Wisconsin Life

Not far from I-94 near Delafield, Lapham Peak is one of Southeast Wisconsin's scenic gems.

gentle piano music

This landscape was sculpted by glaciers thousands of years ago. Now, approximately half a million people visit this park every year. Park's Superintendent, Anne Korman, says what makes this park special is its variety. It's beautiful. There's a lot of elevation changes, a lot of varied topography. You go through mixed hardwoods. We have mountain biking trails. We have a lot of hiking opportunities. There's a lot of short hikes, a lot of varied distances, so you can go for a short hike, a long hike, anything in between.

Angela

The park has more than 17 miles of trails in all. No matter which one you take, there's no time to visit quite like fall.

Anne

It's so beautiful here in fall. We have mixed hardwoods and pine plantations, so you get all the colors that Wisconsin is known for. You get the oaks, the red oaks, the deep burnt brown oaks. You get the vibrant maples. You get poplars, birch. And then you see the deep greens, the pine trees throughout the forest, so it's just beautiful wherever you go.

Angela

Maybe the most popular attraction at the park is the 45-foot observation tower. It's the highest point in Waukesha County.

Anne

Our tower is extremely popular here, not only at Lapham Peak, but any state park that has an observation tower. This time of year when the fall colors are at their peak, when you get to the top, you can see 360 degrees around this area. You can see clear down to Milwaukee and see the skyline buildings. And you look off to the west, and you can see over towards the southern unit, towards Whitewater, and to the south towards Illinois. So it's a beautiful, beautiful view up there.

Angela

Latham Peak is a peaceful place to enjoy Wisconsin's fall colors and a lot more. If I haven't mentioned your favorite activity, just to get outside, if you like to sketch, if you like to just find peace and quiet and read, or just go for a nice slow walk and listen to the birds, we have an amazing amount of bird species. So, if you're just looking to get away from the city or just get outside and breathe some fresh air, you're welcome here.