Jerry Jolly Trail

I went outside the 60 mile zone this past week.  I traveled to the northern edge of Wisconsin and found a trail there.  I was with a companion this time, my niece, who was wary of my leading her into adventures that would, in the end, possibly make her or both of us miserable.  We had already kayaked for 2+ hours earlier in the day, so a long hike was not the plan.

Jerry Jolly trail is just south of Bayfield, WI and near a blueberry field and apple orchard.  We planned on getting some blueberries and whatever else the season might offer when we completed the hike.  Alas, it was not to be!

 

 

 

When we got to the trailhead, we checked over the map and made a plan to do just a few kilometers - maybe an hour long hike.  We hiked into a creek area - Pike's Creek.  Both of us loved this part of the hike.  There were hills, the sound of running water and a nice hard packed trail.  The rest of the trail was mostly spikey mowed grass and other plants, which was not ideal for walking. 

Pike's Creek

The bridge over the creek

It was difficult to judge where exactly we were on the trail.  There were signs with the map, but no other indicators of direction.  So, at one point when we had a choice of 3 paths, we went the wrong way.  I thought I had a great strategy.  Looking at the map, I placed my back to the area that had no trails and decided we needed to go left when it should have been right.  I forgot to do the opposite in being the mirror image of looking at the map.  Big sigggghhhhhh.  The trail went on and on and soon we realized we were on the Jolly Long trail.  Not so Jolly at this point.

Nothing to do but hike on!  The woods were surprisingly quiet.  At one point we scared up a flock of quail or pheasant.  Otherwise, there was little to indicate bird or wildlife of any sort.  We heard almost nothing.  Near the creek, however, we did see some deer tracks. 

And, speaking of deer, we both later found wood ticks crawling on our clothing.  No problem, neither had dug in.  We made sure to check ourselves over well.  While wood ticks can be a problem, they are not the disease spreading threat brought by deer ticks which are tiny.  Deer ticks spread Lyme's disease, a debilitating, painful, and oftentimes, life threatening virus.  For more information on what to look for, go to the Center for Disease Control.

We did eventually sort out our maps and our directions and found our way back to the car.  Getting back to the blueberry field, however, was less successful.  The clock said 5:04 and they closed at 5:00!  All said and done, we'd hiked 8km and it took over 2 hours. I will check out this trail in the winter for skiing or snow shoeing.

Natural Bridge State Park

There are many hikes to choose from in the area just before Wisconsin Dells.  On this particular day, I first visited Devil's Lake State Park.  It was cold and chilly - not even 60 degrees and cloudy.  The lake wind was an additional discomfort.  I decided to have my lunch at the park and then decide if I was going to do one of the 3 hikes offered from this park.  In the end, the number of people at Devil's Lake decided it for me. 

Funny thing, I had been listening to a book on introverts in the car.  I am an introvert and today, my wanting to hike alone seemed justified by author Susan Cain's (the book is Quiet, The Power of Introverts...) words.  I left and found Natural Bridge State Park instead.  While I was not alone on this hike, the viewing of the bridge was what most visitors were there to do.  The bridge is a sandstone arch and is known to be one of the oldest settlements in North America.  It has been excavated and some of the archaeological finds go back to 9000-8000 BC.

The natural bridge

I had a terrible time following the directions outlined in the book 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles of Madison.  While the bridge side of the park is not very complicated and involves just a mile or so of hiking, the park crosses over the county road on which the park entrance is located.  This is where I got confused.  Very small signs with a single arrow, barely noticeable, point the way.  I crossed the road to what looked to me to be a cornfield.  A tractor was out there mowing.  Was I meant to follow the mowed trail?  Easier said than done, he seemed to be wandering all over the place in no discernible trail-like pattern.

The cornfield

I took a chance, followed it to my left and was greeted by deer.  At first just one doe.  Her hide was the color of a red fox.  In the surrounding green, it was quite startling.  She seemed to be moving slowly toward me and I could not figure out what I should do next.  Finally, she ran right and I followed somewhat, seeing a wide road-like path up a hill.  At the top, was a wide circle of green surrounded by a stand of trees and there was the doe with a buck.  The buck was the same color and had 4-6 points.  The pair quickly ran off.  I did a Maria von Trapp circle of the hill and headed back down.

My friend the doe, coming closer......

Again confused, I decided that if something was not made clear to me in the way of a sign, I would cross back over the road and give up.  There it was!  The tiny brown sign with the single arrow.  I followed it.  I was out of the corn and climbing steadily into a wooded area.  This was worth it!  I met 2 sets of hikers on this path going the opposite direction that I was going and I realized, I had taken the direction that was harder to navigate.  Had I been more able to figure out the book's directions or copied them and brought them along, I might have gone into this part of the park where it was much easier to follow the signage. Lesson learned!

The path on the ridge

A bit of a challenge up the ridge and I loved every minute of it.  The chill of the day faded as I began to sweat and work my way up.  The highest point here is almost 1100 feet and from the direction in that I took, it's a pretty steep climb.  The way down was a bit less steep.  Crossing the road, I am again walking among several other visitors.  I am not annoyed by their presence and appreciate the fact that a state park needs visitors and it is great that these few have made the trek here to see the bridge.

While I know others are concerned about my lonely hikes, I find them invigorating!  Me and nature - just doesn't get any better than that.  If I know that I am very much alone on a hike, I make sure to text a friend to let her know where I am and what time I will be done with my hike.  We both set our alarms and I make sure to let her know when I am safe and sound.  I know this doesn't prevent something from happening out there, but it at least could help someone find me, if necessary.  I do enjoy an occasional companion on a hike, but a lone hike is medicine for my mind and my soul when life is busy.