If you love to hike up and down rolling hills and along the tops of wooded esker ridges, you will thoroughly enjoy the Fond du Lac and Sheboygan County portions of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail (IAT). This stretch consists of a delightful 30 trail miles through the Northern Kettle Moraine in Fond du Lac and Sheboygan Counties and only 10 road miles. The Kettle Moraine is known for its eskers and kames with kettles and small lakes.
Hiking in January's bitter cold without a trace of snow on the ground feels a bit like walking down a sandless beach. Your feet long for what's missing. In place of the satisfying crunch of snow underfoot, frozen grass and leaves crackle. Occasionally thin ice snaps. As I hiked the Milwaukee Segment of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail (IAT) in Fond du Lac County, the clouds drifted in and the day turned gray. Snow on the hike would have been beautiful. The sky had other ideas, saving the snow for the drive home.
On a stiff January morning at the end of a week of below zero temperatures, I hiked the Milwaukee River Segment of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail (IAT) in Washington County, Wisconsin. The cloudy morning parted and gave way to sun and blue skies, and the thermometer crept above zero long enough to show me the difference between -3˚F (-19˚C) F and +5˚F (-15˚C) which are, surprisingly, worlds apart.
