USFWS · National wildlife refuge · Florida

Lake Wales Ridge National Wildlife Refuge

The Lake Wales Ridge National Wildlife Refuge is part of the United States National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) System, located in four separated areas on the Lake Wales Ridge east of US 27 between Davenport and Sebring in Florida. The 1,194 acre (4.8 km2) refuge was established in 1990, to protect a host of plants and animals. It is also the first to be designated primarily for the preservation of endangered plants, and is not open to the general public. It contains a high proportion of remaining Florida scrub habitat. It is administered as part of the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Wildlife Refuge1,825 acresUSFWSFL
Official page at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ↗
1fire
active
Blue Lake · 45 mi from the center · 932 acres
Interagency incident data as of 2026-09-17
Incident details ↓

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Wildlife Refuge
Managed byU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
StateFlorida
Size1,825 acres (computed from the boundary polygon)
FWS regionRegion 4
Center point27.5149, -81.4084
Night skySome glow on the horizon (Black Marble reading 69)

Boundary map

18 outlines

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Fire nearby

Within 50 miles · as of 2026-09-17
  • Wildfire
    Blue Lake

    45 mi from the center point · 932 acres · 90% contained

Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge, and is measured from the center of a boundary that may be many miles across. Check the agency page for closures.

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Register listings within 15 miles · 68 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Lake Wales Ridge National Wildlife Refuge?

1,825 acres, measured from the published boundary polygon. The agency’s own figure can differ where the boundary includes water or inholdings.

Source: How acreage is computed

Who manages Lake Wales Ridge National Wildlife Refuge?

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

What state is Lake Wales Ridge National Wildlife Refuge in?

Florida.

Source: How states are assigned

How do I get to Lake Wales Ridge National Wildlife Refuge?

A point inside the boundary is at 27.515, -81.408. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Is there a fire near Lake Wales Ridge National Wildlife Refuge right now?

1 active incident within 50 miles as of 2026-09-17, the nearest Blue Lake at 45 miles. Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge.

Source: Fire nearby

How dark is the night sky at Lake Wales Ridge National Wildlife Refuge?

NASA’s Black Marble night-lights image reads 69 on a 0 to 255 scale at the center point, some glow on the horizon.

Source: NASA Black Marble

Are there historic places near Lake Wales Ridge National Wildlife Refuge?

68 National Register listings within 15 miles, including Singing Tower, Bok Mountain Lake Sanctuary and Florida Southern College, Annie Pfeiffer Chapel.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name: the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service refuge boundary layer.
  • States: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons; a state is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area.
  • Acreage: geodesic area of the published polygon. The agency’s official acreage can differ where the boundary includes water, easements or inholdings.
  • Description: Lake Wales Ridge National Wildlife Refuge on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.