Headwaters Wilderness

Headwaters Wilderness is a 22,033-acre property in Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest in northeastern Wisconsin. This is the largest wilderness area in Wisconsin and is composed primarily of flat-to-rolling terrain filled with swamp, muskeg and bog lowlands separated by long ridges covered with northern hardwoods.

Headwaters Wilderness is surrounded by Forest Service roads and there are several trails that lead into the wilderness area from those but less than 2.5 miles of trail in the area sees any kind of maintenance. And in contrast to most Wisconsin forest, there are a few areas of old-growth trees located in the wilderness, some of those trees being among the oldest and largest of all trees still standing in Wisconsin.

Another stream area in Headwaters Wilderness