ledge view nature center

Our family loves to hike the trails at Ledgeview. The view is awesome and the trails are fun to hike. We always make sure to climb the look-out tower and get fall pictures in October when the leaves are at their peak! My kids grew up hiking and enjoying this park!

We were looking for a primitive caving experience and this totally fit the bill. The naturalist explained so much about how the cave came to be, but then she stood back and let us decide how much we wanted to experience. Those who wanted to stand in the larger part could. Those who wanted to crawl on their bellies into tunnels could do that too. It was a terrific experience for my son who is 8. Be sure to bring a flashlight as there are no lights in the cave. We had a headlamp which was perfect for crawling. Do bring an extra set of clothing as you will be muddy afterwards and want to change. The mud covers shoes too. Some people actually lost shoes in the mud when they stepped into it, so watch where you step. It can be cool so a long sleeved shirt is a good idea, but you won't need a jacket. The whole experience takes about 2 hours. Don't bring a backpack unless you absolutely need to bring stuff with you, because the passages are very narrow and you won't fit between the rocks in anything other than a light set of clothing. It's a 1/2 mile walk to the cave. The nature center has some great exhibits as well so allow enough time to explore the bat cave, sturgeon area, and to learn a bit about the geology of the area. We climbed the tower and the view was expansive of dairy farms and fields. We were wishing we had brought mosquito repellent though. The grounds are also pretty- lots of wildflowers to feed the bees that have a hive inside the nature center. What a bargain!

I may be a little late in terms when we visited Ledge View Nature Center versus when I am submitting this review but I just found the brochure I picked up at that time and just found the pictures my wife had taken- so I’m submitting this to Trip Advisor as an attraction not previously listed. This park is awesome and the cave tour would be great for anyone physically up to climbing ladders- and would be a huge treat for any kids who might like to crawl through tunnels. Even though I had a very sore knee that day, I thoroughly enjoyed the time we spent touring the caves and kept thinking about how much my two great-nephews would enjoy the caves. The young woman who was our guide had an Australian accent and was just charming- and teased some of the young visitors into crawling through a relatively short tunnel section- in one "door" and out in a different place. They also have a very nice nature center worth spending some time in. While we didn’t’ spend much time in the rest of the park, we did bring in a picnic lunch and we enjoyed the natural beauty of the park while we ate our lunch. This is a county park in Calumet County, WI, .located about 2 miles south and east of Chilton. I highly recommend it to anyone physically fit enough to climb up and down the steps and ladders required to get in and out of the caves- but especially for “younger folks”. So take some kids, tell them to bring their old clothes [‘cause they will get dirty!], and head off to the Ledge View Nature Center for a day. Check the details on the Calumet County web site: www.Travelcalumet.com/ledge-view.