Spring Green, Wisconsin
Thursday, October 20, 2022 | Vol. 3, No. 24 FREE, Single-Copy
Inside this edition
Spooky season
More Letters to the Editor: Election season never ends
Community Calendar: Costume contests, live music
SPECIAL SECTION
Pages 2, 4, 11
Pages 6, 7
Enclosed
River Valley Middle School students explore conservation professions Matt Becraft, WisCorps Service Member On Tuesday, October 11th middle schoolers from River Valley took part in the Sauk County Conservation Day here at Upham Woods. This event was organized by the Sauk County Land Resources and Environment department in collaboration with the DNR, and the Sauk County Natural Resources Conservation Services (NRCS). Throughout the day, students were exposed to different conservation professions to help them understand different jobs that they could have in the future. Most of the day was filled with fun choice activities. Some students learned
archery with help from some of our local DNR conservation wardens. The wardens said many bullseyes were hit! Animals signs with the NRCs staff was also popular! After learning about different types of animal signs, students hiked along the Riverbend trail to put their observation skills to the test. Some kids even found a skull! Students are excited to continue to look for animal signs back at home. Other activities included water ecology, fishing, and nature art. After choice activities, every student participated in a service learning project: building a trail. Erosion ruined our last trail, so we rerouted
the trail to reduce its effect. During this project, students were taught the proper use of trail-building tools such as a rake, shovel, and McLeod. After gearing up with hard hats, they were put into small groups to clear debris and to re-establish a critical edge along that stretch of trail. This critical edge serves to mitigate erosion and is of the utmost importance when building a trail. When the session wrapped up, a lot of the kids wanted to keep working even though it was tiring. With the assistance provided by the River Valley Middle schoolers, we were able to finish over 80% of this trail. Thank you River Valley!
Photo vis the UW Extension RVMS students work on trail building.
Riverway board to co-host open house on new Lower Wisconsin State Riverway map Mark Cupp, LWSRB Executive Director The Lower Wisconsin State Riverway Board (LWSRB) met at the Prairie du Chien Library on October 14 to conduct a regular monthly meeting. A presentation on the reconstruction of STH 60 between Gotham and Muscoda, currently scheduled for 2027-2028, was provided by the Department of Transportation (DOT) and Jewell and Associates. The new road will include wider lanes and shoulders with curb and gutter in the unincorporated village of Orion where a new speed limit of 35 mph will be posted. Further east where the roadway is close to the river, there will be rock cuts on the bluff side of the highway. The curves west of the intersection with CTH TB will be softened and there will be a new alignment in that area. Some structures will be taken at various locations in conjunction with the project. More information can be found at: wisconsindot.gov/Pages/ projects/by-region/sw/wis60/default. aspx#contact
In other action, the board approved issuance of a structure permit to Nancy and Doyle Lewis for construction of a new house on land visible from the river in the Town of Woodman, Grant County. The structure will replace an existing house and will conform with the Riverway performance standards regarding screening vegetation, colorization, height, glass and slope. Mark Cupp, Executive Director, reported the agency’s biennial budget request for 2023-2025 had been submitted to the Department of Administration. The budget request is for $266,000 for each year of the biennium. Cupp said he attended a meeting in Prairie du Sac on the proposed recreational bridge over the Wisconsin River at Sauk City and will work with the design team moving forward. The next meeting of the work group is slated for October 27th. The next meeting of the Riverway Board is slated for November 10th and will be held in Avoca. The Lower Wisconsin State Riverway
Board (LWSRB) and Cultural Landscape Legacies, Inc., will co-host an open house for the public to review the draft of a new map showing the cultural and natural history of the lower Wisconsin River valley. The open house will be held at the Riverway Board office, 202 N. Wisconsin Ave., in Muscoda, from 10:00 to noon, on Saturday, October 29th. Christina Dennis, a recent University of Wisconsin – Madison graduate, is creating the map as her senior capstone project. Her faculty advisor is Dr. William Gartner of the UW-Madison Geology Department. The new map will be available online for area residents and travelers to download and will point to sites of interest from natural features and public access points to archeological and historical sites in communities from Prairie du Sac to Prairie du Chien. When completed, limited paper copies of the map also will be available. Public comment and input are appreciated. See the map at https:// geography.wisc.edu/lower-wisconsin-
riverway-map/. In addition to reviewing the map, individuals are invited to ask questions about ancient peoples, area effigy mound sites, rock art, early European explorers and Euro-American settlers, local historical sites, and folks may bring artifacts for possible identification. Mark Cupp, Riverway Board Executive Director, said, “Christina Dennis has created a beautiful map with a wealth of useful information about the Riverway. She is sincere in wanting input from the public to make certain there are no errors so that the final product is accurate and will stand the test of time. For those who are unable to attend the October 29th open house, please visit the website and offer feedback on the easy to use comment tool.” For further information, contact Mark E. Cupp, LWSRB Executive Director, at (608) 739-3188 or by cell phone at (608) 739-2179 or by e-mail at mark. cupp@wisconsin.gov.