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Governor Nelson State Park
Governor Nelson State Park
Where is Governor Nelson State Park?
Governor Nelson State Park is located on County Highway M, north of Madison in the town of Westport. From Madison's west side take University Avenue west to Allen Blvd turn right on Allen then turn right on County M in Middleton. The park is roughly four miles ahead on your right. From Madison's east side, take Johnson Street to Northport Drive then turn left on County M. From there the part is about 2 miles ahead on your left.
What is it like?
Governor Nelson State Park is located on the north shore of Lake Mendota. Both wooded and open the trails wind over gentle hills. The 4.5 miles of trails are groomed for both classical and skate skiing.
Who will enjoy skiing at Governor Nelson State Park?
Skiers of all capabilities will find Governor Nelson State Park a fun place to visit. The wide trails provide plenty of room for both classic and skate skiers. It is hilly enough to make it interesting but not so hilly as to make it difficult for beginners.
Toilet facilities and parking are available.
How much does it cost?
A State Park sticker is required to enter. Stickers may be purchased from park staff or from a self-purchase box for the day or for the year for all of the Wisconsin State Parks and Forests.
Skiing Stories from Governor Nelson State Park
The Candlelight Ski Report
I visited the candlelight ski event at Gov. Nelson State Park on 27 Jan 2001. Upon arriving, I found the parking lot about half full, and hard to find a spot only because it was very dark there. The other difficulty was avoiding skiiers walking across the parking lot to get to the trail head, which was about 500 feet from the parking lot. While I did know my way around the park, it would have helped me much more if I had stopped to get a trail map at the entry way, since I wasn't sure which trail I was to start on.
As I mentioned before, there were people walking to one trail head across the road from the parking lot, but there was another trail head that is on the east end of the parking lot. And so I took that trail with my skis, only to find the trail taking me to the campfire. So I turned around, skiied back to the parking lot, took off my skiis, and walked to the correct trail.
There were many people starting on the trail at the same time, of which I would say were probably newcomers to the candlelight sort of event. I found myself passing them on the right in the skating lane, mainly because I didn't want to create any more congestion than there already was.
The torches that they had placed, which were of the patio torch type, were placed somewhere between 15 to 30 yards apart. Due to the strong winds from the northwest, several of the torches had burned out. Thanks to the vigilant crew on-hand, the burn-out torches were kept to a minimum.
While I have visited the park in the past, this was only in the summer months, and so my visit skiing here was a first as well. I would rate the trails in good condition, although they could have been in excellent condition, but I just couldn't see that well. The trail was groomed for classic skiers on one side of the wide trail, with a skating lane provided as well. One thing I would like to have seen was to have the classic lane a bit more to the center of the trail, because my outside pole kept getting stuck in ungroomed and crusty snow. Another improvement would be to get more torches so that night visibility could be better on the trail.
I would personally rate the difficulty of the trail, in daylight conditions, somewhat easy. There really was only one hill, which wasn't very steep. In the candlelight event, it was much more enjoyable to try out a new trail with no trail challenges. It was a beautiful night to ski there with clear skies, the moon was out with just a sliver of a quarter phase, and Venus was on a very bright display just above the setting moon. Too bad the moonlight didn't help for seeing the trail.
Upon completion of two laps around the trail, I made my way back to the campfire. The friends of Gov. Nelson State Park had a good spread of food and drink, including hot dogs, doritos, twinkies, apple juice and hot cocoa. I enjoyed the warmth of the campfire, and proceeded to burn my skiis in it. The night view of the Isthmus across Lake Mendota was fabulous as well.
All in all, I would say that it was a fun time, and would recommend it to anyone who has not yet skiied a candlelight event. I would like to thank the friends of Gov. Nelson State Park for their hospitality in providing the warm beverage and fire, and look forward to the next one, on 24 February 2001!
Contributed by Lindsay Feuling (Candlelight Ski Reporter) on 27 January 2001.
