Flowing north to Lake Superior, the Iron River watershed contains beautiful forests, perennial rivers, and remnant grasslands. The East Fork of the Iron is classified as a Class 1 trout stream by the State of Wisconsin and contains naturally reproducing populations of wild trout. The Lake Superior Binational Program identifies the river and its habitat as important to the integrity of Lake Superior.

Conservation groups have worked together through the years to restore and protect land along the Iron River. However, much of the land along the river is in private ownership, giving landowners an important role to play in conserving its natural resources.

In the late 1970s, Bill and Karen Maki bought their first parcel of land in Orienta, an L-shaped 160 acres. As a child, Bill spent time with his three uncles, who told him stories about the woods and taught him to identify bird species and animal tracks. These experiences helped shape what would become a lifelong appreciation for wildlife. With a home in Washburn, Bill and Karen’s main goal was to have a hunting property and over the years, Bill hunted with friends and their son David. They bought adjacent land as it was sold off by the county and timber companies, and in time their property expanded to over 800 acres. Each time they had the chance to buy more land, they felt it was meant to be.

In addition to hunting deer, Bill enjoyed sitting in his deer stand to simply observe wildlife. He recalled the time he glimpsed the shadow of a wolf from 16 feet in the air and continued to watch as a beautiful black timber wolf scratched around at the base of his ladder. Later that day he observed a smaller gray wolf as well. “Our decades of time on the land have really caused us to become animal lovers,” said Karen.

Wood Turtle

Karen reflected on how they’ve lived the story of their lives, never knowing quite what the next chapter might bring. They lived frugally at times to be able to afford their land and taxes, and their path wasn’t simple or straight. Their relationship with this special property cultivated a strong conservation ethic for each of them, and they didn’t want to see their land subdivided or developed in the future.

Now in their 80s, the couple can no longer enjoy the land as they once did, and they didn’t want it to be a burden to their adult children. “After speaking on the phone almost annually for over a decade, we sat down in person in the fall of 2023 to outline a plan as the timing seemed right,” shared Landmark Conservancy’s Conservation Manager Erika Lang. “Since the Maki family had a clear goal of preservation and the property had strong ecological features – it’s a large amount of land, is adjacent to state land, has quite a bit of stream frontage and wetlands, and well managed forests – a land purchase made the most sense. We believed we could successfully find funding and as we have with other land protection projects, we approached Bayfield County to be the future owner and thankfully received strong support.”

 “We are excited to add this unique and diverse 860-acre property to the county forest program,” said Bayfield County’s Forestry and Parks Administrator Jason Bodine. “It’s clear that the Maki family poured a tremendous amount of love and care in the land’s management. By partnering again with Landmark Conservancy to protect conservation properties, we hope to build on the family’s foundation rooted in ethics and stewardship to ensure our natural resources remain healthy, resilient, and productive for generations to come.”

Protected for Everyone, Forever

Earlier this summer, the Iron River Community Forest was created. Located several miles north of Highway 2 and near the community of Iron River, the property has over two miles of shoreline on the Iron River, East Fork of the Iron River, and Resch Creek. Its permanent protection provides critical water quality protection and wildlife habitat.

The new Community Forest is open to the public for non-motorized recreational activities including cross-country skiing and snowshoeing, fishing, hiking, hunting, trapping, and wildlife viewing. Bayfield County’s Forestry and Parks Department hopes to install signage and improve trail conditions over the next year or two.

This project had support from multiple conservation partners, including U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and Trout Unlimited.

Landmark and Bayfield County secured grant funds from Wisconsin’s Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program and the U.S. Forest Service Community Forest and Open Space Conservation Program.

Funding also came from the Ecofootprint grant program created in 2023 by Enbridge to support environment restoration and improvement projects along the Line 5 Segment Relocation Project.