11Jn~~Ftllnq~111111~11 This Document Is Made Available Electronically by the Minnesota Legislative Reference Library As Part of an Ongoing Digital Archiving Project
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LEG/SLAT/VE REFERENCE LIBRARY ! -- ----~----~--------------~-------~--~----11Jn~~ftllnq~111111~11 This document is made available electronically by the Minnesota Legislative Reference Library as part of an ongoing digital archiving project. http://www.leg.state.mn.us/lrl/lrl.asp (Funding for document digitization was provided, in part, by a grant from the Minnesota Historical & Cultural Heritage Program.) F 6'12 .F4 F4 'l 995 Forestville State Park Management Plan Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Division of Parks and Recreation JULY21, 1995 ,:, Table of Contents [. Introduction ··········································,···············ffl)..15 .• ··f?·r,u·i.C?. ··~······················· 1 State Park's Mission/Vision/Goals ...............................tnJ·IE .. J.YJ •• u;.. O.. Wf..&·@n· ·.. ·.... 1 Park Des~ription and ~aw ................ : ............................ ~..................................... · ........... 2 Park Advisory Comrmttee and Plannmg Process ..................... F.E.S .. 2-l·fil9B· .... ::.·.......... 4 , LEGISLATIVE R£FEHEN II. Beyond Park Boundaries ·········•••ee••························STA~.~f#OO·BtJ~g~~~Y. ........ 6 Regional Landscape and Watershed Description .................... ~~.. ~~~~... MNA5lsS ..................... 6 Regional Issues ................................................................................................................... 9 ( Regional Population . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 10 Tourism and Marketing .................................................................................................... 11 Supply and Demand of Recreation Facilities ................................................................... 12 Park Visitor Analysis ........................................................................................................ 16 III. Natural and Cultural Resources ................................................................... 18 Introduction and Climate .................................................................................................. 18 Cultural Resources ............................................................................................................ 18 Natural Resources ............................................................................................................. 26 Resource Objectives and Integrated Management ........................................................... 4 7 IV. Recreation Resources ..................................................................................... 52 Recreation Management Objectives ................................................................................. 52 Existing Development ...................................................................................................... 53 Proposed Development ..................................................................................................... 58 V. Park Boundary ................................................................................................ 73 VI. Interpretive Services ..................................................................................... 79 Interpretive Clientele ................................................................... :.................................... 79 Interpretive Themes .......................................................................................................... 81 Summary of Existing Interpretive Services ...................................................................... 84 Interpretive Services Recommendations .......................................................................... 89 VII. Operations, Staffing, and Costs ................................................................... 92 VIII. Plan Modification Process .......................................................................... 95 IX. Bibliography ................................................................................................... 97 List of Maps Local Area .......................................................................................................................... 3 Ecological Classification System ....................................................................................... 7 Regional Context ................................................................................................................ 8 Camper Origin .......................... ·,·...................................................................................... 17 Historical/Archaeological Resources ............................................................................... 19 Soils (main park) ...................................................................................................... ,....... 31 Soils (Mystery Cave) ........................................................................................................ 32 Existing Plant Communities ............................................................................................. 35 Existing Development (main park) ................................................................................... 54 Existing Summer Trails .................................................................................................... 55 Existing Winter Trails ...................................................................................................... 56 Existing Boundary I Development and Cave Passageway (Mystery Cave) ..................... 57 Proposed Development (main park) ................................................................................. 70 Proposed Summer Trails .................................................................................................. 71 Proposed Winter Trails ..................................................................................................... 72 Proposed Main Park Boundary and South Branch Root River Ecological Boundary ...... 77 Proposed Boundary and Development (Mystery Cave) ................................................... 78 INTRODUCTION State Park's Mission/Vision/Goals The following statements were generated by planning process participants after review ing the general DNR and Division of Parks and Recreation mission statements. Park Mission: To preserve and manage the diverse natural, scenic, and cultural resources of Forestville State Park for present and future generations while providing appropriate recreational and educational opportunities. Park "100-year" Vision: • The park's natural scenic beauty, non-commercial atmosphere, and pre-Euro pean settlement character are preserved. • Park development and use is controlled and managed to maximize the natural attractiveness and historic character of Forestville. • As tourism demand grows and the need for resource protection increases, the park's physical boundaries expand and local partners help to manage resources within an ecological boundary in the main park/Mystery Cave area. • Park visitors can stay overnight in nearby communities and bicycle to the park. • The park is an exemplary, healthy ecosystem of unfragmented, closed-canopy forest and karst topography within a sustainable use community. Park Goals: u7 s-i (See pages_-l_and__ for objectives specific to resource and recre- ation management) • To provide a balance between resource preservation and recreational use. • To provide park development in concentrated areas, preserving the remaining portions of the park. • To provide effective and efficient public services through cooperation between the Department of Natural Resources and the Minnesota Historical Society. 1 Park Description and Law Forestville State Park is located in Fillmore County in southern Minnesota south of Wykoff, approximately halfway between Spring Valley and Preston. The park entrance is four miles south of State Highway 16 on Co. Rd. 5, and two miles east on Co. Rd. 12 (see Local Area map, pagJ ). The park boundary includes approximately 2,691 acres. Approximately 286 acres are privately owned, and approximately 18 acres are included in the Forestville State Historic Site, administered by the Minnesota Historical Society (MHS). The natural and cultural resources at Forestville State Park offer park visitors an excep tionally diverse and high quality outdoor recreation experience. The park includes: • Historic Forestville, a MHS state historic site which includes the 19th century Meighen Store and a living history program with costumed guides; • Mystery Cave, Minnesota's longest known cave (over twelve miles of pas sageway) and other karst topography features (e.g. sinkholes, springs); • Scenic Bluffland Topography, characterized by rolling uplands, steep and wooded valleys with exposed rock bluffs, and flat valley floor floodplains; • A Rich Diversity of Natural Resources, including hardwood forests, boreal remnants, prairie, bats, rattlesnakes, and wild turkeys; • Some of the Best Trout-Fishing Streams in the state of Minnesota; and; • One of the Best and Most Popular Horseback Trail systems in the State of Minnesota. Forestville State Park was established in 1963 and the park boundaries were expanded in 1969 (see Park History, page.al). The administrative control of the state Historic Site was transferred to the MHS in 1977. Mystery Cave was added to Forestville State Park in 1987. Minnesota Laws for 1987 (Chapter 400, sec. 32, 85.012, subd. 19) includes provisions for 1) tour fees shall be deposited in the state park working