Grant County: River Views, Nature, and History

At Nelson Dewey State Park, the view stretches from a 500-foot-high bluff across the Mississippi River. Grant County combines river views like these with wooded heights, sand terraces, and historic sites. The county has 57 miles of Mississippi River shoreline and more than 40 miles of hiking and walking trails. Your trip can therefore focus on scenery, outdoor activities, or the region’s history.

River Landscapes and Ridges

The Great River Road in Grant County has been designated an All-American Road since 2021. The landscape’s elevations also offer different perspectives on the rivers: Wyalusing State Park sits 500 feet above the confluence of the Wisconsin River and Mississippi River. East of this confluence, Wyalusing Hardwood Forest occupies a ridge. Its wooded bluffs rise more than 400 feet above the Wisconsin River. The first figure describes the park’s position relative to the confluence; the second describes the height of the bluffs above the river.

Natural Areas and Trails

The county’s natural areas include a variety of forest and open-land habitats. Adiantum Woods is a species-rich, dry-mesic forest on a steep, north-facing slope that rises from the Wisconsin River’s south shore. Along the Mississippi, the Cassville Bluffs-Roe Unit includes a rare, undeveloped bluff and sand terrace above the river. Dry prairie and a Chinquapin oak savanna can be found there. Farther north, the dry prairies and oak savannas of Blue River Bluffs lie on sand terraces above the floodplain of the lower Wisconsin River.

Boscobel Bluffs also represents open landscapes, with rare dry prairie and oak savanna woodlands on the south-facing slope of the Lower Wisconsin River Valley. Dewey Heights Prairie is in Nelson Dewey State Park, on an 800- to 870-foot-high, southwest-facing bluff overlooking the Mississippi River. A hiking trail crosses the 30-acre area. The landscape features vary considerably, from wooded slopes along the Wisconsin River to prairies, savannas, and bluffs with views of the Mississippi.

If you enjoy getting around on foot or on wheels, the Mound View State Trail offers another option: it is suitable for cyclists, inline skaters, walkers, and joggers. Together with the county’s more than 40 miles of hiking and walking trails, these options provide a concrete starting point for planning your trip. The activities and landscapes can play different roles—for example, a route for exercise and a natural area where you can view regional habitats.

Local Places and Stories

Stonefield includes an agricultural village, a farm from the 1900s, the State Agricultural Museum, and the former home of Nelson Dewey, Wisconsin’s first governor. Potosi is home to the National Brewery Museum, located in the restored Potosi Brewery Company. These places offer different historical themes: agriculture and a governor’s former home sit alongside the history of brewing.

In Platteville, the Mitchell-Rountree Stone Cottage is the city’s oldest house and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was built in 1838. At the cottage, visitors can see furnishings, clothing, books, and personal belongings of the Mitchell and Rountree families dating from the 1820s to the 1950s. The Grant County Historical Society also features exhibits about land and mining, historic quilts, Pleasant Ridge, local soldiers, sports, and businesses in the county.

Along Main Street, the Presidential Shields display the silhouette, name, and years in office of every U.S. president; they were installed in 1976. Another historic link to the Mississippi is a car ferry route that crossed the river and was used by Nelson Dewey in 1836. These examples complement the scenery with different ways to explore history: from a house and its furnishings to exhibits and commemorative markers along a road.

Plan Your Stay Around Your Interests

Your travel interests can be a useful starting point when choosing a hotel. Would you most like to see river landscapes, explore trails, or visit historic sites? Grant County offers ideas for each of these interests, without requiring you to limit your trip to a single theme.

Discover more destinations: Platteville, Hazel Green, Boscobel, Dickeyville, Waukesha, La Crosse, Kewaunee County, Langlade.

For the broader travel overview: Wisconsin.