Two wolf packs prowl a forest that s home to bear, raccoon, fisher, deer, and otter. Bald Eagle nests dot the land, a great blue heron rookery lies just north of the flowage, and migratory waterfowl cruise the waters each fall and spring.
Anglers consider the flowage excellent habitat for bass, muskie, northern, walleye, and panfish.
It has a wilderness quality to it. Wise and other local environmentalists had been pushing the state for 12 years to buy the property from the consortium of insurance companies that owned the land and leased it to Tenneco Packaging for timbering and management. In particular, Wise is irked by the opening of a formerly locked iron gate to the land that has allowed widespread access to the flowage by ATV users. Historically, Tenneco would open the gate during the gun portion of the state s deer hunting season. Last fall, the DNR opened the gate for deer hunting.