Door County Land Trust creek in Ephraim, August 5, 2024. PC: Fox 11 Online
DOOR COUNTY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — People may be seeing more of the orange-colored boundary property signs appearing in some places in the area.
The Door County Land Trust is working to protect and preserve sites throughout the peninsula.
The scenic overlook in Ellison Bay is called Grand View. Door County Land Trust Executive Director Emily Wood says it’s a fitting name.
“We helped acquire that property on the overlook, many years ago. And did donate it over to the Liberty Grove Historical Society. They run and maintain that parcel now. But below the overlook, we’re still working to protect the habitat at Grand View, down in the contiguous forest that exists down there below the bluff top,” said Wood.
Wood says the Land Trust bought the six-acre plot from Don and Barbara Fuhrmann last month.
“They didn’t want to see development in their beloved area. So they purchased that property just to hold it and ended up making the decision to sell that property to the Land Trust at the same price that they acquired it 20 years ago,” she said.
A couple weeks earlier, an agreement to buy about 20 additional acres in the Gibraltar-Ephraim Swamp Natural Area was made official.
“Gibraltar-Ephraim Swamp is an area that we protect around 400 acres right now. It’s extremely unique wildlife habitat. It’s a nice haven for migratory birds. Several threatened and endangered species occur in that area,” said Wood.
And while some pathways may exist, Wood says there are no immediate plans to create an organized trail system there.
“It’s certainly a swamp. It’s very buggy. It’s very swampy. Definitely put on some bug spray before you head out,” she said.
But Wood says all types of habitat are valuable.
“It improves water quality. It improves air quality. So all of the the things that we call ecosystem services, that are just kind of the free benefits that happen whenever you do land conservation,” she said.
The Door County Land Trust formed in 1986. Over that time, the non-profit group has protected more than 9600 acres, which is more than the five state parks located in the county.
Land Trust officials are celebrating their acquisitions at the annual gathering Friday in Ellison Bay.
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