It stipulated that the state Conservation Department would exercise temporary custodial care of the property along with the option to purchase the land for a park in the future.

While waiting on the state legislature, the Department of Conservation obtained short extensions to the purchase option for the property.

[9] However, there is mooring and dock space for people with their own boats, and during winter the island is accessible via snowmobile and foot traffic.

The average annual number of frost-free days is approximately 145 on nearby Washington Island, where basic climatic data is recorded for the region.

The immensity of the surrounding body of water generally insulates Rock Island and its neighbors from the extremes of summer heat and winter cold that is experienced in the interior parts of the country at this same latitude.