A hike on the Ice Age Trail, July 9-11, 2026
After two weather delays over a week and a half, I finally got to hike on the Ice Age Trail (IAT). It was a three day hike. I got back yesterday, and I'm tired.
As I wrote earlier about planning the hike, this was going to be learning experience. I learned the some things.
- I grossly overestimated my distances. - I'd planned about 12.5 miles for the first day (too far) and wound up hiking about 14 that day (far too far). I was exhausted at the day's end.
- I was too heavily packed. - I suspected this prior, but wanted to carry more and use the hike to learn what was needed and what was not. My pack was just over 40 pounds.
- I underestimated the physicality. - After day 1, I was exhausted, my legs were fatigued, and my feet hurt. I gained even more respect for the distance hikers.
- Water is critical. - Because I expended a lot of effort, I sweated a lot. Hence, I needed to drink a lot of water. My "potable water" source on the map turned out to be difficult to locate. Throughout the hike I was concerned about water.
- Maps are important, but... - Having maps is important, but, they can be a bit deceptive too. Not everything is on there and what seems obvious on paper can look different in real life.
- Safety matters. - It's critical to have a plan. Since I was hiking alone (not particularly safe in its own right), having a plan and sharing it with someone trusted is essential. And it's a blessing if there's a cell connection in case the plan needs adjusting. Extending battery life is also important - I'd turn it on, take a quick photo, send a text to my wife, Lisa, to say where I was, and hopefully the Life360 app would ping my location too.
- Although hiking is tough and, more than once I wondered, "Why am I doing this?", there are joys as well.
Here's a pictorial look back.
Before the hike...
Thursday morning, we drove off to the planned launching spot - Saddlebag Lane.
Within the first hour of hiking I was going through thigh-high grass. Since I'd delayed (twice) due to storms and it had rained hard the day and night prior, the grass was soaked. So, my shoes and socks were quickly soaked. Water squished up through my toes at each step. This was going to make for a long day of wet feet. However a benefit was that fording a creek was going to be nothing. I considered just walking through, but I did take off my shoes and waded across barefoot.
After about five miles I came to a county cross road. I was practicing judging my walking time, gauging my time and map distances. I guessed about 2 mph and that seemed about right. The IAT is in "segments" - I stepped out of the Highland Lakes segment and came to the Parrish Hills segment.
There was a very nice wayside (picnic area) and clean water lake that was a great rest spot. I decided to spend an hour for lunch, lay out my shoes and socks to dry in the sun, and even took a little swim. There was no one else there - it was very relaxing and refreshing.
A neat surprise was the friendly little fishes. The water was super clear and the little fishes can even be somewhat seen by zooming in at the bottom of the landscape photo. When I stood at the water's edge, the curious little fishes all swam up to me and looked up at me. They seemed like little pups wanting to play. When I stepped in the water, they scurried away, of course. But when I stood still, they soon came back to me all the way up and kissed at my feet. They seemed just curious and even friendly.
After my swim and letting things dry a bit, it was back to hiking. I began to circumnavigate the lake on the right side in the photo. I was refreshed and feeling good.
Then things began to change. After about four hours now, I saw my first person. A young man, maybe 30, was coming from the opposite direction. He looked a bit tired. "Hello," I said, "you're almost to the lake, a nice place for a stop." He mumbled something like, "That's what I'm looking for." I couldn't entirely understand what he said. Then he said, "Well, happy trails," and was off again. He was on a mission and was heading on. Fair enough. The encounter and his demeanor, turns out, was foreshadowing.
His lack of dawdling reminds me - standing still at that point really wasn't a good option. The deer flies and horse flies and mosquitoes were brutal. To put a positive spin on it, they gave constant encouragement to keep moving - slow down and you got eaten. So, standing and having a chit chat wasn't a good idea. I hiked on as well.
I was starting to get tired and was sweating a lot. But, I knew "potable water" was ahead near a lake. I could rest there, drink up, and then camp very close. That was my target and finish line.
My mother is a very experienced backpacker. She and her friends used to sing the "Hiking Song" when they needed a little pick me up. She taught me the song and tune. I needed a pick me up at the moment, so I started running the song through my head. At first, I'd forgotten all the words. But, as I trudged along ("trudged" was the accurate word that came to mind as to how I was now hiking), the words came back to me in the tune. The good thing is that it truly is a good hiking song. The cadence mirrors and paces your steps, like a coxswain sounding out the rhythm in a Viking ship. The bad thing is, I then had the song in my head the rest of the way, both day and night.
If you're sheet music illiterate, like me, you can hear my mother singing it here. I added a, "Hey!" at the end before repeating in my mind because it seemed like it needed to be there. Although it got stuck in head, it kept me hiking.
The potable water I was hiking for was marked on the map with restroom and water symbols, beside a small lake and at the intersection of a "primitive road" and a "logging road". Surely that would be noticeable, right? I suddenly emerged from the trail to a logging road. I didn't see much of anything - just the trail intersecting the gravel road. (I didn't know it then, but this was the wrong logging road.) It wasn't apparent on the map if the water was further up the trail or left down the logging road (again, I was thinking I was on the correct logging road). I guessed left. I wound up hiking maybe half a mile, more?, west on the logging road but found nothing. At this point, I was thirsty, getting low on water, and getting a bit worried. I was able to get off a text to Lisa.
I had my new "Sawyer" brand water filter. You're supposed to be able to use any water source, filter it, then be able to drink it. Water is downhill, so I went a bit farther downhill on the road and found a stream. Running water is better than still water, I knew. The water looked good and was nice and cold, but it was stained (tannic, I assume) the color of iced tea. I loaded up. But, since this was the first time using the filter, I had to figure it out. It was a process. Unload, unpack, figure it out, get the water, repack, reload. A process. Then I had to hike back the half mile (more?) to the IAT. Whew!
Back on the IAT, I hiked north another two hours and came to another primitive road. Ah, this must be it. Again, I guessed left down the primitive road. Sure enough, the lake was there and the water looked much cleaner. Was that lake the "potable water? That's odd." A kind ATV-er asked if I need a ride, but I was feeling pretty good now with much better looking water. So, again, I unloaded, unpacked, watered up, packed, loaded up. More effort. One huge stroke of luck happened there, though. I found an almost full can of Deep Woods insect spray someone had left. I had some spray, but not much, and this was likely better stuff. Great find.
Back on the IAT, I'd hiked maybe 100 yards when I came to an ATV shelter complete with a beautiful hand pump for...potable water. "You've got to be kidding me," I thought.
The good news...I found the spot I'd been looking for and my campsite destination was very close. The bad news...unload, unpack, water up (it's hard to manually pump with one arm and hold a water bottle under the spigot with the other), repack, reload. Lots of effort, again, for the third time!
Feeling much better and with a full load of water, I marched up the logging road back to the IAT. My plan was to camp right there. That way I could drink as much as I wanted, then get more water in the morning back at ATV the shelter.
You're supposed to camp 200+ feet off the trail. I did not. I found a spot on a ridge with a grassy area that looked good. It was an hour until nightfall, and since I'd seen one other hiker, I figured no one was going to hike by before sunup. The world would not end if I camped here. Plus, I was exhausted. I set up camp.
After the water ordeal, times three, I was a little discouraged. It was clear that I had overestimated how far I could walk. With my ramblings, I guess I'd hiked 14 miles. It's embarrassing now to admit, but I'd actually planned 16 miles for the next day and 12.5 the day following. There was no way. "Why am I doing this?" I thought again.
Fortunately, I had a cell connection there (actually, it was a better connection than I get at home). I'd left a detailed plan, day by day, back with Lisa. But now, I adjusted the plan. Tomorrow would be a shorter day, and an even shorter third day. Lisa went through a serious cancer situation 11 years back and one thing we learned was - listent to your body. My body was telling me to rest. So, the pickup spot was changed. I sent her the text and she confirmed with, "Argh!" So, the plan was now adjusted and she had confirmed that she knew about it. That made me feel better.
Oddly, after all the effort I'd put out, I was absolutely not hungry. I ate a "Cup soup" which had been planned for breakfast and a few snacky things - string cheese, beef stick. That was all. Then off to sleep for night one.
The following morning I left my campsite all set up and went back to the shelter to fill up with a full load of fresh water. It was about 1/4 mile, an easy walk with no pack on my back. But, the insects were insane. The deer and horse flies were relentless around my head, the mosquitoes were all over. I was constantly shooing them away, and I mean constant, continuous movement of my hands around my head and upper body else they were on me. "Can I hike for hours AND constantly shoo insects?" I wondered.
I watered up, again, and went back to the campsite. Fortunately, the insects were again not bad there. Odd, I thought. A true blessing. Break camp, load up, start hiking again.
I was getting concerned about my phone battery, especially with the change of plans. Although powered off, when I turned it on and did anything, like take a photo, the battery percentage dropped more than I thought it should. So, pictures became fewer.
Day 2's "incident" was that I lost the trail. The IAT is marked with "yellow blazes" and I'm impressed with how well and often it's marked. However, this one time, I came to another primitive road and it just seemed to stop.
On my map, it seemed to go along the road to the left. So, I hiked left and then was to reenter the forest to the right. I kept looking to the right for a yellow blaze and never saw one. After hiking far enough that I knew I had passed it, uh oh, where is it?
I guess I hiked a bit farther because I eventually came to another primitive road. Thankfully, it was marked with a sign: "Five Cent Rd." It was good to know that, but you've got to be kidding me! I was just on this road, that's where the ATV shelter is! Did I just hike in a circle?!
I looked at my map. My choices now: hike back and try to find the IAT again. Continue on the Five Cent Rd west toward the highway, then head north, then find the trail that way. Being exhausted, thirsty, with sore feet, and wondering what I was doing out here, I followed the primitive road west toward the highway. I was not in a position to go wandering around looking for the IAT and, maybe, finding it, or maybe not finding it. I headed west to the highway.
From there, it was relatively easy to hike down the primitive road, along a county road, then to the highway for a short distance, then to another gravel road, and finally intersect the IAT again.
There was a campsite nearby marked on the map that I'd intended (with the now-altered plan) to camp at. However, I found it/didn't find it. I saw...something...that might be a campsite, but only looked semi-official and wasn't marked. I hiked on. Turns out, I think that was it. (It wasn't the best spot so I'm glad I hiked on.)
I stopped for a break, sent a text to Lisa with the message of where I was now heading for campsite for night 2. My mother had sent a text: "Hope you got to hike in between the storms. How do you cook sweet potatoes in a crock pot? I've invited the Brady's over for dinner tonight?" Response: On the trail right now. Fork them, foil them, turn it on, not sure how long. Turning phone off now to save battery."
Another 2 miles west on the IAT was a campsite I'd considered staying at when laying out the first plan: "Chain Lake" where two campsites were marked. As it turned out, I stayed at the first of the two I came up upon.
Campsite for night 2 was great. It was on a point surrounded by a lake on almost three sides. It was mostly flat, grassy, and there were (amazingly again) almost no insects. I needed to rest my body. My fear was that I was going to have to lie in the tent to avoid being eaten by bugs. But, I was able to move around camp without worrying about swatting and shooing. Plus, the sun was out. I strung up a clothes line and hung my wet and sweaty clothes to dry.
I wanted to go swimming to cool off and clean up, but unfortunately I was at the shallow area of the lake and it was a bit marshy with lily pads. That's okay, I can rest.
By evening, I still wasn't very hungry. Yet, I had a bit more appetite which was good. I needed food and energy. I'd brought along a little Louis L'amour novella that I fished out of one of those "little libraries" and started to read. This was to be one of my little luxuries while hiking, and it was - lightweight, easy to read, entertaining. A good, and necessary, easy afternoon and night.
The black image with the tiny moon above needs some explanation. I slept pretty well, there is always one rock in just the wrong place. At 3:40 am I woke up and needed to step out of the tent to relieve myself. My tent opened facing eastward, and instantly...
Wow.
It was cool, of course, but refreshing. The word "magical" immediately came to mind. The stars were brilliant, just brilliant, and, without light pollution, there were far more than you can see while in town. A waxing crescent moon had just popped up over the treetops, maybe 45 minutes earlier.~ The treeline was very visible and silhouetted against the sky - the trees a deep, deep black-green against and deep, deep blue-black sky full of stars. The moonlight shimmered across the lake - magical. And to make it even more multi-sensory, the frogs were singing a symphony. That's the best way I can describe it. I've camped before where frog-noise was just that - noise. So much, that I've actually taken down my tent and moved farther away. But these frogs were working together, it seemed. There was the higher bark-bark frogs singing soprano like small dog yelps. There were tenor frogs burping, and there were the bass bullfrogs giving out long croaks and setting the rhythm. What's more, this was in near 360 degree surround sound since the Chain Lake almost wrapped the campsite point. I wish my phone was better at astronomical photography and I wish I'd had enough battery power to record the sound. But, oh well, it's recorded in my memory.
~ You can judge the moon and stars and time with your hand. Hold out your fist, turned upright, at arms length. It roughly measures off an angle of 15 degrees. The earth spins 15 degrees per hour. So, one fist is about one hour. Stack fists to measure. There are about 12 fists/hours horizon-to-horizon; there are 24 fists in a day (12 times 15 is 180 degrees; 24 times 15 is 360 degrees). Trust me, it works.
The next morning I didn't have too far to hike (with my now adjusted plan). Whereas the day prior I was just exhausted, now I was sore! Moving around was...argh! And, Lisa was participating in a Livestrong cancer survivor 5k in the morning and wouldn't be there until the afternoon anyway, so, I was in no rush.
I strung up my clothesline again, and since it was now hot in the tent and the insects were not bad at all, I put out a plastic cloth in the grass and just lazed.
To my surprise, I heard voices. I'd only seen four people in three days. And, three of them had been on ATVs so they were not surprises at all - you hear them coming. I looked back down the trail...no one. Then, surprisingly a family of four appeared on kayaks. I did not see that coming. I still have no idea how they got kayaks in there; hauled in on the ATV trails is my only guess. Anyway, that family doubled my people total.
It really was a beautiful day. I lied down and looked up at the sky. Then, as I gazed up, another surprise - a hornets next about the size of a cantaloupe was directly above me. No bother, I watched them work, in and out they went. As a boy it would have been tempting to "kick the hornet's nest" or hit it with a thrown rock or hurled stick, and then run like heck. But, (1) that was NOT going to happen right now with me camped there and (2) that was NOT going to happen when I was all packed up and leaving with my too-heavy pack on my back and sore body. As they left me alone, those hornets would go unmolested.
To wrap up, I wanted to show what the trail typically looks like. You "follow the yellow blaze" is the watchword on the IAT. The image below is typical of what you see...the trail and the yellow blaze on the tree. The blaze is reassuring..."you're on the right path," it says. At the top of a ridge I suddenly came to bench...the only one I encountered. It was dedicated to a fellow, Ole Hanson, who evidently helped lay out this section of the trail. It was a nice spot to rest before my final 30 minutes of hiking.
I don't have any images of my "pickup spot" because my phone was almost dead. Yet, it was another similar ATV shelter. It was nice...restroom, steel building shelter, fire ring, but not as nice as the other shelter and without a well for water, unfortunately. I nestled in, rested, watched the ATV-ers come and go. It was Saturday so it was a busy spot but it was interesting to watch.
Although I'd had cell connection most of the way, I did not have a connection here, of course! I wanted to leave an "I'm here," to Lisa. I climbed a nearby hill to try, and the text maybe got through (still not sure). But, my period check-ins had made all the difference. As I'd progressed, I'd let Lisa know where I'd be and what the plan was. So, it was just time to wait. I read some more of Louis L'amour. Lisa arrived at exactly 4:00 pm - at exactly the first-planned pickup time.
We drove back to the Townline Lake where I'd swum two days prior. After three hard-for-me days of hiking, it was a 30 minute drive! We both went for a swim. Ahh. We'll go back there for a picnic.
Then, we went to Olive Garden in Wausau, Wisconsin. It's been, literally, decades since we've been to Olive Garden (the last time was in Bradenton, Florida and legendary football coach at Florida State University, Bobby Bowden, happened to be there with his lieutenants, apparently on a recruiting trip). My appetite was back. The endless salad was terrific and the chicken-rigatoni-mushroom sauce was delicious. I'm going to have leftovers soon.
The end, for now...
Thank you to...
Thank you @rachaeldwatson for delegating some Hive Power to me to get started. Feel free to undelegate. With my expected frequency-of-posting, I feel that I have enough to go forward.
Railroad McCoy - hive.blog/@railroadmccoy
You went on quite the adventure! Glad you made it back safely.
If you're sure I'll do just that. See if I run across someone else who might need a little boost
Absolutely amazing journey!
Considering the fact that you went alone, I think you did a tremendous job! And you sure went by some amazing sceneries.
You can be proud of that trip, I hope to see more if it in the future 💪🏼💯
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STOPWow! That's an impressive hike.
Great photos.
Consider meshtastic for communications where there is no internet.
Thanks and I appreciate the upvotes...they'll help me get my HP up and replenish resource credits.
This one really landed: After two weather delays over a week and a half, I finally got to hike on the Ice Age Trail (IAT)., it's the kind of post that makes the feed better.
This is awesome! I loved hearing about your hike and I'm tagging my daughter. She has an account, but rarely posts. @zythia13
Thank you for the tip! And I hope your daughter, or you gives an update on her next hike. She gave some good info to me as I'm learning as I go on this.
This is great!! I'm down in southern Wisconsin, Kettle Moraine area. I've been doing sections and sleeping out when there are legal locations. Still a newbie myself I'm getting used to how many miles are okay. On my last trip, I did 8 Mi and was shocked at how quickly it was done. I was imagining rolling into my campsite well after dark but it was only like 6:00! LOL the next day I did 12 Mi, which might have been okay, but I was going on about 2 hours of sleep after the coyotes kept me awake all night and a bad tent setup had me sliding around and being uncomfortable. Oops. I definitely recommend using a smartphone with the maps! There is an app called far out that you can buy the entire Ice Age Trail map or different sections of it. It is quite accurate and will show you where you are on the map even if you don't have cell phone service, as long as you've downloaded it to your phone. The Ice Age Trail website has their interactive map as well, but I'm not sure if it's downloadable so you have to have a signal to see that one. But that is the one I use to see if the parking lot I'm going to use allows overnight parking and all of that sort of thing, when I'm planning my trip. As for the bugs, I spray all of my gear and the outfits that I'm going to be wearing with Sawyer brand Permethrin and then any spots that have skin showing get the picardin lotion. I am also very careful to not use any soaps and shampoos and things that might smell absolutely lovely to any sort of bugs. So far so good! I have a thermacell thing to use once I set up camp as well. Sometimes the mosquitoes just don't care because you look too delicious, but for the most part, it works great! Be sure to practice using that Sawyer filter! And before you go out on the next trip, make sure it still has good flow. After it sits for a bit, it can get weird about it. Always test it before you head out! I'm planning to go on a two night section in the middle of next week. Hoping for good weather and decent air quality!
Awesome to read. I appreciate your tips especially with the map app which I'll be checking out. I would still worry about battery a bit, I may need one of those backup batteries (but they're heavy). Yes, the interactive map is really helpful, I used it at home a lot with planning.
Appreciate the bug and water tips too. There's a lot to learn.
I've been to the Kettle Moraine area, driving through, not hiking. I'm looking forward to that one day. From what I can tell, the northern segments are pretty open for camping with the "remote camping" areas if that's the kind of thing you like.
I'm done for now, hopefully again next summer. Enjoy your next hike. I hope you write about it.
Battery backups are a little heavy yes. I have a Nightcore 10000 that isn't too terrible. One thing that you can do is put your phone in airplane mode, turn on battery saver, the whole works. You can even tell it that you don't want to sit there and search for 5G that you prefer LTE. Just don't forget to reset everything back to normal when you get home! That stuff really does save on the battery. I usually then charge up, and shut my phone off overnight. But I have an SOS Beacon from zoleo so that might be a little different scenario! I hope you can get some good day hikes in somewhere else even if not on the Ice Age Trail!