North Central Wisconsin

North Central Wisconsin is in Wisconsin. The region’s numerous lakes and forests make it a popular destination for outdoor enthusiasts during the summer season.

Cities

• 1 Green Lake — home to the deepest inland lake in the state
• 2 Marshfield — has a municipal zoo with bison, cougar, lynx, and red-crowned cranes
• 3 Medford — the Ice Age National Scenic Trail runs through the city
• 4 Rhinelander — its Pioneer Park Historical Complex explores the region's logging industry (including 5 Eagle River)
• 6 Rudolph — best known as the site of the "Grotto Shrine"
• 7 Stevens Point — the Ice Age National Scenic Trail runs through the city
• 8 Wausau — home to the Rib Mountain State Park/Granite Peak Ski Area
• 9 Wisconsin Rapids — known for its papermaking history, and its cranberry industry

Understand

Most of North Central Wisconsin is part of the Northern Highland geographical region. The Northern Highland is covered in woodlands. The most common trees of the Northern Highland are the Sugar Maple, Aspen, Basswood, Hemlock, and Yellow Birch, as well as Red and White Pine. A large amount of the forestland in the region is included within the 1½ million-acre (6,150-km²) Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest. State and county forests also cover a significant part of the region, and only a small portion of the land is devoted to agriculture. The wildlife of the Northern Highlands includes whitetail deer, timber wolves, elk, moose, and bear. 

Despite the absence of large cities, tourism is an important part of the local economy.

Get in

Interstate 39/Korean War Veterans Memorial Highway/US Route 51 runs north from Madison through the region.

See

Wildwood Zoo in Marshfield hosts North American species like bison, cougar, lynx, and red-crowned cranes.

The Pioneer Park Historical Complex, in Rhinelander, has a logging museum and train, a replica of an 1870s logging camp, an old school building and a Soo Line railroad depot from the 1890s.

The Museum of Natural History at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point houses ethnographic and natural science research collections reflecting the diversity in nature and among human cultures. 

The Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, in Wausau, is known for its focus on nature with historic and contemporary paintings, sculptures, and works on paper that focus on birds.

The Grotto Gardens and Wonder Cave in Rudolph attracts many Catholics to its Bible-themed displays.

Do

The Ice Age Trail runs north from Stevens Point, and meanders through the Chequamegon National Forest west of Medford and through the county forest to the northeast.

The Granite Peak Ski Area near Wausau is one of the largest ski areas in the Midwest.

Rib Mountain State Park also near Wausau has a well-maintained network of hiking and nature trails, campsites, an interpretive center, scenic overlooks, and a 60-foot observation tower near the top of the peak provide a spectacular view of the Wausau Area and surrounding countryside