Hike 5

Starting point—Alaska
Ending point— Kewaunee
Distance—5.8 miles
Cumulative Distance—36.8 miles

Today's trip was a relatively unplanned adventure made possible by my mother, who happened to call yesterday offering to watch AJ while Dave and I went shopping or had a few hours to ourselves. That offer equated to another date on the Ice Age Trail. 

Less than 50 feet down the road, our attention was captured by two ostriches. The timing was perfect since they weren't outside when we returned to our car after the hike.

The weather was as good as it gets for Wisconsin in December. Dave was smart enough to bring two heavy layers, so he could share with me when I realized the lake breeze was chillier than I had anticipated. The sun was shining much of the time, reflecting off the lake.  Scenary was beautiful the entire hike.

 

We encountered an alpaca farm along the trail. Although none were outside, we did learn a bit more about alpacas from an information sign posted on the fence. Despite the sign, Dave is still not convinced that an alpaca would be a good household pet for us.

Dave really put his blood, sweat and tears into this section of trail. OK, it was only his blood when he was viciously attacked by the edge of the road. Luckily, the camera was unscathed. Dave's knee will heal, and his pants just bear the battle scar.

Hiking the trail so late into the year allows us to see things we might not otherwise.  An old bird's nest was in clear site without the leaves protecting it.  The pattern of a semi-dead tree trunk stodd out against the gray sky.  And the grass continues to bounce about in the wind.

It was a wonderful day to hike, and it was quite pretty hiking into Kewaunee with the lakeshore and the lighthouse. We're not sure when the next hike will be, but we have a standing offer from "Grandma" to babysit.
 

~Kerry and Dave

Hike 4

Starting point—Algoma
Ending point— Alaska
Distance—5.5 miles
Cumulative Distance—31 miles

After several months, we finally managed to get back on the trail November 12. There's something about the combination of winter, pregnancy and the birth of a child that all seem to hamper progress on the trail. We welcomed our son, Ansel James (AJ), into our family, and our first "date" since he was born was a hike on the Ice Age Trail. Although the weather was unseasonably warm this fall, it was still a bit chilly for a newborn to be hiking. So, my mother was overjoyed to spend quality time with AJ while Dave and I logged a few miles.

We started our hike where our last ended in Algoma, at the same wonderful Caffe Tlazo. Dave's Snickers hot chocolate lasted perhaps a quarter mile, and I managed to savor my gingerbread chai latte for the better part of a mile. That was the perfect way to start our fall hike.

           

The weather was absolutely gorgeous with sunny skies. This section of the trail took us along county highways and back roads, none of which were too heavily trafficked. I'm certain many people who live along the way don't even realize the trail winds along their properties.

One of the treasures we saw along the way was this sign:

We both waved. And, for the record, they waved back to us.

We enjoyed capturing the last bits of color left in the fall landscape, including gorgeous red berries and blowing grasses on the side of the road.

It was a refreshing date that revitalized our desire to hike. We're eager for next year when the weather turns warm and we can take AJ on the trail with us. In the meantime, we'll try to sneak in a few more "dates" this winter on the Ice Age Trail.

~Kerry

1st Place :)

Grass in Sun took first in the final voting!!!  Super excited about a photo actually winning a contest.  Thanks to anyone who voted in the semi-finish to get me to the finals.   Maybe next year I'll actually let Kerry use the camera, so she has photos to enter the contest!

:)

Maybe!

Here is the link to the IATA website and the other winning photos!

http://www.iceagetrail.org/photo-contest

Photo Finalist!!

Well, two of my three pictures (which were my favorite two) passed through to the finalist round! 


Reflections of the Sky - is the 3rd  photo in the Scenery Category.  We took this one over the Ahnapee River, on our 2nd day of hiking the trail.

Grass in Sun - is also from our 2nd day of hiking - is the 2nd photo in the Flora and Fauna category. 

They can be checked out in the other posts and at the IATA website:  http://www.iceagetrail.org/aboutthecontest 

The final voting will be completed on 4/9, at the IATA annual meeting.  We will see if any of my photos make the final grade after that, but I have a 1 in 6 and 1 in 5 chance

:)

~Dave

Photo Contest!

Photos are up on the Ice Age Trail Alliance website:

http://www.iceagetrail.org/aboutthecontest

I entered three photos in the contest.  In Flora and Fauna, my photo is number 3.  In Scenery, my photos are 11 and 12.

My favorite is #3. 

Please check out all the photos!  They really show what the Ice Age Trail is all about!!

~Dave

Hike 3

Starting point—Algoma
Ending point— Algoma
Distance—2.5 miles
Cumulative Distance—25.5 miles

The weather was warm—almost 30 degrees—which compared to the negatives we had just a few days ago, it felt great to get out and hike.  Technically, it was more of a walk, since our adventure today brought us from the northern edge of Algoma's city limits to the "heart" of the beautiful city.  Regardless, it felt great to get back out on the trail!

Unlike our previous trips, we took only one car up and planned on doing a "loop" through the city.  We left the car by a ice skating rink by a park on Division St.  We walked up through the city and then the Anahpee State Trail, to get to the point we last saw in October.

From there, we followed the "official" path back into town passing and reading the history of Algoma and seeing the many sights including old lumber mills, Von Stiehl Winery, and our first official view of Lake Michigan from the IAT.  We took the boardwalk trail that runs along the harbor, and Kerry found a playground in the park along the lake.

 Someone in snowshoes broke a path for us along the boardwalk. However, by the split of 42, the path was covered in snow, and our wants turned to delicious hot chocolate.  

 

Kerry had found a place going through Algoma one time for work.  We left the trail and walked up "downtown" Algoma to Caffe Tiazo, where we ordered hot chocolate and enjoyed a great drink to end our hiking for the day.  

All said and done, it was a great day to go for a hike through Algoma.  We look forward to our next chance to get back on the trail... snow or not!!

Happy Hiking!!!!!

~Dave

The Next Hike

February is now here.  Cabin fever may not have set in yet, but with work as crazy as it has been for us, we are ready to get out and do some hiking, even though snow storm "Conner" just blew through.

Luckily for us, the city of Algoma is our next section.  This likely means a stop at von Steihl winery, to "warm up" while we go for a hike in the snow. 

I'm figuring about 3 miles or so of trail, but I don't see us driving both vehicles up there, so maybe it will be a 5.5 to 6 mile loop.  We ended our last treck at County Road M. 

I guess we will see what the weather brings for the next 2 Saturdays, and see if we can get one of them to work.

~Dave

Photo Contest

 The Ice Age Trail Alliance is having a 2011 photo contest tied with their annual conference.  (http://www.iceagetrail.org/annualconference).  I looked back through the photos we took of our two days of hiking we got in at the end of 2010.  I picked the following three to enter:

 

Starting in March, IATA will post the photos on their website to select finalist for a vote at the conference.

~Dave

Winter in Wisconsin

Well, it has been winter for a while.  Huge snow drifts have covered the driveway a few times now.  We have had some big negative days where it hit minus 30 with wind-chills.

There is Dave at the bottom of the driveway with the snow-blower!!

We are in a new year now, and although cabin fever has not yet set in, the urge to maybe day a short day hike in Algoma to continue our IAT trek is starting to create an itch....  Maybe one of these weekends in Jan... when we have a warm(er) day that is :-P

~Dave