Bruce Childs Wildlife Area

Discover Bruce Childs Wildlife Area in Dunkerton

The tornado that devastated Parkersburg, Iowa on Sunday May 25th, 2008 rated an EF-5 by the National Weather Service, also did extensive damage to Bruce Childs Access.  An EF-5 is, in reality, one of the strongest possible classification a tornado can receive.  A tornado with this classification will exhibit winds of over 200 miles per hour.  The tornado cut a path 43 miles long and between 3/4 of a mile to 1.2 miles wide.   

Bruce Childs Access is comprised of 95 acres of flood plain woodlands.  The access is adjacent to the Wapsipinicon River.  The “Wapsi” provides excellent opportunities for a variety of outdoor activities such as canoeing, hunting, fishing and bird watching.  Fisherman can find northern pike and walleyes in this stretch of the "Wapsi".  The "Wapsi" Water Trail also winds its way through this area.  Within the park white tailed deer and turkey have plenty of habitat and are very likely to be found within the park boundaries during hunting season.  Hikers within the park will find the trails a bit more difficult to access due to the damage done by the tornado.

Bird watchers can encounter Sand Hill Cranes, wild turkey, osprey and a variety of waterfowl along the length of the river.  Although the damage done by the tornado has made some access to the park more of a challenge, there is still a plenty of woodland territory to be explored by sportsman and hikers alike.

Park boundaries may not be clearly marked in all locations within the park so please be aware of park boundaries and respect private property.