Originally printed October 31, 2016
A chance to try something new.
That was what was presented to me last Saturday when I hiked the Table Bluff and Cross Plains segments of the Ice Age Trail.
When I began this adventure, I decided to hike the segments running north and east from Janesville to Door County. Last Friday, Jane and I were in Spring Green, west of Madison, to see a play at the American Players Theatre. Jane suggested that I hike some of the trail that was about 20 miles east of where we were staying. Although I’d be hiking segments out of sequence, who cares? It’s still the Ice Age Trail. The trails were a little over five miles, and we could get some lunch after the hike was done. That sounded like a great idea to me, so I packed my back pack along with my other things. The autumn colors were wonderful on our ride to Spring Green, and the play was excellent.
When we woke on Saturday, the entire area was fogged in. Fortunately, it cleared some as we made our way to the northern starting point for the Table Bluff segment. We did a quick communications check, and it appeared we were once again in a cell phone hell area. But, the trail was relatively short. I gave Jane my best estimate for when I’d be done. Then, I started on the hike, and Jane went in search of a library in the town of Mazomanie.
I was very curious to see how this area differed from where I had previously been hiking. To me, the big change was that this area didn’t have nearly as many rocks and tree roots on the trail to trip me up. For the most part, I was walking on grassy or simply dirt paths – much easier on my feet, and I could actually take my eyes off the 3-4 feet in front of me and look around a bit as I was walking. The other change was the presence of huge valleys. Both trails took me up to the tops of high bluffs, and, as I walked along the edges of the bluffs, the valleys spread below me. Gorgeous!
While a chunk of the Table Bluff segment is owned by the IATA, a huge portion of the trail runs on land owned by Swamplovers Foundation, Inc. According to signage along the trail, the owners wanted to protect, restore and maintain these 460 acres of wetlands, prairie, oak savannah and woods. They are in partnership with the IATA, along with some other organizations. From conversations I had later with some IATA volunteers, I learned that the IATA-Swamplovers partnership was quite the success story. As it was explained to me, Swamplovers rejected the IATA out of hand when they requested an easement for hiking on their property, Then, Swamplovers saw the what the IATA did to maintain and restore their own trails. A partnership was formed that still exists.
The Table Bluff segment was a feast for the eyes. The remaining fog diffused the sunlight, providing a brilliant glow to many of the vistas. However, one of the biggest takeaways for me was the incredible silence. Of all the segments I had hiked to this point, this was by far the quietest. I would periodically stop and just listen to the silence. No sounds made by humans, and very, very little sound coming from nature. Just stillness. Breathtaking.
The other takeaway from my hike at Table Bluff was that I met about a dozen members of the Ice Age Trail Alliance who were busy working on a trail maintenance project, clearing a steep uphill section of unwanted undergrowth. They were very welcoming to me, and took the time to explain about the country through which the trail runs and the partnership with Swamplovers. They seemed eager to hear about my adventures on the trail, and they were very supportive of what I was trying to do. Several of them were 1000 Mile Club members themselves. I had a nice visit with them and thanked them for all the good work they were doing.
Shortly afterword, I exited the Table Bluff segment and entered a short connecting route to the Cross Plains segment. The IATA recently got permission to redirect this route through a quiet road that ran along a steep ridge. Aside from being a pretty walk, the road was a lot less traveled than the original connecting route, which would have had me hiking about a mile along Highway 14. While walking along, it dawned on me that I was running seriously slower than I had been anticipating, so that I would finish my hike about an hour later than originally planned! How did that happen? I quickly checked with Jane to give her a heads up. Fortunately, we were no longer in cell phone hell, and I quickly got a reply. Not to worry – she had found a good library and would see me later.
Soon I came to the Cross Plains segment. Right off the bat, I saw why it was rated a 4 for hilliness, as I walked more than a quarter mile up a steep grade. Quite a workout! Once at the top, I found myself in a fairly flat section of prairie country. From my guidebook, I learned that it had previously been farmland that had been restored to prairie. They had done a marvelous job. Without reading about the reclamation in the guide, I never would have known this had previously been farm land. After traversing the edge of this prairie, the trail dropped into a deep wooded area, that featured a lot of big trees and a natural drainage network the guidebook called the “Three Gorges.”
What goes up must come down, and soon I came to a series of downhill switchbacks which dropped me about 150 feet back to street level. Looking back up the ridge, I could only marvel that this wild, challenging country was right on the edge of this town. What a gift for its residents! After a short walk on city streets,I came to the headquarters for the Ice Age Trail on Main Street. I wanted to stop to visit, but the place was closed (The staff must have been hiking!). Jane was waiting for me, and we quickly found a sandwich shop.
Oh, and about taking longer to finish the trail than I expected. Turns out I had read the guide incorrectly. I was thinking the hike would be 2.5 miles of Table Bluff trail which included a 1.9 mile connecting route, plus the 2.8 mile Cross Plains segment. When I re-read the guide more carefully, I realized it was 2.5 miles PLUS the 1.9 mile connecting route plus the 2.8 miles of the Cross Plains segment. My hike was 7.2 miles, not 5.3. D’oh!!
My Days on the Ice Age Trail 