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Joe Steinbring

Natural Bridge State Park

A sandstone arch over a wooded hollow, with a trail curving beneath its overhang.
The natural bridge, in May 2021.2021 · Photograph by Joe Steinbring
Static offline map showing Natural Bridge State Park in Wisconsin with a location pin.

Natural Bridge State Park is in the hills of Sauk County, outside Leland, not far from Devil’s Lake State Park. Its arch of sandstone, about 35 feet tall, is the largest natural bridge in Wisconsin, and people camped in the rock shelter beneath it 10,000 to 12,000 years ago. I spent the middle of the afternoon of May 30, 2021, there, one of the state parks I hiked that spring while international travel was still on hold. The trail climbs through thick, green woods below ledges of sandstone, comes around to the arch, and passes right under the overhang of the shelter.

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  • A deep overhang of tan sandstone sheltering a smooth, sandy floor.

    The rock shelter beneath the arch.

    2021 · Photograph by Joe Steinbring

  • The sandstone arch seen from beside its overhang, framed by leafy trees.

    The arch from beside the rock shelter.

    2021 · Photograph by Joe Steinbring

  • A dirt trail through thick green woods, passing a mushroom-shaped ledge of sandstone.

    The trail below a ledge of sandstone.

    2021 · Photograph by Joe Steinbring

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