Trempealeau National Wildlife Refuge is a 6226 acres (25.2 km²) National Wildlife Refuge

National Wildlife Refuge

National Wildlife Refuge is a designation for certain protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The National Wildlife Refuge System is the world's premiere system of public lands and waters set aside to conserve America's fish, wildlife and plants...

 located along the Upper Mississippi River

Upper Mississippi River

The Upper Mississippi River is the portion of the Mississippi River upstream of Cairo, Illinois, United States. From the headwaters at Lake Itasca, Minnesota, the river flows approximately 2000 kilometers to Cairo, where it is joined by the Ohio River to form the Lower Mississippi...

 in extreme southern Buffalo County

Buffalo County, Wisconsin

Buffalo County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 13,804. Its county seat is Alma.-Geography:According to the U.S...

 and extreme southwestern Trempealeau County

Trempealeau County, Wisconsin

Trempealeau County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2009, the population estimate was 27,754. Its county seat is Whitehall.-History:Patches of woodland are all that remain of the brush and light forest that once covered the county...

 in Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

, USA.

It is in part a wetland

Wetland

A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....

, and is a significant element of the Mississippi Flyway

Mississippi Flyway

The Mississippi Flyway is a bird migration route that generally follows the Mississippi River in the United States and the Mackenzie River in Canada. The main endpoints of the flyway include central Canada and the region surrounding the Gulf of Mexico...

. Consisting of backwaters away from the Mississippi and Trempealeau River

Trempealeau River

The Trempealeau River is a tributary of the Mississippi River, 55 mi long, in the Driftless Area of western Wisconsin in the United States.-Course:...

. It is part of the Driftless Area, a portion of North American which remained ice free during the last ice age

Wisconsin glaciation

The last glacial period was the most recent glacial period within the current ice age occurring during the last years of the Pleistocene, from approximately 110,000 to 10,000 years ago....

, creating in part the deep gorge of the Mississippi, quite visible from this refuge.

It is also a sand prairie, where "big bluestem

Big Bluestem

Andropogon gerardii, known also as Big bluestem, Turkey foot, Prairie tallgrass, or simply Tallgrass, is a tall grass native to much of the Great Plains and Prairie regions of central North America- Description :...

, indiangrass, and switchgrass

Switchgrass

Panicum virgatum, commonly known as switchgrass, is a perennial warm season bunchgrass native to North America, where it occurs naturally from 55°N latitude in Canada southwards into the United States and Mexico...

 can reach heights of eight or nine feet."

Images

File:TrempealeauNationalWildlifeRefugeObservationDeck.jpg|Observation deck
File:TrempealeauNationalWildlifeRefugeSign.jpg|Sign
File:TrempealeauNationalWildlifeRefugeVisitorOffice.jpg|Visitor Center
File:AmericanCootFeedTrempealeauNationalWildlifeMississippiRiver.jpg|American Coot