“Two paths forked into a forest, and I … I took the one that was least traveling, and that made all the difference. -“The Path Not Taken ” Through Robert Frost, 1916
If there is a positive aspect of the COVID-19 global pandemic, it may be our greatest appreciation of open spaces. Trapped in our houses in spring, while we all worked our component to flatten the curve of an additional infection, we inevitably needed new and desperate air and vegetation. A warm sun took us away from our dens, like so many creatures from the wooded area, and we breathe deeply, even if that meant doing so behind our protective masks.
But the collective relief we seek in the first place caused overcrowding (as well as waste and vandalism) in some state parks, prompting Governor Tony Evers to close 38 state parks for 3 weeks in April. In southern Wisconsin, the popular herbal spaces of Pewit’s Nest, Parfrey’s Glen, Dells of the Wisconsin River and Gibraltar Rock remain closed basically because habitats are vulnerable to pedestrian traffic and the physical distance on their narrow trails is virtually impossible.
While the maximum number of camps reopened on June 10, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources reserved the right to apply limits to the number of some state parks, adding Governor Nelson, Governor Dodge, and Grandpa Devil’s Lake.
Although meeting restrictions are gradually lifted in all areas, fatal coronavirus stays with us, and until there is an easy-to-obtain vaccine, many of us will remain uncomfortable venturing into the crowd. As we continue to restrict our interactions with others, we turn to nature for loneliness, relief, and connection.
Tracking, an activity long appreciated by birdwatchers, fitness enthusiasts and determined loners, is our new national pastime.
So, to inspire others to faint and dissuade them from concentrating their enthusiasm on a few public recreation spaces, and the threat that some parks will suffer more from overuse, which require closure, we list the most popular trails.
In our research, we looked for Kevin Revolinski, a resident and writer of Madison, writer of “60 Hikes Within 60 Miles: Madison,” which came out with an updated third edition in June. Revolinski agreed that introducing long-haul hikers to trails they possibly did not know existed in the past would help disperse their numbers, relieve tension in rapid habitats, and restrict the spread of coronavirus.
However, Revolinski feels conflicted. “When I make recommendations, there may be consequences. If I put something in a book, a lot of other people get to work.
“I encourage others to look for some of the quiet places, such as the state’s herbal spaces. But I’m worried about that, too. For someone who likes to explore and leaves no trace, participating in one of those activities is fantastic.
Also in “Walking in Wisconsin: A Guide to the State’s Greatest Hiking,” Revolinski said there are unprecedented hiking opportunities in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest in the north-central city and, even further north, on the national scenic trail in the north of the country. But driving to those hiking destinations requires a mirror image and planning.
“There are concerns that you will potentially be a vector of the virus if you go north,” he says. “But if you fill your tank in Madison, bring your own food, drive 3 hours, walk through the woods and go home, I don’t think you’re endangering anyone. That’s when you eat in restaurants there, friends and shopping. He then begins to enter the field of the persecution of a pandemic”.
You can also discover many solitary and serene walks near their homes, says Revolinski. Even in Devil’s Lake.
“A lot of other people go to the same places,” he says. “They pass through the cliffs, they pass through the cliffs. But there’s way beyond and deeper into the park and outside the park gates, especially on the Ice Age Trail.”
Only a fraction of the nearly 3 million annual visitors to Devil’s Lake State Park, just south of Baraboo, make the steep ascent to Devil’s Doorway, take its picture and return down the same stone steps. But there are still many other people who are saved, such as climbers on Mount Everest, hoping to succeed in the observation post.
For the few who venture deeper into the vast wooded national park, the crowds disappear. It is imaginable to hit any of the cliffs, insinuate the edge of Johnson Moraine and follow the Ice Age Scenic National Trail to the town of Merrimac on Lake Wisconsin. It is a basically shaded, picturesque and serene hike that rewards hikers who have ventured beyond the park’s landmarks. But it’s also an 18-mile hike you’d want all day.
Located 25 minutes south of Devil’s Lake is the Black Hawk unit of the Lower Wisconsin River. It is the site of a war in 1832 among Native Americans led by Chief Blackhawk and a larger contingent of members of the U.S. defense force in their pursuit. The mounds of effigies happen that other people lived there thousands of years earlier. A 9.5-mile double-track trail through a forest and meadow combined with panoramic perspectives of Ferry Bluff allows visitors to notice the area’s history. While birdwatchers know that Black Hawk is a position for rare bird sightings, few others are. Basic equipment such as portable toilets and running water are available.
Visitors to the largely underdeveloped Swan Lake State Wildlife Reserve, a mile east of Portage, can expect the amounts of the 3.8-mile round-trip trail to be plant-covered and difficult to discern. The trail through the swords marshes, however, leads to a gravel road and an island full of waterfowl, musk rats and deer. Anglers in the Poynette domain know that Rowan Creek is one of the highest productivity rivers in the state for brown and spotted trout, so it’s the most you’ll probably find (if any) in the Rowan Creek fishing domain. Some walkways make your adventure along the Rowan Creek Trail to Pine Island simple: a 2.8-mile circuit.
Currently closed is the Rock of Gibraltar, where the breathtaking prospects of the Wisconsin Valley from the most sensitive of the 200-foot cliffs are just behind the cliffs’ perspectives over Devil’s Lake. And that’s what attracts many hikers on the short, winding trail or on the steep paved access road that leads to the most sensible one. The trail that goes up is the Gibraltar Rock segment of the Ice Age Trail. But some other segment of the Ice Age trail, called, is advised for those who wish to walk further and further.
“It’s less obvious. Is it more picturesque? Maybe,” Revolinski said in his field for the 4-mile paddle path that starts at the Merrimac ferry pier on the south side of Lake Wisconsin. Hikers can succeed in Gibraltar Rock by advancing east on Slack Road, then south on the V motorway for a more epic day trip.
This park, available turning west on Highway 12, halfway between Sauk Prairie and Baraboo on County Road C, is known for the geological feature of the park’s name. The sandstone arch, reminiscent of those discovered to the west, has a height of 35 feet with an opening of 25 feet wide. Beneath the bridge is a shelter where archaeologists have discovered evidence of a profession dating back 10,000 years, making it one of the oldest settlements in North America.
Many visitors are drawn to the park’s main attraction, however, the rest of the 530-acre park is rarely explored. From the car park, there is a short walk to the ark. Most people look at it and back it up. But beyond the arch is a 2.4-mile wooded loop that crosses Highway 12 before another wooded cliff. “Then it’s anything else,” Revolinski advises. “Explore more deeply the parks that may seem overwhelmed. Go where other people aren’t.”
Blue Mound State Park, 40 km west of Madison, is a year-round favorite for many local silent sports enthusiasts: hikers, campers, mountain bikers, snowshoes and cross-country skiers. Already the highest point in southern Wisconsin, two popular towers (currently closed because climbers cannot maintain a safe physical distance from each other) offer panoramic perspectives of farmland and forests on the horizon. Downstairs, a public pool and a children’s pool (which are also closed due to COVID-19) attract many families to the park throughout the summer. As a result, the trails surrounding the mound may be busy.
The Brooklyn Wildlife segment of the Ice Age Trail runs 6.8 miles and stretches along the Brooklyn Wildlife Area 15 miles south of Madison on County Road DD. From the beginning to the southern end, several weed-covered branches of the main trail traverse open meadows and forests. Published maps will keep you on track. At the northern end, you can turn in a circular shape or cross The County D Road and climb the Montrose segment of the 4.6-mile Ice Age Trail leading to a cliff.
Approximately 6.5 miles southwest of Evansville is the 120-acre Magnolia Bluff Park. In the first of the two car parks is the beginning of a 2.4-mile circuit to and from an exposed rocky cliff overlooking deciduous forests and farmland.
Since the opening of the nearly one-kilometre-long Lower Yahara River Trail in August 2017, crowds of walkers and cyclists have passed. Connecting William G. Lunney Lake Farm County Park and McFarland’s McDaniel Park between Lake Waubesa and Lake Upper Mud, it is “the longest indoor walkway built only for non-motorized transportation in North America.” Its novelty and usefulness have resulted in significant traffic, especially on sunny summer weekends. Although the path is wide enough to allow trail users to cross, they can still inevitably feel close.
To learn more about hiking, click on one of the links below.
Physically remote label
You can also walk the Ice Age Trail
Hiking teams in the coVID-19 era
Faster than the hiker
Get a FREE NItty Gritty burger on your birthday!