BAILEY'S HARBOR, WI -- With Wisconsin's 2016 gun deer season officially over, and thanksgiving leftovers weighing some of us down, many people are eager to find a hiking trail and get back outdoors.
In northern Door County, there's a sanctuary that's putting people in the heart of a "natural wonderland" of sorts.
And it's getting attention from places, like the Smithsonian, and scientists around the world.
Along the shore of Lake Michigan in Bailey's Harbor lies 1,600 acres of land that has captivated biologists, conservationists, and the average outdoor enthusiast alike for more than 80 years.
"It really is a celebration, or a study, of thousands of years of both that natural history, and then more recently the cultural history, too," explains the Ridges land manager Brian Forest, "and the two are connected."
The Ridges Sanctuary is a fitting name for Wisconsin's first land trust.
Five miles of hiking trails within the sanctuary guide visitors along ancient shorelines created by a receding Lake Michigan.
"Each set, if you will, of ridges and swales... produces a different environment, and a different place where different species can grow," explains Development Director Drew Richmond. "[We have] lots of different animals, lots of different insects. Some are very rare, and can only be found here. So, it's a very impressive place."
"The biodiversity-we've got a lot of variety out there, across the landscape," adds Forest, "and so, it attracts a number of different species."
That includes, historically, more than half of Wisconsin's 49 native orchid species.
Forest says, of the 36 orchids native to Door County, 27 have been found within the sanctuary "historically," emphasizes Forest. "We're in the middle of our orchid restoration project."
The mission: education, research, and preservation through personal connections.
"We've got a butterfly station. We've got bluebird houses they can check and look for eggs in," explains Forest, "we've got snake boards [hikers] can lift up, to see if there's anybody living underneath there."
With so much to explore, the Ridges is a year-round destination that has something for everyone no matter the weather.
"Nature doesn't take any time off," laughs Richmond.
As more and more people turn to the Sanctuary as a source of education, spokespeople say the way people learn will only become more tangible.
"We'll be installing exhibits this winter that will give it a real well-rounded aspect of.. that cultural and natural history," explains Richmond, sitting inside the relatively new Cook-Albert Fuller center located at the "front door" of the Sanctuary.
"I see the Ridges becoming a go-to place for a resource for knowledge," adds Forest.
New this year to the Ridges Sanctuary: a boardwalk largely funded and built by volunteers passionate about the outdoors being for everyone.
"Whether they're in a wheelchair, whether they are assisted by a walker, or their kid's in a stroller," says Richmond, "they get access to the sanctuary now."
Forest says he hopes a random visit from a newcomer might lead to a guided hike, or even a workshop.
"And then, eventually, we're hoping that they become volunteers," says Forest, "and they will become citizen scientists."
The Ridges Sancutary is hosting a series of winter workshops, including 'Natural Christmas' in December.
