|  05/25/2022

More Room to Roam Pt. 3


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Pheasants Forever Acquires New Public Access in Wisconsin’s Primary Pheasant Range

As we take the time to celebrate our four legged hunting partners this month, it’s also important to celebrate the habitat that allows them to do what they love. Watching our dogs work is one of the most rewarding parts of hunting, but without access to quality habitat we’d all be stuck at home being driven mad by cooped up setters, pointers and labs. 
 
As our dogs grow up and then grow old, there’s comfort in a familiar piece of property. The same stand of swampy cattails that a puppy stumbles through dragging a check chord can hold his final rooster over a decade later.
 
These lands tell the stories of our dog’s lives long after they’re gone. A good retrieve here, a bad miss there. In the passing of time, land can remain a constant — and what a wonderful way to remember the creatures who bring so much joy to our lives, but never seems to be here for as long as we’d like.
 
Habitat is a conduit for memories, and this month we’re celebrating some recent projects that’ll allow public land hunters to make those memories for decades to come. The final property in our series is an addition to the McCann Creek Fishery Area outside Bloomer, Wisc. Spearheaded by the Chippewa Valley Chapter of Pheasants Forever, the McCann Creek Addition is a signature Build a Wildlife Area project that provides 182 acres of public access and upland habitat immediately adjacent to the McCann Creek Fishery Area.
 
“I’ve driven by this property often and was impressed with how well the prairie came in over the last few years. When I noticed the for-sale sign, I immediately contacted Scott Stipetich, Pheasants Forever’s precision ag and conservation specialist, and the ball started to roll,” said Travis Hakes, the Chippewa Valley Chapter board president.  “This property offers a diverse habitat, which makes it a desirable acquisition for Pheasants Forever. Our chapter is grateful for all the hard work from everyone involved, and we’re excited to help manage this habitat for generations to come."
 
The McCann Creek Fishery Area Addition includes 80 acres of Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) prairie, 66 acres of combined wet meadow, emergent wetland and hemi-marsh restored through the Wetland Reserve Program (WRP), and 35 acres of riparian forest and shrubland. McCann Creek, a Class 1 trout stream, flows through the property. The project provides habitat not only for pheasants, but turkey, waterfowl, deer and many other non-game wildlife species. This acquisition also expands opportunities for trout fishing and trapping, creating an all-around sportsmen’s paradise for Bloomer Township and Chippewa County.
 
Funding support for this project came from the Chippewa Valley Chapter of Pheasants Forever and a diverse array of sponsors including Wisconsin’s Knowles Nelson Stewardship Program, North American Wetland Conservation Act, Chippewa County Stewardship Fund, Cabela’s Outdoor Fund and the National Wild Turkey Federation. Further, this acquisition had support from the local community, the Township of Bloomer, the Bloomer Rod and Gun Club, and the Wisconsin Council of Trout Unlimited.
 
“It was an amazing display of dedication and commitment from the Chippewa Valley chapter to get this property into public access. I know it’s been on their radar for quite some time and now their legacy will be open to everyone,” said Marty Moses, Pheasants Forever’s Wisconsin state coordinator. “I’m proud of them and delighted to have played a part myself. But the real joy will come when we can march out into those fields together and use the property as a place to introduce new hunters to what Pheasants Forever stands for.”
 
McCann Creek Fishery Area Addition is a permanent habitat protection project contributing to the goals of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s Call of the Uplands® national campaign - a recently announced monumental initiative to save America’s uplands and cultivate the next generation of conservationists and hunters.
 

Become a member or make a donation on behalf of your favorite dog breed during our Bird Dogs for Habitat campaign!

Not only do you get all the perks of celebrating your bird dog and your collective commitment to conservation, your contribution counts in the race to this year's most beloved bird dog breed. Every dollar donated equals a vote, and every week during the month of May our generous sponsors will be giving away fantastic prizes to those who participate. All contributions will support our wildlife habitat conservation mission — and the places where you and your bird dog love to roam — because good bird habitat is good bird dog habitat!