Rib Falls

Rib Falls - Rib Falls / Wausau, WI

More heavy rains overnight continued the cold, wet conditions.  But if I let a little rain stop me nothing would get done.  So I pressed on and visited another small waterfall Rib Falls near Wausau, WI.  Falls can be accessed from the adjacent Rib Falls County Park and is a very short hike but somewhat difficult … Read more

Grandfather Falls

Grandfather Falls - Merrill, WI

Decided to keep chasing waterfalls (no, I’m not doing that intentionally).  Next stop was Grandfather Falls in Merrill, WI.  Like many of the other state parks and popular destinations, this site also crosses with the Ice Age Trail – something I would like to section hike but that’s far in the future. The falls are … Read more

Spirit Falls

Spirit Falls - Tomahawk, WI

Continuing my rainy & cold fall trip, I detoured again for another side quest to visit Wisconsin waterfalls and located Spirit Falls in Tomahawk, WI.  Falls are very easy to access – basically park at the nearby bar and walk 2 minutes to the Spirit River.  Water is moving quite fast and seems relatively deep … Read more

Timms Hill – Wisconsin’s Highest Point

Timms Hill - View from top of tower

Last winter I started dreaming up “side quests” for future journeys – mostly to help discover new places to visit, but also as a pseudo bucket-list to keep me moving.  One dark and cold night, I was using my Google-fu and came across the concept of highpointing which is to visit all the highest points … Read more

Lake Wissota State Park

Lake Wissota State Park - Parked near trailhead

Last night I was informed by park attendants while at Willow River State Park that rain would begin promptly at 6am today.  Sure enough, heavy thunderstorms started at 6:15am.  Thankfully I woke early and broke down camp quick.  My next stop was not planned – more of an “I’m bored and tired of driving in rain” … Read more

Willow River State Park

Willow River State Park - Willow Falls

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!  I’ve been quite distracted with life & other adventures this past month.  Since I’m stuffed with turkey and cannot move much, figured now is a good time for catch-up on my posting backlog.  Stay tuned, I have about 20 new places to share in the pipeline! Back to this post originally from … Read more

Mill Bluff State Park

Mill Bluff State Park - View from atop Mill Bluff

Since one of the main goals on this journey was to observe fall colors, the next choice of Mill Bluff State Park was easy.  The park contains several large sandstone bluffs, and the main Mill Bluff can be climbed to look out across the forest.  Amazing to consider thousands of years ago this was a … Read more

Wildcat Mountain State Park

Wildcat Mountain State Park - Night sky shot from Wildcat Mountain State Park site 106 over site 104

The second stop on my fall tour was Wildcat Mountain State Park.  I lost time trying to select a camping site and didn’t get much hiking in here, and instead of cranking out the mileage I did the short Observation Point Trail and watched the sun slowly fall beneath the horizon. Due to lack of … Read more

Natural Bridge State Park

Natural Bridge State Park

Fall colors are upon us here in Wisconsin.  With a late October warm pattern pushing temps into the 70s, I booked last-minute vacation and hit the road.  Full trip starts here on Thursday 10/19 and ends late Sunday 10/22 – stay tuned for more posts, there were over 10 stops and it takes time for … Read more

Parfreys Glen State Natural Area

Parfrey's Glen State Natural Area

A short drive from the main Devil’s Lake State Park area (but still within the park) is Parfrey’s Glen State Natural Area.  Dedicated as the first state natural area in 1952, this is a popular family attraction thanks to easy access and a waterfall at the trail terminus.  Traffic is very busy during weekends/holidays – … Read more