The University of Wisconsin-Madison's Arboretum, 1,260 acres that show what the area was like before settlement, is place of serious academic study but the public also has free access to exhibits and trails. The terrain is a mix of woods, wetlands and the nation's oldest restored prairie. Land touches the southern part of Lake Wingra. Public access is at the intersection of Wingra Drive and South Mills Street.


Trails are open all year, 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Open on weekdays is a Visitors Center with exhibits, an orientation film and extensive resource library. Guided hikes occur on most Sunday afternoons and are in addition to other themed, outdoor workdays and walking lectures. Tours of native plant gardens happen from April through August, and this area includes at least 300 species of lilacs, making it one of the country's biggest collections of the fragrant, flowering shrub. Many of the arboretum events and gatherings are free and good family learning experiences. The wide-ranging topics include star gazing, wildlife tracking and bird singing. Plant identification, survival instincts and habitat health also are popular ecology lessons. During much of the year, 20-plus miles of trails take walkers to effigy mounds, savannahs, horticultural collections and restored prairies to forests. Pets are prohibited. In winter, about 10 miles of these trails are designated for cross-country skiing but they are not groomed.

Snowshoeing and hiking are allowed on these and other trails, but not all trails are open. Much depends upon restoration work and whether natural conditions are deemed safe for visitors. The arboretum's first director was Aldo Leopold, author of “A Sand County Almanac,” considered a bible among conservationists. His work, through the university, began in 1935 on the 60-acre Curtis Prairie as a Civilian Conservation Corps project. Today's research involves land management practices and phenology, documenting indications of the change of seasons, from first robin to first snowfall. These long-term records assist in the study of climate change.