Ribbon cutting for the new dock on Bukolt Island. Groups present include North Central Conservancy Trust, Prime W.A.T.E.R. Anglers, Community Foundation of Central Wisconsin, Portage County Business Council Ambassadors, City of Stevens Point, and the Parks, Recreation & Forestry Department. (Contributed)

New boat dock installed at Bukolt

May 25, 2023

Metro Wire Staff

A community partnership has produced a new recreational boat dock on Bukolt Island.

North Central Conservancy Trust (NCCT), the Community Foundation of Central Wisconsin (CFCWI), and the Prime W.A.T.E.R. Anglers (Wisconsin Anglers Together Enhancing Resources, or PWA), came together to provide park visitors with safer and more reliable access to the island.

The groups held a ribbon-cutting on May 24, with help from the Portage Co. Business Council Ambassadors.

Bukolt Island, also known as Annabel Lee or Kulas Island, is located west of Bukolt Park in the Wisconsin River.

After decades of private ownership, the island became open to the public after NCCT purchased it in 2019 through a partnership with the city of Stevens Point and the Green Circle Trail, along with a five-acre mainland property located just north of Bukolt Park.

Since then, NCCT volunteers and community partners have put hundreds of hours into removing old structures and restoring native plant species to the land and shoreline. The Stevens Point Parks Department has also provided ongoing support for restoration and stewardship activities.

The new dock was designed and built by the PWA, a local non-profit organization that promotes kids fishing programs and local projects that benefit the community. PWA has helped to facilitate the installation of several docks in the Stevens Point area.

The newest project was made possible with financial support through a grant from the Community Foundation of Central Wisconsin.

Established in 1994, NCCT is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to conserve the natural heritage of Central Wisconsin through the protection of land. NCCT works with landowners to develop conservation easements that protect and preserve the ecological values of their properties.

The organization operates in an eight-county service area that includes Lincoln, Taylor, Clark, Marathon, Wood, Portage, Adams, and Waushara Counties, and is based in Stevens Point. To learn more about NCCT or how to support projects like this, visit www.ncctwi.org or call 715-344-1910.