Enjoy Our Trails!
Three Waters Reserve is a privately-owned conservation area on the scenic Sugar River. We welcome all visitors to enjoy passive nature observation and walking on our marked public trails. A trail map is available here to view on your phone or to download for printing.
The Reserve is an active Ecological Restoration site designed to provide ecosystem services essential to our community—surface and groundwater cleansing, floodwater retention, climate change mitigation, and biological diversity. Under management is a 70-acre complex of mature oak woodland and savanna, and newly seeded native prairie and wetland plant communities providing habitat for wildlife. When visiting, look for interpretive signage to learn more about these evolving natural communities at the Reserve and the many benefits they provide.
Visit our calendar to learn about public nature walks and workshops to enrich your understanding of the natural resources and mission of the Three Waters Reserve.
Pets at TWR
It is the mission of Three Waters Reserve to provide safe and enjoyable nature experiences for all visitors. Because of the challenges of managing pets safely on narrow trails when educational and other public and private programming is underway and because of the inherent risk to wildlife, the Reserve does not allow pets on the property. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.
Walk Public Trails
Three Waters Reserve maintains a system of multi-use trails through diverse forested and open natural habitats. Trail users include visitors, students, researchers, maintenance crews, and occasional wildlife. Trail hours are dawn to dusk daily. Periodically the trails may be marked closed to the public during private, scheduled events.
Trail surfaces include mowed vegetation and segments of the former asphalt golf cart paths. Trail difficulty ranges from level to moderate and steeper grades. Please use caution on all trails, surfaces can be uneven. The Reserve does not currently provide outdoor restroom facilities. Please plan ahead and leave only footprints!
The Reserve is surrounded by other public trails and visitor amenities. Please check-out the nearby Headgates Park and Boat Landing with public restrooms and walking access to the Pearl Island Recreational Corridor. The Sugar River State Bike Trail trailhead is in the nearby City of Brodhead.