Creation of a Nature Preserve: Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal

Learn how Door County Land Trust partnered with the City of Sturgeon Bay and its community to create the Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal Nature Preserve. For hundreds of years, Native Americans used this area to portage their canoes from Lake Michigan to the waters of Green Bay. Between 1872-1871 the ship canal was dug out for passage of larger vessels. Over the past 50 years this property had been considered for the construction of a coal fired power plant, marina, and aquatic park. Thankfully, community leaders and neighbors came together in 2009 to urge for the protection and creation of the 445-acre Ship Canal Nature Preserve. As a result of DCLT land restoration efforts over the past 15 years, one of the Great Lake’s healthiest populations of the endangered Dune Thistle is now found here and has become an important research site for Chicago Botanical Gardens. Join us on a 1 ½-mile moderate walk through open dunes, ridges and swales, old fields, and old growth forest to learn about the property’s history, the creation and restoration of this preserve, and the vision for the future. Wear sturdy walking shoes and a hat. Bring water, insect repellent, and sunscreen.

Free • Open to public

Leader: Carl Cochrane and Terrie Cooper