"Getting to see the Canopy Tour lit up with so many lights, watching the animals play at night, and experiencing the quiet calm of the Zoo after dark is a unique experience unlike anything else in Green Bay." Nathaniel Wagner, the Adventure Park Supervisor, said that on the NEW Zoo's Merry & Bright Canopy Lights page, and he was talking about a handful of holiday evenings.
The rest of the winter has its own evening schedule at the Brown County Reforestation Camp. The zoo has kept short winter hours since November 1. The lit cross-country trails that run through the woods around it stay on until about 10:30 at night. The part of the Camp you pay for and staff runs on the zoo's schedule. The part you can use after dark mostly depends on what you bring with you.
Where the 4 p.m. Line Falls
The NEW Zoo & Adventure Park went to winter hours on Sunday, November 1. It's open daily from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., including every holiday. The Neil Anderson Canopy Tour also opens daily at 9 a.m., except on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. The Ropes Course, Ziplines, Climbing Wall and Kids Kourse are closed for the season. Groups can still book private sessions in advance. The zoo's hours page lists that 9-to-4 schedule through March 31.
On a weeknight, the Camp's facilities shut down in steps:
| What | Winter hours |
|---|---|
| NEW Zoo | 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily |
| Ski and snowshoe rentals at Adventure Park Base Camp | 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, once conditions allow |
| Reforestation Camp warming shelter | 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekends |
| Lit ski trail | Sunset until lights go off in stages, 10:15 to 10:40 p.m. |
| Ski trails | Dawn to 11 p.m. |
| Restrooms and changing rooms | 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily |
Everything in the top three rows has a staff member behind it. The bottom three rows run on a timer and a trail pass. That's why the Camp feels so different after dark.
Three Miles Under the Lights
Brown County Parks grooms about 34 miles of cross-country trail across the county, and 19 of those miles are at the Reforestation Camp. That makes it the biggest of the county's three ski sites, ahead of Barkhausen Waterfowl Preserve at 9 miles and Neshota Park at 6. The Camp's trails are groomed for both classic and skate skiing. Neshota is groomed for both too. Barkhausen is groomed for classic only.
More than 3 of the Camp's 19 miles are lit. The county credits the Bay Nordic Ski Club and community donations for paying for the lighting. The lights come on at sunset and go off in stages between 10:15 and 10:40 p.m., and the trails officially close at 11. On a December weekday, the zoo closes at 4 p.m. and the lit loop stays on for about six more hours.
The county's trail rules matter more after dark:
- Most trails are one-way, and the county asks skiers to go in the marked direction.
- Skate skiing is allowed only on trails marked and groomed for it.
- On double-tracked trails, ski on the right and pass on the left.
- Pets aren't allowed on groomed trails.
- The groomed surface is for skiing only, with no walking, snowshoeing or biking on any part of it.
You need a pass to ski. The county's 2026 rates are $7 for a day, $40 for a single season and $85 for a family season. The family pass covers everyone under 18 in the same household. Passes are required from age 12, and kids 11 and under ski free. Two nights on the trail already cost $14 in day passes, and six nights cost $42, which is more than the $40 season pass. The NEW Zoo's Adventure Park page says you can buy passes online or at the trailhead, and Adventure Park Base Camp sells daily passes too.
Night Skiers Need Their Own Skis
Because of the timing, the evening crowd is mostly people who own their own gear.
When the snow arrives, rentals come from Adventure Park Base Camp. Classic skis cost $20 for adults and $15 for youth for a half day, or $30 and $25 for a full day, plus a trail pass. Snowshoes cost $8 and $6 for a half day, or $12 and $10 for a full day, plus tax. Both run on the same daily 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. schedule. The zoo's winter-hours notice says ski and snowshoe rentals will begin "as soon as conditions allow." Fat tire bikes are already available from Base Camp.
The math is simple. Rental skis have to be back when the counter closes at 4. The trail lights stay on until after 10. If you want to ski the lit loop after dinner, you need to own skis or borrow a pair.
The warming shelter runs on a similar schedule. It's open only while the trails are open, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends, and it's closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. The restrooms and changing rooms stay open from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m., so you still have somewhere to change and warm your hands after the shelter closes.
Snowshoers have it easier. The Camp has 2 miles of designated snowshoe trail, starting east of the upper parking lot. Snowshoeing is free and doesn't need a trail pass. The county also lists hiking and walking at the Camp as free. The Camp itself is open dawn to dusk, and winter trails stay open until 11 p.m. Snowshoes stay on the snowshoe trail, and the groomed ski tracks stay for skiers.
Sixteen Nights When the Canopy Is Lit
On some evenings, the after-dark part of the Camp includes the zoo itself. Merry & Bright Canopy Lights covers the Neil Anderson Canopy Tour in thousands of lights from 4 to 8 p.m., with the last tour leaving at 7:30. It starts right when regular zoo hours end. This season's dates are:
- November: 27 and 28
- December: 4, 5, 11, 12, 18 and 19, then every night from the 26th through the 31st
- January 2027: 1 and 2
That's 16 evenings in all. Before Christmas, they fall only on Fridays and Saturdays. After Christmas, they run six nights in a row. The schedule skips Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, the two days the canopy tour is closed anyway.
Visitors walk illuminated walkways and platforms above the forest floor, with photo spots in the trees and on the ground and views of the zoo's nocturnal animals. Base Camp has a fire with hot chocolate and s'mores. New this year, kids can write letters to Santa and do holiday crafts and coloring pages, and each family or group goes home with a commemorative Merry & Bright ornament while supplies last. Holiday shopping is open at Base Camp and in the zoo's Visitor Center most nights.
Tickets cost $10 for adults, $8 for children 3 to 15 and seniors 62 and up, and nothing for kids under 3. Members get $2 off each ticket when they're logged in online or buying at the door. Tickets are on sale now, and private evening bookings and group reservations are available by request. For two adults and two kids between 3 and 15, that's $36 before the member discount and $28 with it.
December 5 Covers All Three
On one Saturday, the zoo's daytime schedule, the canopy lights and the lit ski trail line up back to back. Holiday Fest runs at the NEW Zoo on December 5 from noon to 4 p.m. and is free with regular zoo admission. Merry & Bright starts as Holiday Fest ends. The order looks like this:
- Noon to 4 p.m.: Holiday Fest inside the zoo, with regular admission.
- 4 to 8 p.m.: Merry & Bright on the canopy tour, with the last tour at 7:30. This is a separate ticket.
- Sunset until the lights go off in stages, 10:15 to 10:40 p.m.: The lit section of the Reforestation Camp ski trail, if there's snow, you have your own skis and you've bought a pass.
- Until 11 p.m.: The trails and the restrooms and changing rooms close.
December 5 is also a weekend day, so the warming shelter stays open until 5 p.m. and you can use it for the first hour of Merry & Bright. On the weekday dates after Christmas, it closes at 4.
After January 2, Daytime Gets Cheaper
The holiday lights end on January 2, but the lit ski trail keeps running on its same timer after that. January also brings a change to the zoo's daytime pricing. The zoo's hours page says admission is half price in January and February, and tickets for that discount are sold at the door. The zoo's winter-hours notice says cooler weather often makes the animals more active. Zookeeper-led VIP Experiences run all season, including daily Penguin Feedings, Snow Leopard Den Tours and Aldabra Tortoise Experiences.
In the coldest stretch of the year, a Saturday at the Camp can include a half-price zoo visit, rental skis returned by 4, and then the lit trail on your own gear until the lights start going off after 10:15.
How a Suamico or Howard home fits into winter matters as much as how it shows in May: where the skis are stored, which entry handles wet boots, and how close it is to a lit trail. At Sandra Ranck Real Estate Collective, we include the winter routine in a listing's story too. If you're thinking about selling in north Brown County, request a complimentary home valuation and we'll talk through how your home shows in every season.
