Madison Wetland Management District

Special Places to Visit

In eastern South Dakota, clear blue skies frame spectacular views of shallow wetlands and tallgrass prairie. Welcome to Madison Wetland Management District, where you can experience magnificent prairie vistas, see the striking colors of the wood duck, and hear the song of a western meadowlark.

• Coteau Prairie WPA

This WPA is 320 acres and contains 165 acres of upland that has never been plowed, a real “jewel” in the landscape. Here you will find an abundance of native grasses, forbs, and sedges once common to the region. 

Travel 19 miles east of Watertown on US Highway 212. 

• Cox WPA

This WPA contains 350 acres are native sod and 80 acres of restored grassland of which 58 acres were reestablished to compliment the Dakota Skipper habitat, a candidate species for the endangered species list. Here you will also see an old wagon trail located approximately 1 mile west of the parking lot on Highway 81.  

Travel 12 miles south of Watertown on US Highway 81. 

• Madison / Payne WPA Complex

  Here you will find the District headquarters and visitor center. At the visitor center, learn about snow geese and their migration journey, listen to the bird calls, and enjoy the wildlife art of many South Dakota artists. Watch the waterfowl and wildlife of Lake Madison from the observation deck. The visitor center is open weekdays from 8:00a.m. to 4:30 pm, except for Federal holidays. Travel the interpretive auto tour route on the Madison WPA, visit the Karl Mundt rest stop and overlook, or take a walk or ride on the Highway 19 Bike trail beginning at the headquarters.  

  Travel 2 miles east of Madison and ¾-mile south on Highway 19. 

• Paul Errington Memorial Marsh

  This 650-acre marsh is comprised of shallow and deep wetlands surrounded by grasslands that provide magnificent opportunities to view wildlife. The area is dedicated to the memory of Paul Errington, outstanding biologist and writer whose boyhood days were spent in this area. Errington noted, "For me, as an individual, no other natural feature has ever had the enduring attraction of an undespoiled chain of marshes in an undespoiled setting of glacial hills."  

  Travel 10 miles west of Brookings on US Highway 14 and 10 miles north on 459th Ave. 

• Dry Lake WPA

  This is the largest WPA in the District, encompassing 1,445 acres of prime waterfowl habitat. On the east side of the WPA, a 350-acre drained wetland basin was restored in 1996 in cooperation with Ducks Unlimited. The surrounding uplands were seeded to a diverse mix of native species.   

  Travel 11 miles west of Brookings on US Highway 14, 1.5 miles north on 458th Ave.  

• Silver Lake / Halverson WPA Complex

  This 950 acre WPA complex provides excellent waterfowl habitat with a mix of restored wetlands and grasslands. This was the lake which Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote about in her book By the Shores of Silver Lake. Today, the lake is shallower and has more vegetation, making it now more of a marsh.  

  Travel east of De Smet 0.5 miles on US Highway 14.