Hike 9

Starting point—Luxemburg Area
Ending point— Montpelier
Distance—4.5 miles
Cumulative Distance—56.9 miles

Our desire to hike the IAT led us back to the trail despite an overcast, chilly afternoon. We had incorrectly believed it was a bit warmer outside than it actually was. We were able to enjoy the first half of the hike, as we walked through relatively untraveled country roads.

The weather put a damper on our hike, as our littlest hiking buddy wasn't nearly as content as previous hikes. We were glad we decided to do a shorter hike than the original 6.5 miles we had mapped. We'll chalk this hike up to a learning experience in our short history of hiking with children.

Hike 8

Starting point—Ryan's Corner
Ending point— Luxemburg Area
Distance—5.8 miles
Cumulative Distance—52.4 miles

What a wonderful feeling to be hiking three weekends in a row! Our hike took us along the Ahnapee Trail for the last time. We saw a poignant sight as we crossed a bridge, a goose alongside its apparently deceased partner.

Trees are starting to turn green, and some of the fields seemed especially green in the beautiful spring sunlight. Our hike took us along relatively untraveled country roads, so we saw less wildlife aside from domesticated curious cows.

We did see three turkeys and two squirrels cross the road near the end of our hike. It was interesting to watch the turkeys cross the road, then recross the road to take flight.

Hiking a bit of the IAT was the perfect way to spend our Sunday together with AJ.

  

Hike 7

Starting point—Footbridge
Ending point—Ryan's Corner
Distance—6.2 miles
Cumulative Distance—46.6 miles

With record temperatures, it was an easy decision to head to the Ice Age Trail with our 6-month-old son, AJ. We had a wonderful time hiking in short-sleeve shirts (and working up a sweat) with incredible 70-plus weather in March!

We saw quite a bit of wildlife on this hike, including a couple deer, a snake and several groupings of ducks on the the Kewaunee River. We also heard a tremendous amount of frogs along the trail, which makes sense as there was standing water along most of the trail.  There were also a bee colony at the start of the trail.

This section of the trail was flat and easy walking, following the Ahnapee State Trail. I imagine this would be a glorious hike with full fall color, but it was very nice to see the world coming awake again this spring.

The unseasonably warm weather is expected to continue through this weekend, so we're hoping for another hike this Sunday.

Hike 6

Starting point—Kewaunee
Ending point— Footbridge
Distance—3.6 miles
Cumulative Distance—40.4 miles

We were so excited to take our 6-month-old son, AJ, hiking for the very first time on the Ice Age Trail. The weather was wonderful for March with temperatures in the high 60s.

Our hike started with a beautiful pheasant near the lakeshore. Dave managed to snap a quick picture as the pheasant wandered on its merry way. Fortunately, the lakeshore was a bit more cooperative than the pheasant for photography.

We were surprised as we hiked to discover a fenced arsenic contamination area. A sign explained the area was contaminated by a railroad accident decades ago, but it is still in the process of restoration. It wasn't exactly what we expected to see along the IAT.  Not far from the contamination area was a deer skull....

It was a wonderful day exploring the trail, seeing the trees budding and sharing our love of the outdoors with our son. He stayed awake the entire hike and enjoyed exploring the park afterward.