause close to his heart. This will help continue his work that merged community, education, and partnerships in his beloved Northwoods. Visit https://nglvc.org/support/ to donate.

View Steven Hoecker's obituary, send flowers, find service dates, and sign the guestbook.

01/24/2025

Join us tomorrow for the next Read with a Ranger at 10am!

Read with a Ranger returns to the visitor center! Join a Park Ranger for story time followed by a craft. Geared for ages 3 to 7 but all are welcome! Every other Saturday at 10am. See you there!

01/22/2025

✨Paid Internship Opportunity!✨

We are hiring an Environmental Education and Interpretation Intern! This is a 8-month position starting in April 2025. It will be part-time during the school semester, and full-time in the summer. In the summer, the incumbent will also split their time at the Iron River National Fish Hatchery.

Pay is $16.50 per hour!

To apply, send your resume to Ariana London, [email protected], by end of day this FRIDAY! (1/24/25)

For more details about the position visit this link: https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmyjobs.adp.com%2Fscacareers%2Fcx%2Fjob-details%3FreqId%3D5001092846506&data=05%7C02%7Cmitchell_baalman%40fws.gov%7Cb3a075c92b944c6f109e08dd302e8f62%7C0693b5ba4b184d7b9341f32f400a5494%7C0%7C0%7C638719698711197888%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=spiZaHne%2FJKqlGixy4ppzd1fLHpp3Q5WT3C7fVq%2FyaE%3D&reserved=0

01/22/2025

Registration for the April 5th spring bazaar held at the Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center opens on February 4th using the following eventbrite link.

www.eventbrite.com/e/1141149090649?aff=oddtdtcreator
For more information email Donna at [email protected] or phone 715-685-2659.

01/21/2025

The David R. Obey Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center will have a delayed opening today, January 21st due to extreme cold. We hope everyone stays safe out there and we'll see you at 12:00 noon!

01/18/2025

Looking for a Valentines date idea? Book a unique sauna experience in Ashland!

Superior Sauna and Steam is sending its magical Starlight shipping container sauna on tour! And one of those stops is in Ashland Wisconsin for Book Across the Bay. We’re excited to be a part of this unique winter event, and have one of our favorite saunas as a place of respite for racers, race sup...

01/18/2025

Notice of Seasonal Trail Opening

Washburn, WI (January 17, 2025) – Snowmobile trails north of (and including) the Tri-County Corridor in Bayfield County are officially open starting Saturday, January 18, 2025, at 7:00 AM. Trails cannot handle traffic today with highs in the mid to upper 30’s, but overnight lows in the single digits will firm up the minimal snow base we have.

Trails are in early season (poor) condition. Panning/rolling has occurred to varying degrees throughout the northern part of the County. Conditions change drastically from trail to trail. Forest roads and fire lanes are open to ride and tend to be in better condition than trails at this time.

Stick trails on lakes in the southern part of the county are also rideable, along with Forest Roads and Fire Lanes. The trail system in southern Bayfield County will remain closed until we receive more snow.

Please look for our weekly trail condition reports. They will be posted on Snowtracks, TravelWisconsin and Bayfield County’s website www.travelbayfieldcounty.com/snowmobile

Follow and Like our Bayfield County Tourism and Bayfield County Forestry and Parks pages.

Sign up with Notify Me on the county website to receive trail condition updates via text or email.

01/17/2025

The ice caves within Apostle Islands National Lakeshore are currently inaccessible due to non-existent or unstable ice conditions. The last time conditions allowed access to the ice caves was 2015. Visit https://www.nps.gov/apis/mainland-caves-winter.htm for more information.

Image: Apostle Island ice caves formations in 2014.