Lower Narrows is a beautiful and great example of the geologic history of our state. It represents a break in the Baraboo Range and was likely carved by a preglacial river. Today, the Baraboo River flows through the 900-foot wide, 230-foot high gorge. Further to the west, another SNA, Ableman’s Gorge, represents a similar break in the range and is referred to as the ‘Upper Narrows’. Rhyolite, a volanic rock, is found here, though the bulk of the gorge is Precambrian Baraboo quartzite. A portion of the rock gorge is exposed as seen in several of the photos below, but much of the SNA (the Narrows’ western side), is covered in a southern dry-mesic forest. There are some prairie plants present below the gorge, though this is not a high quality example of that natural community. This is also one of a few places in Wisconsin to see our native cactus, the eastern prickly pear. On my visit here, I spent most of my time examining the gorge from below and roaming the prairie. I plan to return and explore the forest a bit more and seeing the area from on top of the rock as well.
More of my photos from Lower Narrows can be viewed here.
|Natural Communities / Geology
||Southern Dry-Mesic Forest, Prairie, Gorge|
|Parking||Parking area (gravel)|
|Easy to Find||Yes|
|Best Seen By||Foot|