As autumn settles into Devil's Lake State Park and the surrounding Sauk County area, we're…
Yesterday it was sunny and 73 at Devil’s Lake State Park. Tomorrow we’re looking for snow. It’s certainly spring! If you couldn’t tell by the constantly changing weather all you have to do is walk by a wetland and listen to the songs of the frogs! If you don’t get a chance, you can still enjoy the froggy, windy video!
The Frogs!
If you want a true spring nature experience, you should head out to Devil’s Lake State Park’s Johnson Moraine Trail and hike over to the kettle ponds. What are kettle ponds? Well, they are ponds that were formed at the end of the last Ice Age some 15,000 years ago. As the glacier ice melted, it left behind ponds and holes we call “kettles” that later filled with fresh water. The Johnson Moraine Trail passes between two ponds and then just beyond a third. The songs of the frogs each spring coming at you from all direction can be ear-bleedingly loud! After a few moments, once you adjust to the din, you can start to sort out the calls of up to 4 different frog species; Spring peepers, chorus frogs, wood frogs, and leopard frogs. Most of the din is created by spring peepers, and that one that sounds like you’re running your fingers across a plastic comb, are chorus frogs. I’ll let you discover the other two!
Timing
The best time to go out to listen to the frogs is after the day warms up and best from dusk into the night. Each species of frog is on their own schedule, but if you want to hear the loudest mix, you want to go now. You can expect to still hear frogs singing until early May. Also, you might want to take your family out on a “Frog Hike” with the park naturalist! These are coming up soon, just check the events calendar for dates and times. And don’t worry about that upcoming snow, the frogs will be fine.
Location & Parking
To experience this for yourself, you’ll want to head out to the kettle ponds on the Johnson Moraine Trail. To get there, you head out on Country Road, DL, East of the Park’s main entrance on North Shore and park in the Steinke Basin Parking Lot. Then, walk north, across the road and follow the trail until you come to a right-hand turn which goes down a short, but steep hill. That’s it. See the map above.
For nearly 2 decades the Skillet Creek blog has focused on 3 main goals; To inspire you to visit and explore the Devil’s Lake region, to help you get the most your visit by sharing tips, events, and other helpful information. Lastly to advocate for our environment & wildlife and talk about how we can keep our natural areas amazing now and into the future! That last goal can sometimes cause controversy, but it’s the only way we can accomplish the first two. – Derrick Mayoleth, Owner.
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