Madisonians know that they are fortunate to live in a
city that has dedicated a huge amount of land towards the preservation of parks
space. Whether you’re playing a pickup game of basketball or just wanting to go
on a nature hike, Madison has plenty of areas, usually just a brief walk away,
that you can get to.
Sometimes just having a place to see nature is itself a
rewarding experience. Edna Taylor
Conservation Park is one such place. Located on the city’s southeast side
(with a convenient entrance and parking on Femrite Drive), the park provides a
great place to hike, observe nature, and bask in some pretty cool historical
markers made thousands of years ago by native peoples.
Many schools in the area, including nearby Glendale
Elementary (which borders the park), often come on field trips to
discover what’s living in the park.
...the cattail-rich park is neatly and inconspicuously situated in the
midst of frenetic pockets of residential housing and commercial development.
Rife with frogs and birds, the hidden gem teems with wildflowers, oak stands,
cottonwoods, lily-pads and blue-flag iris. Ponds here play host to everything
from egrets and great blue herons to woodpeckers.
Edna Taylor, who was a teacher and a farmer, sold much of
her land to the City of Madison in hopes of preserving a place for people to
experience nature firsthand.
The park which bears her name has over 1.3 miles of
trails, and includes Native American effigy mounds that were built sometime
between 700 AD and 1200 AD – almost half a century before Europeans first made
it to Wisconsin!
According to the Madison parks
website:
The mounds often, but not always, have burials associated with them,
but their exact purpose is not entirely understood. Mounds tend to have been
built in places with beautiful views of the surrounding countryside. The mounds
are considered sacred by modern Native Americans and should be treated with
respect.
If you’re looking for a serene and enjoyable trek, you
can’t go wrong with a visit to Edna Taylor Conservation Park!
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| Image via the City of Madison |
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