Bong State Recreation Area
About Bong State Recreation Area
Richard Bong State Recreation Area encompasses 4,515 acres of rolling grassland, savanna, wetlands and scattered woodland. Nature is on display all around, constantly changing with the season. A spring woodland hike will yield the first blooms of the year—white bloodroot and lavender hepatica. The prairie is the place to be in summer, when warm breezes part the brilliant patches of prairie smoke, coneflowers, butterfly weed and blazing stars. In late summer and fall, the variety of seeds, late-blooming flowers and brilliant leaves provide interest.
Spring is the premier birding time. The earliest migrants, red-winged blackbirds, show up in late February. New winged visitors arrive throughout the spring: grackles, cowbirds, meadowlarks, killdeer, snipe, bluebirds, ducks and swallows each one in progression. Ducks and geese begin to nest in the area’s wetlands in March and April and warblers pass through in May. Yellow-headed blackbirds, bobolink and upland plovers are among the uncommon species seen here.
More to Explore in Racine County, WI
Volunteer with Openlands
August 1, 2026
August 1, 2026
August 4, 2026
August 4, 2026
Connecting people to nature where they live.
As innovative protectors and stewards of the land since 1963, Openlands exists to create access to nature for all. Through local alliances, forward vision, and persistent action, Openlands connects and leads conservation work, serving as a guiding voice for communities, organizations, and more effective policy in northeastern Illinois and the surrounding region.
