Wood County, Wisconsin

Official Website

User Icon Login

Wood County Forestry

Mission Statement

The mission of the Wood County Forest is to provide current and future generations with outdoor recreational opportunities and raw materials for wood using industries on a sustainable basis.

Management of the forest should balance local needs with broader concerns through integration of forestry, wildlife, fisheries, endangered resources, water, and air quality, soil, and recreational recommendations and practices. Multiple-use management will provide this variety of products and recreational amenities for the future through the use of sound forestry management practices. The forest will also be managed for such environmental needs as watershed protection, the protection of rare plant and animal communities, and biological diversity.

The Wood County Forest should be protected from natural catastrophes such as: fire, insect and disease outbreaks, and from possible detrimental effects of human encroachment, over-utilization, environmental degradation, and excessive development.

Wood County Forest

The Wood County Forest is one of 29 County Forests in the County Forest System. These lands are located in central and northern Wisconsin and total approximately 2,354,000 acres.

County Forests are "working forests" managed for a multitude of benefits including:

  • Many forms of recreation
  • Timber production
  • Wildlife habitat
  • Watershed protection
  • Protection of rare animals, plants, and natural communities, etc.

The Wood County Forest encompasses approximately 37,593 acres of public land, generally located in the southern half of the county.

The Wood County Forest consists of a variety of forest types including:

  • Aspen (48%)
  • Pine (11%)
  • Oak (9%)
  • Scrub oak (5%)
  • Bottomland hardwoods (3%)
  • Other forest (2%)
  • Brush, grass, swamp, other wetlands, and other non-forest (total 22%).

Most of the county forest lies in a flat, sandy plain known as "Glacial Lake Wisconsin". This landform is a direct result of the last ice age and subsequent melting of the Wisconsin Glacial Ice Sheet.

The water table is near the surface throughout much of the county forest. Swamps, wetlands, and seasonally wet ground conditions are common and have a major impact on access and forest operations.