Originally printed May 7, 2017.
This was going to be a great day. A big milestone would be attained in my trek on the Ice Age Trail. 36 days on the trail spread over the months from February of last year to now was to culminate in me toasting my success at the Eastern Terminus of The Ice Age Trail. The weather was perfect. I was raring to go. I was excited at the prospect of everything clicking just right, of celebrating with a cold one at the trail’s end, and enjoying my triumph with a fine meal.
It started out with a thud.
After Jane’s French class ended, I picked her up and motored to Door County as fast as legally permissible. Well, maybe a little faster than that, but I had a good reason. I knew today’s hike would be in the three hours plus range, and I was bound and determined to get started at 3:00 or earlier. That would get me off the trail while the light was still good. I didn’t want to be caught in the deep woods near the trail’s end near sundown.
Things appeared to be going according to plan. I had set my car’s map system to find the starting point for the hike, which was the end point from my last hike. It was about 2:45 as I hit town. I cruised along the road as the little vector on my system homed in on the destination. But, the country didn’t remotely look like what I remembered. So, I traveled a little further, turned around, and drove to the little dot on my map system. Maybe my recollection wasn’t so good. No, my recollection was just fine, thank you. There should have been a small parking lot with a privy and an IAT marker. Nothing remotely looking like that was present. It was getting closer to 3:00. Tick, tick, tick…
I was frustrated and flustered. Normally, Jane’s the one who depends on technology, and I’m the one who prefers low tech. But, she consulted the paper map in front of her, suggested a course change, and we soon were at one of the landmarks in the early going on the trail. It wasn’t exactly the starting point I wanted. In fact, it was nearly 0.7 mile away from it. But, I was bound and determined to be walking by 3:00. So, we pulled to the side of the road, I got out of the car and quickly put on my back pack. After a quick camera shot and a kiss good bye, I got started at 2:55, and Jane was on her way to a local yarn shop.
The hike shaped up to be a microcosm of the entire Ice Age Trail – some hiking through residential areas, some hiking through an urban setting, some deep woods, some flat country, and some steep hills – a little bit of everything.
My new starting point was Cherry Blossom Park, a small, city park. I quickly passed through it and a residential area onto a larger street which took me directly into down town Sturgeon Bay. Oddly enough, the trail signage in this area was not the best, and I was glad that I had copied some pages about this segment from the Ice Age Trail Guide. Even with this information, I found myself a little confused. For example, the guide stated that trail went through Bayview Park. I saw no sign for Bayview Park. In fact, I saw only a parking lot which led to a walking path along the south bank of the Sturgeon Bay Canal. Thankfully, I guessed right, and I soon saw the friendly yellow blaze telling me I was on the right track.
Some very attractive condominiums were on my left. Across the channel was a working harbor with huge, ocean-going ships in shipyards and dry docks under towering cranes. For a Wisconsin born-and-bred person, I am woefully ignorant about this area. According to my guide, “Since 1882, Great Lakes freighters from Green Bay have bypassed going around the tip of the Door County peninsula, known as ‘Death’s Door’, and have instead traveled through the canal to Lake Michigan. Not only is it a safer passage,it reduces the travel distance from Green Bay to Milwaukee and Chicago by 150 miles.”
The segment veered away from the shoreline and into a neighborhood – more nonexistent signage. At the top of a rise, I turned right onto Duluth Avenue and headed north. I walked roughly a mile and a half along this road. The road eventually ran along the edge of the bay. To my right were homes built right along the shore. On the left side of the road were homes built into the side of the hills overlooking the bay. While some of the homes were pretty large, I was surprised that some of them were relatively modest. Here and there was a restaurant and a resort. I was impressed by how quiet this area was, and I wondered what it was like during the tourist season.
Soon, I entered Potawatomi State Park. The trail hugged the shore for a good couple of miles plus. While I certainly wasn’t in a residential neighborhood any longer, the trail conditions were variable. At times I was in deep woods right up to the shore’s edge. At other times the trail went from a footpath to a paved asphalt path that opened into a grassy picnic area. Still, at other times the trail went back into the woods past some campsites, with jagged erratics and tree roots to trip me up. The geology of this area was extremely interesting. I encountered multiple layers of rocks that looked like table tops piled one upon the other. According to the guide, I was seeing outcroppings of the Niagara Escarpment, a rocky ledge that stretches in an arc across the Great Lakes region. After roughly two miles of walking along the shoreline, the trail turned inland and climbed a very steep incline, with a lot of switchbacks to make the climb more challenging. This particular section climbed through very rocky terrain, and I was grateful that the conditions were dry. The footing in this area could be treacherous if the terrain was wet or icy.
Once at the top of the ridge, the trail flattened a bit and wound its way through deep woods. I continued to hike while looking for the 150 foot tall observation tower that would tell me I was near the terminus. Finally, I spotted the tower. To its right were some…balloons?!? Yep, Jane was up to it again. The two mylar balloons stuck out like sore thumbs in the greenery, with one a gold star, and the other proclaiming ”You did it!” After climbing the tower to take some pictures of Sawyer Harbor and a shot of me next to the terminus, we returned to town and celebrated over a scrumptious dinner of lamb shank.
Only 650 miles more to go – more or less.
My Days on the Ice Age Trail 