(Contributed photo)

For the City-Times

Take advantage of the fall colors; the Wisconsin Department of Transportation is celebrating the 40th anniversary of its Rustic Roads Program with a photo contest.

Amateur photographers throughout Wisconsin are invited to grab their cameras and head out to some of the state’s most scenic back-roads and start snapping away. The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Rustic Roads Program, one of the state’s most successful and longest-lasting state/local partnership programs, with a photo contest. Photos must be taken between June 16 and December 31, 2014, and submissions will be accepted through January 15, 2015. The Rustic Roads Board will select winning photos in six categories and will be looking for photos that best highlight the natural qualities, features and vistas commonly found on Wisconsin’s officially-designated Rustic Roads.

“Since the first Rustic Road was designated in Taylor County in 1975, the Rustic Roads Program has helped identify and preserve some of Wisconsin’s most scenic country roadways, while enhancing the state and local tourism economies,” noted WisDOT Scenic Byways and Rustic Roads Coordinator Jane Carrola. “The photo contest will help capture the spirit of this extremely successful and popular partnership.”

Currently, there are 115 Rustic Roads spanning some 665 miles through 59 counties. To qualify as a Rustic Road, a route must have outstanding natural features such as rugged terrain, native vegetation, abundant wildlife, open areas or agricultural vistas. Rustic roads range from under two miles long to 37 miles in length and have speed limits of no more than 45 miles per hour.

Complete contest information, rules and submission guidelines can be found at the WisDOT website: www.dot.wisconsin.gov/travel/scenic/contest.htm.