Redhead and Egret Hiking Trails 2025 09

This week we are finally visiting Horicon Marsh for the post. We’ve visited this wildlife area multiple times before but never for this site. We chose a place that has not one but three trails. Redhead, Red Fox and Egret Hiking trails.

Key Features

Redhead Trail

• Length: Approximately 2 miles (or about 2.5 miles depending on the source) and connects to the Red Fox Trail for additional hiking mileage.
• Habitats: It loops through a variety of habitats, including prairie, marsh, and forest, offering a diverse hiking experience.
• Terrain: The trail is a mowed path with some inclines and uneven terrain, and is not considered ADA-compliant.
• Accessibility: The trail is accessible from the main parking lot of the refuge auto tour off Highway 49.
• Wildlife: It provides views of the Rock River and is a popular spot for birdwatching and observing other wildlife, particularly during the spring and fall migrations.

Egret Trail

• Length: About 1 mile, and it also connects to the Red Fox and Redhead trails for a longer loop.
• Terrain: The trail is considered easy with smooth, level surfaces, and no slope more than 5%. Its surface is a mix of asphalt, boardwalk, and crushed gravel.
• Unique Feature: A prominent feature is its boardwalk, which takes visitors out into the heart of the marsh for an immersive viewing experience.
• Habitats: It features a boardwalk that leads into the marsh habitat and then loops back through an oak forest.
• Special Sightings: The trail is an excellent place for viewing woodland wildflowers in May and observing a wide variety of birds, including egrets, herons, and other waterfowl, especially during migration season.

Review

Located just east of Waupun WI on Hwy 49, the location is probably known better for its driving tour of Horicon Marsh. But as I was looking at Google Maps for trails to walk in the marsh I found this location.

The Red Fox Hiking Trail is a small loop linking the Redhead and Egret Hiking trails. So we planned to hike all three. Thinking this would be a longer trail for us I thought it would be good prep for the 10 mile hike we are taking in October.

I only learned later that all three trails combined were 4 and a half miles. Just like the last two trails, I guess we have a sweet spot for distance. However this distance was measured on Google Maps.

We arrived at the Redhead Trail head to a mostly empty parking lot. Google mentioned that this was busier than normal. So I was a little worried the trail would be too busy.

As we started our hike we were preceded by a trio of women with 8 young kids. So I feared we would not be seeing any wild life. We were able to out pace them quickly as we hiked toward the intersection with the Red Fox Trail.

Clouds moved in making the skies darker than I had hoped for but I was still able to get good pictures. Swallows were out in force. They zipped around us as we walked. Up and down through the hilly trails we walked until we found a hill with a swarm of swallows.

The Redhead and Red Fox Trails were a mixture of open grassy hills and small stands of trees. On a sunnier day the wooded areas would give some shade. However it was not an issue on our hike.

We eventually reached the Egret Hiking Trail. Stopping briefly for a rest at the trail head. I looked at a map of the trails and the road. A one way road crosses the trails at different points. This road allows for a driving tour of the region. The link between the Red Fox Trail and the Egret Trail crosses the road.

We started onto the Egret Hiking Trail. Though its called a hiking trail this trail is a boardwalk floating on the water of the marsh. We were happy to see a Snowy Egret sitting off the reeds on the other side of the small pond the boardwalk traversed.

As we were looking around the marsh taking pictures and taking in the sites, the Egret flew past us. I was able to take a great shot of it in flight. Up to this point we had only seen the swarms of Tree Swallows and a few Tufted Titmouses.

We continued walking down the creaking boardwalk. Eventually we came to an elevated platform with mounted telescopes. In the distance we could see Pelicans and other birds flying over the greater marsh area.

Eventually though we reached the end of the boardwalk. The loop completes by winding through a few stands of trees and near the road. The ground in one of the stands of trees was covered in wild blueberries.

Reaching the trail head again we paused once more for some water. Then we started back on the Red Fox Trail. This section of the trail seemed like it was completely up hill. Above us Turkey Vultures soared and endured the harassment of Swallows.

We made our way back to the Redhead Trail. This section of the hike is the longest swinging west into the hilly section of the natural area. The day was getting warmer so we started to see butterflies as we walked.

We crossed the road again as we headed west. The trail wound up, down, and even sloped along side of the hill, testing our ankles as we walked. As we rounded the corner of one hills we were provided a view of a pair of Trumpeter Swans in the large pond the trail circled around.

Eventually though we crossed the road one last time and crested a hill to the west of the parking lot. On top of the hill I was able to get a picture of a Cedar Waxwing sitting in a very large plant.

As we reached our car we were glad to be done with the hike. We felt as though we had walked further than the previous two weeks. When I measured the distance later I was a little surprised the distance was the same. What Google does not take into account though when I measure the distance is the up and down of the hills.

If you are planning a hike here be sure to plan for the hills. While I would not call the hike a challenge the up and down of the slow rolling hills takes its tolls.

But don’t let that stop you from visiting. The Egret Hiking Trail is mostly flat being 60 percent floating board walk. This section’s only hills are in the return to the trail head which goes through hilly wooded areas. You can avoid this section of the trail by walking the road back. Or you can just walk back along the boardwalk.

I would definitely suggest this trail no matter what your ability. The area offers many opportunities to see a large variety of water foul and song birds.

Thank you for continuing to read my posts. And as always feel free to add your comments below.