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Wild Rivers Interpretive Center tells story of Florence County

Our Town Florence County

By MARGUERITE LANTHIER, Staff writer 6 min read

FLORENCE, Wis. -- The Wild Rivers Interpretive Center & Gift Shop holds a unique place in Florence.

Because of the center's close access to U.S. 2, it is a convenient place for travelers to stop, use the dog park or the RV dump station, get maps and information, purchase licenses or just enjoy a cup of coffee from the new coffee bar. The center also has a gift shop that offers a number of items both large and small and there are also a number of displays featuring history and animals native to the area.

For the seven part-time employees who work at the counter, having people come from far-away places is part of the fun of working there. They recently had someone from Hawaii stop in and another from London, England.

"I love that people come in and have great stories, how they've come here or somebody says, 'Oh, my gosh, this is my lake' or, 'This is where my uncle's cabin was.' That kind of stuff is really fun. I've had people from all over. It's amazing. and great stories about getting here and how they found us," said Julie Zelten, a volunteer since August. "I think one of the things I like best about here is that I get to learn, too, about Florence, I'm from Eagle River, Wis., and I just moved here a five years ago. And so I get to learn about all the different places. I love having this map here and being able to find things."

New director Joyce Garceau also enjoys coming out of her office to visit with people who stop in. She took over for former director Wendy Gehlhoff in April. Garceau had previously worked at the pharmacy in Florence and at the Florence County Courthouse and when Gehlhoff decided to retire, she asked Garceau to take over.

"So I said I'd give it a shot," said Garceau, who works two to three days a week on bookkeeping and grants, as they're a non-profit.

"We rely on grants to keep this place going. The gift shop is kind of just an added bonus, where people can come and visit," she said.
She credits Gehlhoff with turning the place into what it is today.

"Years back, it was dark, dingy. The main thing that comes to my mind is they had a big fish tank and it wasn’t filled with anything," Garceau said. "Now we have a beautiful gift shop. We have a lot. I like all the fun stuff that we have available."

The main attractions remain the albino deer and the bear displays. There are also sections on the history of the area. In 2025, they completed a display that has a 3D topographic map of Florence that shows all the rivers and waterways in the county. It has buttons that when pressed light the map. The map shows the county's seven watersheds and where they fall into creeks and rivers. The project was initiated by board member John Roberts, who utilized the Florence County School Fab Lab with help from Andrew Richard.

Since 2025 was also the 60th anniversary of the Wisconsin Wild Rivers Legislation, the "Becoming Wild" wall display was created and installed above the 3D map. It describes how the Florence County Pine and Popple rivers were designated as state Wild Rivers back in 1965. Roberts wrote the text for this new exhibit and Ashley Zoppetti designed, printed and installed the display. The watershed areas were painted in different colors on the carving by Katie (Zoppetti) Dahlman, art teacher at Norway Schools.

They will change the logging area to incorporate information on wild rice, known as manoomin in the Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) culture. Garceau said it takes about nine months to create a display.

"Wendy's gonna help me with this, because she's so good at setting up exhibits," Garceau said.

She will also have assistance from Roberts, Johnson Bridgewater of the River Alliance of Wisconsin and Roger LaBine, water resource technician for the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, who is an manoomin educator.

They also recently acquired a stuffed beaver mount from Sandy Anderson of Crystal Falls that belonged to her father, Richard Absolon, who was a taxidermist. It is on display with information about beavers and trapping.

For the past couple of years, they have invited artists to show artwork at the center. It currently features art by the late Laurie Sucharda. Garceau said one of the paintings has been donated for permanent display. They have reached out to another artist for the next display.

The basement of the building has a large conference room where the monthly Outdoor Education programs take place the second Tuesday of the month. The next program in November will be on moose. The conference room and other meeting rooms are available for use by the public as well.

The center takes part in the upcoming Christmas in Florence, set for 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dec. 5 at the school, selling refreshments and gift shop items.

They also have the annual Chili in the Woods event in February, which includes a snowshoe/hike of 1.5 miles, with a 4-mile option available. There will be free chili, hot dogs, cookies and beverages. Snowshoes are available to rent or to try for free at Chickadee Trails at nearby Keyes Peak Ski Hill.

Others government offices in the building include the Florence County Forestry & Parks, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, USDA Forest Services, University of Wisconsin-Extension and the Wisconsin Division of Motor Vehicles.

There are also a number of services offered, including WNDR hunting, fishing and trapping licenses; ATV/boat/snowmobile registration renewals; Michigan ORV licenses/passes and snowmobile permits; Florence County boat launch stickers; Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest annual vehicle passes; wood cutting permits; and WDNR burn permits. There are 3/4 miles of interpretive trail and pavilion near the grounds, with free wifi and trailhead parking. The winter offers a 3/4-mile snowshoe trail and snowshoe rental.

There is information on forest and land management, traveling information and brochures for both Wisconsin and Michigan, and recreational maps and brochures.

The center is open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday from Dec. 26 to April 30; 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday from May 1 to Dec. 23; and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays from May 1 to Dec. 23.

For more information, call 715-528-5377, go to ExploreFlorenceCounty.com or follow the Wild Rivers Interpretive Center on Facebook. The center is at 5628 Forestry Drive, at the corner of U.S. 2 and Highway 70.

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Marguerite Lanthier can be reached at 906-774-3500, ext. 85242, or mlanthier@ironmountaindailynews.com.

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