Donald County Park is located in Springdale, WI – right outside of Mount Horeb and is about 30 minutes from Madison, depending on which area you’re coming from.
Location & Hours
Pop’s Knoll Shelter Entrance:
1945 Highway 92, Mount Horeb, WI
Equestrian Trails Entrance:
8666 Co. Highway G, Mount Horeb, WI
Deer Creek Fishing Area-Sutter Dr. Entrance:
1900 Sutter Dr., Mt. Horeb, WI
Hours: 9 a.m. to dusk year-round
Activities
This park offers so many different activities. There’s 775 acres ready to explore. There are giant hardwood forests to walk through (making this a perfect place to visit in fall as well), equestrian trails, rock features, and even streams for trout fishing. We’ve also happened upon a few Geocaching spots here!
Natural Springs
One of our favorite things about this park is the different springs. Big Spring, is a natural spring that flows in Mt. Vernon Creek. The waters here are crystal clear. You can see all the way down to the bottom and can see the bubbles where the water is coming up from. You can find Big Spring off the Springs hiking trail. There is another natural spring a little further down the trail called Little Spring, as well.
Bluebird Trail
Another fun fact about this park is that it’s home to a bluebird trail. Donald County Park has a group of volunteers dedicated to building homes for Eastern Bluebirds to nest in. You can hike down the Bluebird trail and see these nesting boxes as well as catch a glimpse of the birds themselves. Their website states they usually show up between February to mid September.
Fishing
If you have little ones who love to fish, it’s just another reason to come visit this park. Or, if you wanted to teach them how to fish, there are plenty of open spaces along the creek that would be great for learning. Mount Vernon Creek consists of class 1 and 2 trout waters.
These trails are not stroller friendly, so having a baby carrier of some sort or littles who can walk on their own is necessary!
