The BNA offers several annual events that you can participate in or volunteer at. Events are almost entirely run by volunteers.
- February: Return to Romance
- April: Spring into Fitness
- June: Family Nature Faire
- September: Wolf Lake Trail Run and Hike
- October: Eco-Halloween
- Throughout the Year: Nature Crafts
Seasonal Highlights
- Enjoy a hike any time of the year. Nature is on display all around, changing its image with the season.
- A spring woodland hike will yield the first blooms of the year — white bloodroot and lavender hepatica. As the sleepy woodchuck is coming out of hibernation, skeins of geese can be heard honking northward.
- Hike the boardwalk trails on a mid-summer day and see a painted turtle sunning itself, watch a great blue heron fishing for lunch or hear the joyous song of a bobolink from a nearby meadow.
- The prairie is the place to be in late summer when warm breezes part the brilliant patches of coneflowers, butterfly weed and blazing stars.
- Fall brings the last blooms of the season, the goldenrods, asters, and the grand finale — the gentians. These and the colorful autumn leaves eventually yield the stage to a snowy white landscape.
- A winter hiker may follow the tracks of a bounding mink until they disappear into a snow tunnel, or see the evidence of a great horned owl’s previous meal.
Fun Doesn’t Hibernate
- Winter offers visitors to Richard Bong State Recreation Area a new perspective. With or without snow, the absence of leaves coupled with the park’s open topography offers far-reaching vistas only imagined during a July visit. When trails are snow-covered and tracked for skiing, hikers and dogs may not walk on them.
- When snow depth is sufficient, visitors can explore summer trails on cross-country skis. Six loops are offered, varying from 1.7 to 8.3 miles.
- For children and young-at-heart adults, a sledding hill is available.
- For a winter adventure, a snowshoe expedition may allow catch a glimpse of a bounding deer or winter birds. Please use parking lot A and stay north of County Highway BB. Please be aware that Parking Lot A may not be plowed.
- Snowmobile enthusiasts may park at Lot E and use the park trail to connect with marked county trails.
- Pack a meal or a hot drink for your invigorating outing, and visit the warming shelter behind the Visitor Center where a barbecue grill is available.
- If ice conditions permit, catch a fresh fish dinner through the ice on Wolf Lake.
- With the diversity of activities available at the park, winter is no time for hibernating — it’s a time for outdoor fun!
