Mazo Beach

Mazo Beach is the colloquial name for Mazomanie Bottoms State Natural Area, located in Sauk County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Property along the river was acquired in parcels by the State of Wisconsin since the 1950s to provide a full range of nature based activities including hiking, wildlife viewing, hunting, fishing, and wildlife habitat. Since 1978, the beach and surrounding nature preserve have attracted picnickers and swimming day-trippers to its open and expansive shoreline. The Mazomanie Bottoms encompasses a large area of Wisconsin River floodplain forest dissected by old river channels that are dry except during periodic floods. Silver maple, elm, basswood, and ash dominate the forest; other trees include swamp white oak, cottonwood, willow, river birch, and hackberry. Openings in the canopy due to elm mortality have a dense understory of gray dogwood, prickly ash, buckthorn, and young trees. Ridges of sand support oaks, but the slough margins are nearly pure silver maple. Vining plants and lianas are found in abundance: virgin's bower, moonseed, wild cucumber, woodbine, poison ivy, carrion flower, grape, and wild yam. Sand bars and ephemeral pools along the river add considerable diversity. The forest harbors thousands of migrating birds. Nesting birds include these uncommon species: cerulean (Dendroica cerulea), Kentucky (Oporornis formosus), prothonotary (Protontaria citrea) and mourning warblers, winter wren, and brown creeper.