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Hiking the Glacial Trail Scenic Byway: Buena Vista County

5/10/2023

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Buena Vista County lies in the southeastern corner of the four counties that the Glacial Trail Scenic Byway crosses. Buena Vista County Conservation manages 16 areas containing over 1,145 acres of parks, refuges, historic sites and natural areas. The areas include developed park and wildlife areas where the public can enjoy camping, hiking, picnicking, boating, fishing, hunting, trapping, bird watching, and other outdoors activities. The Nature Conservancy also manages several tracts of land in the county, although Brown's Prairie is the only one open to the public. Continue reading about hiking opportunities in Buena Vista County and start planning a day hike to this quiet, tranquil country of rolling prairie.
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Buena Vista County Conservation Park

Manager: Buena Vista Conservation
Location:
377 440th Street, Petersen
Trails: Yes
Camping: Yes
Amenities: Toilets, showers, picnic shelters, playground, shelter houses, arboretum
Dogs: Yes
Hunting: Bow hunting only during deer bow season
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Click to download the PDF map
This park is just off the Glacial Trails Scenic Byway on 400th Street, 2 miles east of M-27 in the beautiful Little Sioux River Valley of northwest Buena Vista County. Buena Vista Park offers multiple camping areas, cabin and lodge overnight rental facilities, day-use shelter, arboretum, prairie grass plantings, and miles of trails through woodland areas for visitors to explore.
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Sturchler Pit Area

​Manager: Buena Vista Conservation
Location: 620th Street, Newell
Trails: Yes
Camping: No
Amenities: Pit toilet, swimming beach, playground, picnic shelters
Dogs: Yes
Hunting: No.
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No map is available
​The former 120 acre gravel pit area has been developed and contains picnic shelters, pit toilet, and playground equipment. Several plots of prairie grass have been established. The lake provides excellent deep pond fishing.  No firearms or bows and arrows are allowed but deer and pheasants can be driven. ​There is a trail for hiking available around the pit
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Brown's Prairie

​Manager: The Nature Conservancy
Location: Peterson, IA 51047
Trails: No official trails
Camping: No
Amenities: abc
Dogs: No
Hunting: No

​In the Glacial Hills area, north of Storm Lake and southwest of Spencer near the Little Sioux River Valley, Browns’ Prairie is an important tract in one of the largest areas of native grassland left in the state. 
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Located within more then 3,000 contiguous acres of prairie in the Little Sioux Valley region, the property provides habitat for wildflowers, butterflies and grassland nesting birds. This particular tract of land was historically pastured, but much of the native grass has survived. A special feature of the tract is a small, crystal-clear, spring-fed steam that meanders through it.

Browns' Prairie is level to steeply rolling. Care should be exercised by the elderly and children. This area is extremely hot in the summer and cold in the winter without trees to break the wind or sun. Cattle grazing is used to manage native grasses so please exercise caution when visiting the area.


WHAT TO SEE: PLANTS
Grasses on this prairie include: little bluestem grass, porcupine grass and side-oats gramma. Flowers include: pale purple coneflower, prairie violets, pasque flower and grey headed coneflower.

WHAT TO SEE: ANIMALS
Birds on the Browns' Prairie include: bobolinks, grasshopper sparrows, meadowlarks, and kingfishers often fishing in the prairie streams during the summer.
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Photo by The Nature Conservancy

Buena Vista Conservation allows off-trail hiking at all of their properties, including wildlife areas. Below is a list with addresses.

Brooke Wildlife Area
Buena Vista 440th Street, Linn Grove IA 51033

Elk Wildlife Area
60th Avenue, Alta IA 51002

Gabrielson Park
1322 440th Street, Sioux Rapids IA 50585

Gaherty Wildlife Area
580th Street, Storm Lake IA 50588

Gary Christiansen Wildlife Area
30th Avenue, Linn Grove IA 51003

Hankens Wildlife Area
10th Avenue, Alta IA 51002

Pheasant Ridge Wildlife Area
660th Street, Newell IA 50568

Starr-Robbins Wildlife Refuge
Evans Street, Linn Grove IA 51033

Three Waters Wildlife Area
600th Street, Newell IA 50568


Hiking the Byways is a regular series by Golden Hills RC&D that features publicly accessible lands open to hiking on the three scenic byways in western Iowa that Golden Hills RC&D coordinates: Glacial Trail Scenic Byway, Loess Hills National Scenic Byway, and Western Skies Scenic Byway. Each blog post covers hiking areas in one county on one of the aforementioned byways. For questions about hiking on the byways, contact Seth Brooks ([email protected]).

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