Hiking the Walla Hi Segement of the Ice Age Trail

With snow underfoot and clouds in the sky, I headed past the wooden Walla Hi County Park Sign and began the short 1.9 mile Walla Hi Segment of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail (IAT). The Walla Hi County Park, east of Kiel, Wisconsin in Manitowoc County, is a small, pleasantly hilly park with hiking and equestrian trails. I zig-zagged south along the trail for about a half mile heading lower, until I reached a charming covered bridge.

Hiking the Connecting Route between the Walla Hi and LaBudde Segments of the Ice Age Trail

On a cloudy November morning, cold and a nearly colorless gray, I settled for a road walk to avoid the deer hunters on trail. Walking briskly to keep warm, I walked the the rural 5.3 mile (8.5km) connecting route between the LaBudde Creek and Walla Hi Segments of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail (IAT). Other than the brief crossing of busy Wisconsin Highway 32 / 57, the route meandered through towns not large enough to be easily recognized as towns. 

Hiking the LaBudde Creek Segment of the Ice Age Trail

Thinking of the short and easy segment I had planned for the day I hiked out with confidence. The LaBudde Creek Segment of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail (IAT) has about 2.7 miles (4.3 km) of trail and 0.8 miles (1.3 km) of road-walking. The terrain is not particularly challenging and the distance is short. The hills are pleasant. Many birds and squirrels are seen along this segment of the IAT.

Hiking the Connecting Route from the Greenbush Segment to the LaBudde Segment of the Ice Age Trail

On a cloudy gray November morning, I walked the relatively short 4.4 mile (7.1 km) connecting route between the Greenbush and LaBudde Segments of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail (IAT). The air was cold, snow dotted the ground in patches.  The moment I arrived I heard gunshots, and I felt glad to be road walking in a direction away from this segment of the trail. Hunting season is upon us.

Halloween Walk 2019

Despite the cold and wet weather, thousands of Leaf Peepers and Trick-or-Treaters flocked to High Cliff State Park for the 2019 Halloween Walk. Our daughter Ams brought a school friend along, and we arrived on Friday evening. We set up camp and enjoyed a nice campfire to take the chill off. Before we knew it he night was over. 

Hiking the Greenbush Segment of the Ice Age Trail

Nothing feels better than stepping onto the trail after time away. For the first time since the snow melted in April, I stepped back onto the Ice Age National Scenic Trail (IAT). I parked at the trailhead parking along State Highway 67 and started hiking north along a somewhat flat, mucky, narrow trail cutting through the wet morning grass. Now autumn, the chill in the air and the colors starting filled me with true joy. Near mile one, the trail became hilly and I passed the Greenbush Kettle and the Kettle Moraine State Forest (KMSF) Northern Unit Backpack Shelter #5. 

2019 10-Day Family Trip in the Boundary Waters Canoe Wilderness

Seeking solitude and a large dose of vitamin N, our family decided to enter the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) from a relatively unpopular entry point, #4 Crab Lake. There are no pictographs or big waterfalls to see from this entry point. The trip starts with a long paddle across Burntside Lake or the hiring of a tow. Once at the portage, the entry into the Boundary Waters kicks off with a once 370 rod portage, now 408 rod portage to Crab Lake.

How to Plan Food Menus for Back-country Adventures

Preferences being what they are,  it can be a challenge to plan lightweight, nonperishable menus for a group. In our family, I do not eat sweetened foods while my daughter and my husband love candy, granola bars and candy-infused trail mixes. My daughter is very fond of high-carb foods, while my husband likes meats. We've found the prepared freeze-dried backpacking meals that can be purchased to be very salty while containing minimal meat. Now, I purchase mainstream what I can, and dehydrate the rest at home. Presented here is my menu planning strategy and our 2019 3-person 10-day back-country canoe trip.

Our First Canoe Trip of 2019 - 4 Days in the Sylvania Wilderness

There is nothing like a long, cold winter to make us ache for the warmer, carefree days of summer. Finally, the weather had become right for a canoe trip. With a song in our hearts we loaded up the car and headed north for a four day family trip to the Sylvania Wilderness in the Ottawa National Forest of Upper Michigan. As we drove it began to rain. We talked about the weather, the way people headed into the wilderness tend to do. Our goal for the day, to make it to camp without thunderstorms, and without our everything becoming entirely drenched.

Light is beaming off my husband's head. Kevin Callan says so anyhow. A little background for you. My husband is at Canoecopia 2019 on opening night without me and he buys a canoe. He's been talking about doing this and saving up for this for a few years now. He has just made this purchase and he is super pumped with excitement and who should he run into? Happy Camper Kevin Callan with a camera. So Kevin Callan makes this video and cannot help but notice my husband is so excited there is light beaming from his head. This was in March.

An Eggscellent, Eggstraordinary, Egg Hunt in Camp

If you really want to know how gross and boring you are, ask your tween. You'll get an earful. Anyhow, being stuck with Mom and Dad in a place without WiFi - ugh! Right? Tweens one minute want to be babied, and the next minute want to be treated as adults. So I decided to do something just for fun to enjoy to the younger side of my tween Ams while there is still a little bit of it left - a surprise Easter egg hunt!

Hiking the Greenwood Segment of the Ice Age Trail and the Connecting Route to the Mecan River Segment

Turkeys strutted in the middle of Buttercup Drive near Coloma, not minding my car a bit. I stopped and waited for them to clear the road. Excited, I thought about seeing turkeys this close up along my hike. When they finally moved off, I parked my car at the trail head parking at the northern end of the Mecan River Segment of the Ice age trail. As I hopped out of the car, my feet flew out from under me. Yes, it had done more than a little mid-April snow dusting in this area. Freezing rain had encrusted the 4 to 5 inches of snow covering the area. I would definitely be hiking in micro-spikes.

Hiking the Mecan River Segment of the Ice Age Trail

What gets you up and out early on a cold, gray January morning? I heard great eagle photo opportunities awaited in the Mecan Springs Area along the Mecan River Segment of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail (IAT). So, on a cold, gray morning I headed northwest on the Mecan River of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail (IAT) from the DNR parking area on Wisconsin Highway 21 as light snow fell. After a brief time on the trail, I headed north on 9th avenue for about 0.4 miles, then rejoined the IAT. 

Hiking the Parnell Segment of the Ice Age Trail

Sometimes a section of trail becomes a troublesome nemesis given the right circumstances and constraints. The hiker resolves to conquer the stretch of trail, returning time and again. The Parnell Segment of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail, not a particularly technical or difficult bit of trail, unexpectedly became my troublesome nemesis.