Wildlife Viewing Area
The shoulder will be widened along a portion of County K in the town of Prairie du Chien to create a wildlife viewing area for Gremore Lake. (Photo courtesy of Crawford County)
Wildlife viewing
area to be constructed
along County Highway K
By Ted Pennekamp
Crawford County may soon embark upon a nice project for those who enjoy viewing birds and other wildlife on Gremore Lake. A wildlife viewing area will be constructed along the west side of a portion of County K just south of its intersection with Ambro Road.
A variance was obtained and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has given its approval for widening the shoulder to create a safe area where vehicles can pull over to view wildlife and take photographs, said County Sanitation and Zoning Technician Jake Shedivy.
The area will be a trapezoid, said Shedivy, who noted that it will be 125 feet long on the highway side and 95 feet long on the “water” side. It will be 14 feet wide.
Highway Commissioner Dennis Pelock said that left over dirt that the Highway Department had from building the new salt shed in Prairie du Chien as well as from flood material from 2016 and other projects will be used to widen the shoulder of County K and create the wildlife viewing area. The dirt pile is located along County K not far from where the viewing area will be.
“The Highway Department will be working in partnership with Blair Dillman and Prairie Sand and Gravel,” said Pelock. “It was Blair’s idea in the first place.”
Pelock and Shedivy said the project will be completed at little cost to the county. Shedivy said there may be some relatively low costs for signage once the widening is done.
“A lot of people walk or park out there,” said Pelock. “This will allow vehicles to get off the road farther and out of the walking and bicycling lane and out of traffic.”
Pelock said some trees will be picked up and the area cleaned up within the next couple of weeks in order to get ready for the widening project, which will begin when temperatures rise and things thaw out a bit. He said the Highway Department would like to have the project completed before their major spring projects begin.
Shedivy said the project will involve some grading within the ordinary high water mark. He said the area will be seeded and maintained.
“I think it will get used a lot,” said Pelock. “A lot of people park out there to watch wildlife.”
