Wood Lake Nature Center is Richfield's gem, but it isn't necessarily a hidden one.
"It is a very popular park for programs during the summer, but also for people who just come here to walk. They might not even stop in the building a whole lot, but they use the trails which are open all day long," said Paul Smithson, Manager and Naturalist, at Woodlake Nature Center.
The 150-acre Wood Lake Nature Center is tucked between 35W and Lyndale Avenue South in Richfield. While there's plenty of commotion from the sprawling metro outside the trees and trails of Woodlake Nature Center, that's all forgotten in just a matter of minutes when you are actually in the park.
"We're centrally located in the Minneapolis core area, but we are a large enough that once you're in here you don't totally notice Lyndale or 35W," Smithson said. "One you walk about 10 minutes on a trail you're seeing a marsh, and maybe a few water towers, but you're seeing a marsh, a forest, and a wetland."
Wood Lake Nature Center was dedicated as the first municipal nature center back in 1971 and was one of the first nature centers in the Twin Cities. Each year Wood Lake naturalists like Smithson provide programming to over 20,000 individuals.
Wood Lake also welcomes over 100,000 visitors each year.
"We get schools from all over coming here," Smithson said. "We also get people from the airport who might be on layover. They often stop here to see birds, or just to take a short hike."
Things to do
Wood Lake Nature Center has something for just about everyone. Two-miles of of crushed limestone walking trails (accessible by stroller and wheelchair) take visitors through three habitats including a cattail marsh, mixed lowland forest, and restored prairie.
The nature play area is a top destination for children. The free to play area is good for just about everything including rearranging, building, climbing, jumping, digging, and discovering.
"It gets used nonstop," Smithson said. "We've been putting in some new features the past couple of years including an outdoor xylophone and we're hoping to put in a slide in the next few months. The nature play area was remarkably popular during the early days of the pandemic just to be outside and active."
The Floating Boardwalk
A floating boardwalk sits in the middle of Wood Lake and has been a top attraction since the park first opened.
Smithson says that wildlife photographer and naturalist Les Blacklock studied the area and recommended that they build a nature center and put a boardwalk in to shorten up the trails.
"The boardwalk allows everyone a chance to get into the middle of the marsh. It allows you to walk through cattails on both sides so you feel like you're in the middle of a Florida swamp, but it's a Minnesota marsh."
The marsh is not open to fishing, however, it is home to a wide range of wildlife including invasive goldfish, black bullheads, and minnows. There's plenty of wildlife outside of the marsh as well including muskrat, deer, chipmunks, and even an occasional otter or two.
With over 150 species of birds making their way into the nature center each year, Wood Lake is a prime stop for bird lovers, too.
Future of Wood Lake Nature Center
Moving forward the Wood Lake Nature Center hopes to make a number of improvements in the coming years. The hope is to build a new indoor nature center which houses staff offices and hosts a number of educational programs throughout the year.
The City of Richfield has requested $10 million in assistance from the Minnesota legislature to help replace the original nature center building. In total, the project would cost around $20 million with remaining funds coming from a variety of other sources.
"We had wonderful tours with our legislative committee from both the Minnesota House and Senate," said Recreation Services Director Amy Markle. "Our project has a lot of equity woven in and educational components. We try to make nature and education accessible to everybody. We want this to be a green space for everyone."
Markle says the nature center is an important piece for countless people, including those who don't often get a chance to interact with nature. In fact, Markle often sees people get their first outdoor experience because of a trip to Wood Lake.
"Having an opportunity to make those connections with nature is priceless," Markle said. "We work with a lot of youth and people of all ages. Just to see the first time they see a turtle or a bald eagle, it could be the millionth time that I've seen it, but for them the first time is magical."
Markle hopes lawmakers can return to a special session and approve a bonding bill so they can begin planning and developing a new indoor space to replace the 51 year old building.
"It's showing a lot of wear and tear. The windows are being eaten by carpenter ants, the roof is in disrepair, and we can't meet the demand right now with school groups and sizes. Our building also isn't fully ADA accessible, which we would like to be."