Wisconsin
National parks saw a record number of visitors in 2024. How many people visited in Wisconsin?
The Kakagon Sloughs, one of Wisconsin’s 18 National Natural Landmarks
The National Park Service’s Natural Landmarks Program preserves many of the nation’s diverse and unique biological and geological environments.
National parks reported a record-high number of nearly 332 million visitors last year, just as President Donald Trump’s mass purge of federal employees hits the agency, causing concern for an uncertain future.
According to new NPS data, 331.9 million recreation visitors traveled to the national parks last year. That’s an increase of 6.36 million recreation visits, or 2%, from 2023. The previous record was set in 2016 with slightly under 330 million visitors.
An internal memo directed at the National Park Service instructed employees to not publicize the visitor information, the New York Times reported, stating the agency would “not issue a press release or other proactive communications, including social media posts” on the visitor data.
The report comes as 1,000 National Park Service employees across the country were fired as part of the Trump administration’s layoffs of thousands of federal employees nationwide, according to the National Parks Conservation Association.
In Wisconsin, thousands of visitors explored national parks, lakeshores and trails across the state. Here’s a breakdown of the latest NPS visitor information in Wisconsin, and how the Trump administration federal layoffs could affect the agency.
How many people visited Wisconsin’s national parks in 2024?
Located in the northern tip of Wisconsin’s Bayfield Peninsula, Apostle Islands welcomed 253,703 visitors in 2024, according to the report. That’s up from the previous year with a recorded 247,167 visitors.
The Apostle Islands, one of the country’s three national lakeshores, faces an uncertain future due to staff layoffs, which could impact accessibility at the park. Local businesses and the $55.7 million economy tied to the park are anticipating a potential downturn due to potential layoffs.
The NPS data also reported that 29,711 people visited the Ice Age Trail in 2024, and 900,828 people visited Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway, located in Wisconsin and Minnesota, last year.
The report did not show visitor data for the North Country Scenic Riverway.
Most visited national parks in the U.S. in 2024:
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee: 12.1 million
- Zion National Park in Utah: 4.9 million
- Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona: 4.9 million
- Yellowstone National Park in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming: 4.7 million
- Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado: 4.1 million
Where are the national parks in Wisconsin?
For more information you can visit nps.gov/state/wi.
Caitlin Looby contributed to this report.
Wisconsin
What time, TV channel is Johns Hopkins vs Wisconsin-River Falls game on today? Live stream, preview
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The Division III Championship Semifinals feature the Johns Hopkins Blue Jays (12-1) facing off with the Wisconsin-River Falls Falcons (12-1) as they look for a chance to play for a title. Kickoff takes place on Saturday, December 20, at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET (11 a.m. MST) with a live TV broadcast only with ESPN Plus.
• You can watch Johns Hopkins vs. Wisconsin-River Falls football streaming live on ESPN+ (now called ESPN Select) today.
Is Johns Hopkins vs. Wisconsin-River Falls on TV today, or streaming only?
When: Saturday, December 20, at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET (11 a.m. MST).
Where: David Smith Stadium at Ramer Field | River Falls, WI
TV channel: This game is not available on traditional broadcast TV, and is only streaming on ESPN’s live sports streaming platforms available on the ESPN App with one of the “ESPN Select” or “ESPN Unlimited” subscription plans. (This is the streaming service formerly known as ESPN Plus. Here’s a look at the breakdown of ESPN streaming plans, what they cost and include.)
Where to watch streaming live on TV, or online: You can watch a live stream of this game for less than $12 on ESPN Select (It’s just $11.99/month or $119.99/full year subscription, and you can cancel anytime. Just choose the “ESPN Select” plan in the drop down to sign up for the cheapest version of the service.).
- The best deal: If you sign up for ESPN Unlimited ($29.99/month), you will get all of the ESPN networks and services, including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNEWS, ESPN Deportes, SEC Network, ACC Network, ESPN+, ESPN on ABC, SEC Network+, ACC Network Now and ESPN3.
- Get promo codes, signup deals, and free bets from our Oregon Betting News home page.
Wisconsin
Wisconsin Cattlemen’s Association, wildlife advocates react to delisting of the gray wolf
GREEN BAY, Wis. (WBAY) – The Wisconsin Cattlemen’s Association is speaking out about the U.S. House passing the “Pet and Livestock Protection Act”.
“I’ll be honest, our cattlemen are pretty fed up. I mean, they have been dealing with this issue for a long time, so. I mean just really felt like we are finally making progress here. And that’s really exciting that we can help our producers deal with this issue,” says Brady Zuck, a cow-calf producer and the past president of the Wisconsin Cattlemen’s Association.
Brady Zuck, one of many livestock producers in Wisconsin, is responding to the U.S. House passing a bill to delist the gray wolf from the “Endangered Species Act”.
The population of gray wolves is increasing, and according to the Wisconsin DNR, from April 2024 to April 2025, there were 70 verified wolf conflicts with livestock.
“That’s what’s been the most frustrating, is that we have producers locally here in northwest Wisconsin or your area by Green Bay that are dealing with this issue, and it’s all controlled in Washington, and we have people in our state that could make those management decisions, but their hands are tied,” says Zuck.
Supporters of the bill say non-lethal methods used to keep gray wolves away, such as strobe lights and music, are only short-term solutions.
“We’re asking, saying hey, if we’re having problems with wolves on farms, we need ways to effectively deal with that, that work,” says Zuck.
The Great Lakes Wildlife Alliance shared a statement from Thursday about the delisting, saying: “We are disgusted by this reckless abandonment of science-based wildlife management. However, our advocates showed up in extraordinary numbers against overwhelming odds, and their voices were heard. This organization and our supporters are not defeated.”
“As cattlemen, we never said we want to eliminate all wolves, we don’t want any wolves, we never said that. But we just need to make sure we have the tools in place that we can, you know, if we have wolves killing calves, we need a way to deal with it, right?” Zuck says.
The bill still has to pass the Senate and reach the president’s desk before changes are made.
Copyright 2025 WBAY. All rights reserved.
Wisconsin
Watch Live: Demolition of bridge between Iowa, Wisconsin
LANSING, Iowa (KCRG) – The Black Hawk Bridge, connecting Iowa and Wisconsin over the Mississippi River will come down Friday morning.
The Iowa DOT and Wisconsin DOT are partnering on the demolition, which is set for 9:30 am on Friday. You can watch the demolition live in this article when it happens.
The bridge has been closed since October with plans to construct a new bridge, planned to open in 2027.
The Iowa DOT laid out safety plans for the demolition:
- A zone around the bridge will be blocked off to protect people from debris.
- The Lansing Ferry service will not run from 6:00 p.m. on December 18 to the morning of December 22.
- Highway 26 will be closed from around 8:45 a.m. on December 19 and reopen around 30 minutes after the implosion. Detour signs will be posted.
- The demolition zone will be closed to recreational boat traffic on December 18 and expected to reopen during the night of December 19.
- No trains will run through Lansing for four hours on the morning of December 19.
Copyright 2025 KCRG. All rights reserved.
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