The 18208 acres Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1935 and is located in the scenic forest and bog area of northern Minnesota

Minnesota

Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...

. Visitors can enjoy a range of habitats, including lake, river, bog and hardwood forest.

The Refuge's history centers around the 4500 acres (18.2 km²) Rice Lake which, for thousands of years, has supplied an abundant wild rice crop. Each fall, the bountiful rice attracts hundreds of thousands of waterfowl

Waterfowl

Waterfowl are certain wildfowl of the order Anseriformes, especially members of the family Anatidae, which includes ducks, geese, and swans....

, as well as American Indians

Native Americans in the United States

Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...

 who harvest it using traditional methods. Rice Lake is known for its tremendous number of ring-necked duck

Ring-necked Duck

The Ring-necked Duck is a smaller diving duck from North America.The adult male is similar in color pattern to the Eurasian Tufted Duck, its relative. It has a grey bill with a white band, a shiny purple head, a white breast, yellow eyes and a dark grey back...

s. Because of the high concentrations of migratory birds, Rice Lake Refuge has been designated as a Globally Important Bird Area by the American Birding Association

American Birding Association

The American Birding Association is a non-profit organization of people interested in birding. Begun in 1968, the ABA is the only organization in North America that specifically caters to recreational birders. Membership is open to all...

.

The 2045 acres (8.3 km²) Sandstone Unit (at 46°05′30"N 92°50′16"W in Pine County

Pine County, Minnesota

As of the census of 2000, there were 26,530 people, 9,939 households, and 6,917 families residing in the county. The population density was 19 people per square mile . There were 15,353 housing units at an average density of 11 per square mile...

) of Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge was acquired in 1970 through a land exchange with the United States Department of Justice

United States Department of Justice

The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...

. Sandstone is located in central Minnesota, in an area once known for expanses of towering white pine

Eastern White Pine

Pinus strobus, commonly known as the eastern white pine, is a large pine native to eastern North America, occurring from Newfoundland west to Minnesota and southeastern Manitoba, and south along the Appalachian Mountains to the northern edge of Georgia.It is occasionally known as simply white pine,...

 forests. Today, visitors enjoy a rustic and natural setting that includes a portion of the Wild and Scenic Kettle River

Kettle River

-Rivers:*Kettle River in British Columbia and Washington*Kettle River , a tributary of the St. Croix River in eastern Minnesota*Kettle River , a tributary of the Blueberry River in central Minnesota...

. Birders will find plentiful neo-tropical migrants in the spring and fall. Sandstone's wildlife includes black bear

American black bear

The American black bear is a medium-sized bear native to North America. It is the continent's smallest and most common bear species. Black bears are omnivores, with their diets varying greatly depending on season and location. They typically live in largely forested areas, but do leave forests in...

, sandhill crane

Sandhill Crane

The Sandhill Crane is a large crane of North America and extreme northeastern Siberia. The common name of this bird references habitat like that at the Platte River, on the edge of Nebraska's Sandhills in the American Midwest...

s, white-tailed deer

White-tailed Deer

The white-tailed deer , also known as the Virginia deer or simply as the whitetail, is a medium-sized deer native to the United States , Canada, Mexico, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru...

 and songbirds.

The one-half-acre Mille Lacs National Wildlife Refuge

Mille Lacs National Wildlife Refuge

Mille Lacs National Wildlife Refuge is a 0.57 acre National Wildlife Refuge in central Minnesota. The refuge consists solely of two small islands in Mille Lacs Lake, and is the smallest National Wildlife Refuge in the United States. It was created on May 14, 1915 to preserve breeding habitat for...

, located in Mille Lacs Lake

Mille Lacs Lake

Mille Lacs Lake is a lake in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It is located in the counties of Mille Lacs, Aitkin and Crow Wing, roughly 100 miles north of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area....

, is also administered from Rice Lake Refuge.