Dane County Chapter

DANE COUNTY

Dane County straddles two distinct physical landscapes. Western Dane County lies in the unglaciated Driftless Area of narrow stream cut valleys and angular ridges exposing sandstone and dolomite. The eastern two-thirds of the county was part of the domain of the glaciers, covered with layers of sand, clay and gravel left by a series of glacial advances. During the late Wisconsin Glaciation, the Green Bay Lobe of the continental ice sheet covered most of this eastern portion until 15,000 years ago. The Ice Age Trail weaves back and forth between these two landscapes. A great place to see the end moraine that marks the furthest advance of Green Bay Lobe is at Prairie Moraine County Park, near Verona.

A string of public lands protect portions of the Ice Age Trail in Dane County. These include Brooklyn State Wildlife Area, Badger Prairie and Indian Lake county parks, and Lodi Marsh State Wildlife Area. Prairie and oak openings have been restored and are actively managed in all of these places.