BirdTrout

Nicolet National Forest, Wisconsin

663,213 acres of public ground in Forest, Oconto, Florence, Vilas counties, managed by US Forest Service. 146 named streams run through it, of which 130 are designated trout water — 1144.1 miles of it. It is in the state's huntable-land layer.

Open in BirdTrout

Map key

This unit — the ground this page is about

Other public land — state, federal and county ground around it

USGS gauge — a gauge, coloured by what it reads now

Water temperature — the colour of every stream on this ground

50°F and colder is cold, through cold-transitional and cool, to warm above 70°F — the same four bands the app paints. The colour is Wisconsin DNR's own classification of the stream, not a measurement, except at the gauge dots, which read live. Grey is water Wisconsin DNR has not typed.

The unit in numbers

Assembled from the state huntable public-land layer and PAD-US ownership records, dissolved into one block: the section lines a state forest is surveyed in are not a fact about access, so they are not drawn and not counted twice.

663,213 ac

public ground

1036.3 square miles · 108 separate blocks

US Forest Service

managing agency

National forest

146

named streams on it

1464.2 miles · 130 designated trout

Access not recorded

public access

as recorded in the ownership file

Getting on it

PAD-US carries no access class for this unit. It is in the state's huntable layer, which is why it is here; what else you may do on it is the managing agency's to say.

This unit is 108 separate blocks of ground rather than one, which is normal for public land held in surveyed sections: the blocks are not contiguous. The map above draws every one of them, and the ground between two of them belongs to somebody else. Boundaries, closures and anything posted on the ground are USDA Forest Service's to say.

Trout streams on this ground

Every named stream whose reaches touch this unit, longest first. 86 of them have a page of their own and are linked; the rest are in the app. The class column is Wisconsin DNR's designation of that stream, over the reaches it has classified. "Now" is the live USGS reading where a gauge stands in that stream.

Stream	Miles	Class	Now	Designation
Peshtigo River	118.7	Cold	—	Class II
Pine River	86.0	Cold	—	Class II, Class III
Wisconsin River	84.1	Cold	—	Class II, Class III
North Branch Oconto River	70.1	Cold	—	Class I, Class II, Class III
Brule River	58.7	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
South Branch Oconto River	56.5	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
Popple River	50.6	Cold	—	Class I, Class II, Class III
Rat River	38.8	Cold	—	Class II, Class III
Otter Creek	35.3	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
Little Popple River	35.1	Cold	—	Class I, Class II, Class III
Deerskin River	26.3	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
McCaslin Brook	26.3	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
Second South Branch Oconto River	25.6	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
First South Branch Oconto River	23.6	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
Haymeadow Creek	22.6	Cold	—	Class II, Class III
North Branch Peshtigo River	19.5	Cold	—	Class II
Armstrong Creek	19.0	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
Woods Creek	17.4	Cold	—	Class I
North Branch Pine River	16.9	Cold	—	Class II
Waupee Creek	14.7	Cold	—	Class I, Class III
Ninemile Creek	14.3	Cold	—	Class II
Brule Creek	14.1	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
North Fork Thunder River	14.1	Cold	—	Class I
Middle Branch Peshtigo River	12.9	Cold	—	Class II, Class III
Elvoy Creek	12.7	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
Coldwater Creek	11.1	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
North Branch Popple River	11.1	Cold	—	Class II
South Branch Popple River	11.0	Cold	—	Class II
Simpson Creek	10.9	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
Johnson Creek	10.7	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
Muskrat Creek	10.7	Cold	—	Class I
Meadowbrook Creek	10.1	Cold	—	Class II, Class III
Allen Creek	9.9	Cold	—	Class II
Jones Creek	9.8	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
Lilypad Creek	9.6	Cold	—	Class I, Class III
Hendricks Creek	8.7	Cold	—	Class I
McDonald Creek	8.7	Cold	—	Class I, Class III
East Branch Lily River	8.6	Cold	—	Class II
Fourmile Creek	8.6	Cold	—	Class II, Class III
Torpee Creek	8.5	Cold	—	Class II
Pine Creek	8.1	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
Kimball Creek	7.6	Cold	—	Class II
Montagne Creek	7.5	Cold	—	Class I, Class II, Class III
Stoney Creek	7.4	Cold	—	Class I
Camp Eight Creek	7.0	untyped	—	Class III
Hills Pond Creek	6.4	Cold	—	Class I
Morgan Creek	6.3	Cold	—	Class II
Gaspardo Creek	6.2	Cold	—	Class II
Rock Creek	6.1	Cold	—	Class I
West Branch Peshtigo River	5.9	Cold	—	Class II
Wisconsin Creek	5.9	Cold	—	Class II
Hay Creek	5.8	Cold	—	Class I
Hines Creek	5.8	Cold	—	Class I
Little Waupee Creek	5.8	Cold	—	Class I
Stevens Creek	5.8	Cold	—	Class II
Alvin Creek	5.7	Cold	—	Class II
Kingstone Creek	5.7	Cold	—	Class II, Class III
Knowles Creek	5.7	Cold	—	Class I
Range Line Creek	5.7	Cold	—	Class II
Rock Creek	5.7	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
Blackjack Creek	5.5	Cold	—	Class I, Class III
Halley Creek	5.5	Cold	—	Class II
Mary Creek	5.5	Cold	—	Class I
Hay Meadow Creek	5.4	untyped	—	—
North Branch McDonald Creek	5.2	untyped	—	Class III
Shabodock Creek	5.2	Cold	—	Class II
Honey Creek	5.0	Cold	—	Class II
Riley Creek	5.0	Cold	—	Class I
Thoroughfare Creek	5.0	untyped	—	—
Indian Creek	4.9	Cold	—	Class I
Military Creek	4.9	Cold	—	Class I, Class II
Riley Creek	4.8	Cold	—	Class I
South Fork Thunder River	4.8	Cold	—	Class I
Beaver Creek	4.7	Cold	—	Class I
Forbes Creek	4.7	Cold	—	Class I
Little Deerskin River	4.7	Cold	—	Class I
Ninemile Creek	4.7	Cold	—	Class I
Fay Lake Outlet	4.6	untyped	—	—
Haymeadow Creek	4.6	Cold	—	Class II
Macauley Creek	4.6	Cold	—	Class I
Catwillow Creek	4.5	Cold	—	Class II
East Thunder Creek	4.4	Cold	—	Class I
Kersten Creek	4.4	Cold	—	Class II
Snow Falls Creek	4.4	Cold	—	Class I
Swanson Creek	4.3	Cold	—	Class II
Hanson Creek	4.2	Cold	—	Class II
Lobischer Creek	4.2	untyped	—	—
Shawano Creek	4.1	Cold	—	Class II
West Branch Armstrong Creek	4.1	Cold	—	Class II
West Allen Creek	4.0	Cold	—	Class II
Dalton Creek	3.9	Cold	—	Class I
Kentuck Creek	3.7	Cold	—	Class II
Spencer Creek	3.7	Cold	—	Class I
Duck Creek	3.6	Cold	—	Class II
Kufner Creek	3.6	Cold	—	Class II
Sixtytwo Creek	3.6	untyped	—	—
Whiting Creek	3.6	Cold	—	Class II
LeRoy Creek	3.5	Cold	—	Class II
Huff Creek	3.4	Cold	—	Class I, Class II, Class III
Bog Brook	3.3	untyped	—	—
Michigan Creek	3.3	Cold	—	Class I
Baldwin Creek	3.2	Cold	—	Class I
Battle Creek	3.2	Cold	—	Class I
Rat Creek	3.2	untyped	—	Class III
Round Creek	3.2	Cold	—	Class I
Sawyer Creek	3.2	Cold	—	Class II
Spring Meadow Creek	3.2	Cold	—	Class I
Little Smoky Creek	3.1	Cold	—	Class II, Class III
Newman Creek	3.1	untyped	—	Class III
Kieper Creek	2.9	Cold	—	Class II
Rose Lake Creek	2.9	untyped	—	—
Lauterman Creek	2.8	untyped	—	Class III
Piledriver Creek	2.7	Cold	—	Class II
Wildcat Creek	2.7	Cold	—	Class I
Pemma Creek	2.5	Cold	—	Class II
Bonita Creek	2.4	Cold	—	Class I
Mainline Creek	2.3	untyped	—	—
Camp Twenty Creek	2.2	Cold	—	Class I
Colburn Creek	2.2	Cold	—	Class II
Mexico Creek	2.2	Cold	—	Class II
Richardson Creek	2.2	Cold	—	Class II
Wakefield Creek	2.2	Cold	—	Class I
Halsey Lake Outlet	2.1	untyped	—	—
Town Creek	2.1	Cold	—	Class I
Chuks Creek	2.0	Cold	—	Class II
Gruman Creek	2.0	Cold	—	Class I
Long Lake Outlet	2.0	untyped	—	—
Bills Creek	1.9	Cold	—	Class I
Charlie Otto Creek	1.9	Cold	—	Class II
Halsey Lake Slough	1.9	untyped	—	—
Mosquito Creek	1.9	untyped	—	—
Howell Creek	1.7	untyped	—	—
East Fork LeRoy Creek	1.6	Cold	—	Class II
Indian River	1.6	untyped	—	—
Wilson Creek	1.6	Cold	—	Class I
Sasacat Creek	1.5	untyped	—	—
Swan Creek	1.5	Cold	—	Class II
West Thunder Creek	1.5	Cold	—	Class I
Bear Creek	1.4	untyped	—	Class III
Chipmunk Creek	1.4	Cold	—	Class I
Kokots Creek	1.4	untyped	—	Class III
Johnson Creek	1.2	Cold	—	Class I
Armstrong Creek	1.1	Cold	—	Class II
Martin Creek	0.8	Cold	—	Class I
Coldwater Creek	0.7	Cold	—	Class II
Flanners Creek	0.7	untyped	—	—

The miles are the whole stream's, not the miles inside this boundary: a river does not stop at a property line and neither does its page.

Hunting

This ground is in Wisconsin's huntable public-land layer as national forest, managed by US Forest Service — 100% of the unit is covered by it. The seasons below are the 2026–2027 small-game seasons as the state's own digest publishes them; they are statewide except where a species is zoned, and the bars run 1 September to 31 August.

Wild turkey (fall) 12 Sep – 3 Jan

Wisconsin requires blaze orange or fluorescent pink only while a firearm deer season is in progress — but then it applies to small game hunters too. This app flags orange as required for the whole season because missing it during gun deer season is the dangerous error. Check the gun deer dates. Some states let a turkey hunter out of blaze orange. Wisconsin does not: the exemption here is for waterfowl hunters, so a fall turkey hunter afield while a firearm deer season is open wears it like everybody else. The limit is one turkey per harvest authorization, not a number of birds a day. A hunter holding more than one authorization may take more than one bird, so no daily figure is shown above — the authorizations in your pocket are the limit. One turkey of any age or sex per harvest authorization — either sex, unlike spring, which is bearded or male birds only. Three things, and all three: a turkey hunting licence for the season you are hunting, a wild turkey stamp, and an unfilled harvest authorization valid for the season, period and zone you are in. One fall harvest authorization comes with the fall turkey licence at no extra cost, and you choose the zone when you buy it. Where a zone has quota left, bonus authorizations go on sale in August at ten dollars for residents and fifteen for non-residents, one per hunter per day. Wisconsin runs seven turkey management zones, and they do not change the dates — every zone opens and shuts on the same day. What a zone decides is which authorization you may hold and how many WDNR issues there, so pick the zone you will actually hunt when you apply or buy. Dogs are legal for fall turkey. They are not legal in spring. Baiting turkeys is illegal. Hunting over agricultural crops and over wildlife food plots that were planted and left standing is not baiting. Fall turkey runs on WDNR's deer, bear, elk and small game shooting-hours table. Spring turkey runs on the migratory bird table, which starts earlier in the morning — they are not the same hours. Wisconsin's other turkey season is spring, and it is the bigger hunt: six one-week periods from 21 April to 1 June 2027, with a youth hunt on 17 and 18 April. Authorizations are drawn by zone and by period, and the application closes on 10 December.

American woodcock 19 Sep – 2 Nov

Northern bobwhite 17 Oct – 9 Dec

Daily bag 5, possession 15. Wisconsin requires blaze orange or fluorescent pink only while a firearm deer season is in progress — but then it applies to small game hunters too. This app flags orange as required for the whole season because missing it during gun deer season is the dangerous error. Check the gun deer dates. Possession is three times the daily bag, which is the rule WDNR states for upland birds rather than a separate figure for this species. Opening day starts at 9:00 a.m., not at first light. The season is written statewide and the bird is not: bobwhite hangs on in the far south-west of Wisconsin, at the northern edge of its range, and is thin even there.

Ring-necked pheasant 17 Oct – 3 Jan

Wild turkey (spring) 21 Apr – 27 Apr, 28 Apr – 4 May, 5 May – 11 May, 12 May – 18 May, 19 May – 25 May, 26 May – 1 Jun

Wisconsin requires blaze orange or fluorescent pink only while a firearm deer season is in progress — but then it applies to small game hunters too. This app flags orange as required for the whole season because missing it during gun deer season is the dangerous error. Check the gun deer dates. The limit is one turkey per harvest authorization, not a number of birds a day. A hunter holding more than one authorization may take more than one bird, so no daily figure is shown above — the authorizations in your pocket are the limit. Bearded or male birds only, unlike the fall season, which takes either sex. Six one-week periods, and they run back to back with no gap: 21 to 27 April, 28 April to 4 May, 5 to 11 May, 12 to 18 May, 19 to 25 May, and 26 May to 1 June. Your harvest authorization names one of them, and it is the only week it is good for. Three things, and all three: a turkey hunting licence for the season you are hunting, a wild turkey stamp, and an unfilled harvest authorization valid for the season, period and zone you are in. Authorizations are drawn on a cumulative preference system. Applications cost three dollars and close on 10 December; whatever the drawing does not award is sold afterwards as bonus authorizations, first come first served, at ten dollars for residents and fifteen for non-residents. Wisconsin runs seven turkey management zones, and they do not change the dates — every zone opens and shuts on the same day. What a zone decides is which authorization you may hold and how many WDNR issues there, so pick the zone you will actually hunt when you apply or buy. A youth hunt runs on 17 and 18 April, ahead of Period A, for hunters under 16 accompanied by an adult. It is not open to everyone, so it is not in the dates above. Dogs are not legal for spring turkey. Live and electronic decoys are not legal in either season. Baiting turkeys is illegal. Hunting over agricultural crops and over wildlife food plots that were planted and left standing is not baiting. Spring turkey runs on WDNR's migratory bird shooting-hours table, not the small game one — it starts earlier in the morning than the fall season does. These are 2027 dates and they are current, not stale: WDNR's book is the Fall 2026 to Spring 2027 regulations, and spring 2027 is the half of that season year still to come.

Ruffed grouse zoned — see below

Zoned — Wisconsin publishes this season by zone, and this page does not place this unit in one, so no season bar is drawn. Seasons by zone — Zone A: 12 Sep – 3 Jan; Zone B: 17 Oct – 8 Dec. Wisconsin requires blaze orange or fluorescent pink only while a firearm deer season is in progress — but then it applies to small game hunters too. This app flags orange as required for the whole season because missing it during gun deer season is the dangerous error. Check the gun deer dates. WDNR sets the daily bag at five birds in Zone A and two in Zone B. This app shows one bag limit per species and cannot yet give a different one per zone, so the figure is left empty rather than printed wrong in half the state — take the one for the zone you are standing in. Zone A is the northern and central forest; Zone B the south-east. The boundary is WDNR's own zone polygons, from season_zones_wi.geojson, and the map resolves which side of it you are on — so the dates shown are the ones for where you are standing.

Hunter orange: At least 50% of clothing above the waist, and any head covering, must be blaze orange or fluorescent pink any time a firearm deer season is in progress. This applies to small game and archery hunters, not only to deer hunters. Waterfowl hunters are exempt. It applies to any open firearm deer season, except when hunting waterfowl.

Access sites and amenities

No public access site we have on record stands on this unit. We hold no trail or campground data at all, so what is here is what the state publishes as launches and walk-in access, and none of it falls on this ground.

When to come

The hatch calendar for northern Wisconsin, which is the region this unit's centre falls in — the same regions the app's hatch panel uses. It is a regional record, not a survey of this ground: nobody has counted insects unit by unit. Year-round records (midges, scuds, sculpins) are left out. The seasons above are the other half of this calendar: the water is best before the ground is.

January

Fish Eggs

February

Little Brown Stonefly

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Fish Eggs

What makes this unit distinctive

The Nicolet holds more designated trout water than any other block of public ground in Wisconsin: 130 of the 146 named streams touching its 663,213 acres are WDNR trout water, across Forest, Oconto, Florence and Vilas counties. The Peshtigo runs 118.7 miles of Class II through it, the Pine River 86.0 at Class II and III, the North Branch Oconto 70.1 miles carrying all three classes, the Brule 58.7 at Class I and II and the South Branch Oconto 56.5 the same. It is 108 separate parts rather than one, which is the normal shape of a national forest assembled from purchases; the ground between two of them belongs to somebody else. PAD-US records no access class for it. The seasons below are Wisconsin's statewide small-game seasons, not a per-unit list.

Regulations

Nothing on this page is a regulation. The fishing rules that apply to the water on this ground — the types, the seasons, the size limits and the gear restrictions — are on the Wisconsin fishing regulations page, built from the agency's own columns. The hunting seasons above come from the state's hunting digest, read against the 2026 licence year.

Watersheds it lies in

The subbasins this ground drains into. Each one has the whole basin's water on it.

Public land nearby

The nearest other blocks of public ground, centre to centre. Public land does not tile a state the way watersheds do, so this is nearness rather than adjacency.