UW Madison Trout Lake Station

  • Nestled in the Ceded Territories of Wisconsin’s Northwoods, Trout Lake Station is a field research station dedicated to the study of freshwater systems. Trout Lake Station supports ten full-time, year-round staff and a vibrant seasonal community of interns, researchers, artists, and science communicators. The station has all-season cabins that can hold up to 48 people, multiuse laboratory and outbuilding facilities, and supports many ways of learning from the forests, lakes, and wildlife that make this region special.

  • North America
  • 3110 Trout Lake Station Dr.
  • United States
  • Boulder Junction
  • Wisconsin
  • 54512
  • 46
  • 89
  • tls@limnology.wisc.edu
  • https://limnology.wisc.edu/trout-lake-station-overview/
  • 1924
  • 1990
  • Gretchen Gerrish
  • ggerrish@wisc.edu
  • Director
  • 6088904763
  • Carrie Kissman
  • ckissman@wisc.edu
  • Gretchen Gerrish
  • ggerrish@wisc.edu
  • Carrie Kissman
  • ckissman@wisc.edu
  • 1-100
  • NEON
  • 6-10
  • 21+
  • 21-50
  • 51-100
  • On Grid
  • 0-20 minutes
  • Onsite public programs
  • Terrestrial
  • Temperate Forest
  • 0-100 meters
  • 301-750 meters
  • C (temperate)
  • Rural
  • 75
  • 25
Year Founded
1924
Year Joined OBFS
1990
Size of Field Station (hectares)
1-100
FSML Web Address
https://limnology.wisc.edu/trout-lake-station-overview/

Private nonprofit organization?
No
Universities affiliated / Parent Organization
Federal, state, or local governmental partners?
LTER and NEON
Member of the Virtual Field
Yes

Additional Information

Private nonprofit organization?
Names of Universities affilated
0
Federal, state, or local governmental partners?
LTER and NEON
Name of partner
Tribal partners/users
Yes
MSI/HBCU users
No
Community College users
Member of the Virtual Field
Yes

Visiting a FS/ML

Open to the Public
Yes
Year round staff
6-10
Seasonal staff
21+
Overnight housing facilities/# of beds
21-50
Distance to emergency services
0-20 minutes
Library
No
Hiking trails
Internship employment
Yes

Environmental Information

Biomes
Temperate Forest
Minimum Elevation
0-100 meters
Maximum Elevation
301-750 meters
Köppen climate classification
C (temperate)
Freshwater habitats
Yes
Urban or rural
Agricultural fields
No

Research

REU host station
No
Dry lab space
Yes
Wet Lab space
Research vessels available
Yes
GIS capacity on site
Long term data sets
Yes
On site herbarium or voucher species
Formal Data Management Plan
Mesocosms, plots, stream diversions, or other sets ups for outdoor manipulative experiments
Yes
Date Joined OBFS
March 8, 2026