Originally printed May 6, 2018.
There are so many things about which to write that I don’t quite know where to begin. I guess I’ll start with the note I received in the morning from Gary E., trail angel par excellence.
“Jim, call me before leaving the motel.”
And so I did. This is why I think so highly of Gary as a trail angel. It had rained over two inches in Marquette County overnight. Add that to the rain earlier that week, plus the rapid melt of over a foot of wet snow in the previous weeks, and the streams in the area were running high and fast. The first trail I was to hike that day, Chaffee Creek, ran on a walkway right next to the creek as it passed underneath I-39. Gary wanted to make sure the walkway was passable. To do this, he directed me to drive north on I-39 and pull off the road at a point where there was a sign for Chaffee Creek. That marked the location of the underpass. He had me get out of the car and look over the ledge down to where the creek was flowing below me. I did as he directed. On the north side of the creek was the walkway. While it was muddy, it certainly passable. I called him back to let him know, and I proceeded to the end point for that day’s hike, where I would meet him and ride to the jumping off point.
The Chaffee Creek Segment starts at a rest stop along southbound I-39. According to the Weather Channel, it was supposed to stop raining at 8:45, and that appeared to be the case when I shoved off at 8:30. But the weather gods had other ideas, and I was greeted with one last shower that lasted for the first 30-40 minutes of my hike. While the trail was passable, the rains turned the trail into a small stream, especially in hilly areas. Sometimes I was able to sidestep the water, but there were many times where I had no choice but to splash my way up and down hills that had turned into water slides. Fortunately, the water was warm and the footing was solid. Also, it was fortunate that I was wearing wool socks, because my feet were able to warm them, even though the socks were wet. As I later learned, the water early on had an impact on the rest of my hike.
Today, I was hiking 14.1 miles through three segments – Chaffee Creek, Wedde Creek, and the Mecan River Segment. Whatever the weather, I was looking forward to the hike. I’ve come to realize that I am a sucker for bodies of water – streams, rivers, lakes, you name it. They give me a great sense of calm when the weather is good, and they humble me with their strength when storms blow. I’m also a sucker for pine trees, and I was sure to see plenty of them if this trail was anything like the other areas in the county where I had been hiking. The rain stopped, and the sun started breaking through at about 9:45. It was shaping up to be a pretty nice day on the trail.
Generally, I am a Type A hiker. Once I get started, I typically keep right on going till the end of the hike. I usually do not plan lunch breaks or rest stops along the way. My “rest stops” are as long as it takes to stop, text Jane with my location and take some quick swallows of water. I usually eat my lunch while walking. I do not dawdle or putz.
But, as I began the second segment, Wedde Creek, my cramping stomach was telling me that something was up. I was about three miles away from some place called Richford. Would my stomach hold off for an hour? I judged that the answer was no. Lost a half hour right there dealing with that.
Wedde Creek is an extremely short segment – just over a mile long – and I was soon on a 2.2 mile connecting route to the final segment, Mecan River. Now I became aware of a blister developing on the little toe of my left foot. I had packed spare shoes and socks, and I decided now was time to pull off the road for a pit stop and lunch break. It felt great to take off my damp shoes and socks, massage my feet a bit, and treat the sizable blister on my toe. After downing a turkey sandwich, an apple and some water. I put on fresh socks and my spare shoes, and resumed my hike. That lasted about three blocks, when I spotted a hand-lettered sign saying “Bakery is Open Today”, with an arrow pointing left. Since I had already lost so much time already, I decided it wouldn’t hurt to do some more exploring, so I made the turn and soon came to a small farm. An Amish family ran the bakery, and they were selling jams, maple syrup and hand pies in various flavors. I had never seen them before. Each one looked like a mini apple pie crust with filling was folded in half, painted with a sugar glaze and baked in an oven. I bought a couple as desert for me, plus some blueberry jam for Jane. Then I continued to the turnoff where the trail began. At the corner was a bar/restaurant called Johann’s. Time to scout a possible fish fry. Then it was on to the Mecan River Segment.
That was as much putzing as I have ever done on a hike.
Of the three segments I hiked, the 7.5 mile Mecan River Segment was my favorite. The IATA guide stated that the Mecan River is one of the premier trout streams in central Wisconsin. I don’t know about that, but the trail along the river certainly was pretty. It was the most geographically diverse of the three trails. The first mile plus of trail ran along the Mecan River, and it was relatively flat.
After that first section, the trail veered away from the river a bit, and the trail was no longer as pretty. In fact, the area looked blighted. There were two reasons for this. First, there had been a fair amount of timber harvested here, and small branches were strewn about in clumps. The other reason was because of an oak rehabilitation process called scarification. According to a posted sign, this is “The mechanical removal of competing vegetation and/or interfering debris, or disturbance of the soil surface designed to enhance regeneration for species that require mineral soil…By scarifying, oak trees will be able to reproduce more effectively.” I’m not sure where things are in this process. Hopefully, it will look better soon. Frankly, it reminded me of areas in Pennsylvania that were subject to acid rain.
I was climbing as I hiked through this area, and I kept on hiking until I reached a wooded ridge overlooking Mecan Springs over 100 feet below. No more blighted woods. The vistas here were spectacular. After that, I had about an hour’s worth of hiking left. What I wanted was an area with lots of shade. What I got was very open, hilly terrain through farm country. Not much shade at all until very near the end of the hike. I really baked out there. When I finished, the thermometer in the car read 79 degrees.
A couple from the Madison area had just finished their hike before me, and we compared notes a bit before I got in my car and drove back to Richford. Fortunately, the bakery was still open, so I was able to get some small hand pies for Jane and me. Then, I made a beeline to Johann’s for a fish fry and a Spotted Cow. Yum! Well worth the putzing.
My Days on the Ice Age Trail 