October 6, 2024, Day 34
Baraboo AirBnB to Wisconsin Dells KOA. 13 miles.
Time to leave my lovely AirBnB with its hot shower, plentiful snacks, and cozy bed.
Made my own connecting route from
Baraboo to the Wisconsin Dells KOA. IAT rules allow for that. To be a Thousand Miler, according to the rules of the game, you have to do every part of all the official segments (choosing one way around the bifurcation), and you have to connect those segments via walking. They suggest connecting routes between official segments, but you can make your own. Most of the time, the IAT suggestion is the shortest connecting route. Not for the first part of the western bifurcation, though. Instead of going 28 miles out of the way and eventually ending up at the Dells, I took Country Road A straight north from Baraboo until it hit Route 12, then, after getting a bit of resupply at Walgreens, I took a right and walked a bit farther to the campground. 13 total miles. There was some traffic, but I had plenty of room on the side of the road.
Rural homes and some farmland most of the way along Country Road A. Passed a memorial to Yellow Thunder, a leader of the Ho-Chunk who was lied to by our government and forced to sign a treaty giving away Native lands.
Junk food and touristy plastic hoopla began once I hit the outskirts of the Wisconsin Dells at Route 12.
Brandon, the front desk guy at the KOA, section hiked 800 miles of the AT in 2021, and we had a great conversation. I asked about the cabin sites, and he gave me one for just $9 over the cost of my booked tenting site. Really kind of him.
I like my KOA cabin. Electricity, WiFi, heat/ac. Bathrooms, free showers, and potable water not far away. When I have a car again and am doing my other LifeQuest stuff, I may get a KOA membership. Staying a week in a KOA cabin might be comparable or less expensive than a week at an AirBnB, depending on location.
I’ve been living large these last few days! I’ll be back in my tent soon enough.
Oct 7, 2024. Day 35
Wisconsin Dells KOA Campground to Point Bluff Campground. 15 miles
I was glad for my heated cabin last night since the temps went below freezing. I lounged this morning until the air outside was above 40 degrees (around 8am), then I began the day’s trek north.
The suggested CR route from close to the KOA to Point Bluff is the shortest. 15 miles, mostly on very quiet country roads. I walked and thought and, on two occasions, took short breaks by the side of the road. Has to walk a couple short stretches of busier road close to the Point Bluff campsite, but I managed to arrive safely.
One of my pack straps keeps digging into my right brachial plexus. Annoying.
Arrived at the campsite too early. They don’t open until 3, so I am hanging out on their shaded porch using their outside outlet to charge my phone. Don’t feel like digging out my Anker.
The sites are right next to the Wisconsin River and are quite scenic. Might be a little chilly tonight though. Temps in the 30s again I think, and this time, no cabin.
My right foot is adjusting to my new HOKAS. Almost got a new blister, but then I didn’t.
Later – the owner arrived and told me to go ahead and set up. I tried to choose a spot away from the wind, but to no avail.
Went into the bar and had cranberry juice and two large soft pretzels with cheese sauce. The locals are quite friendly.
Tomorrow I head north to just above Adams. In two days I will be at the top of the northern bifurcation.
October 8, 2024 Day 36
Point Bluff Resort campground to Friendship motel. About 19 miles.
Got cold outside last night. Near freezing, I think. I managed well and stayed quite warm, never needing to put on my puffy, rain gear, longjohns (under my fleece sweatpants) or extra socks. Since I have additional layers and two Mylar emergency blankets, I am hoping I will be warm enough if the temps drop below 20 before I finish.
Slept really well. I think it needs to be cool outside for me to get a really good night’s sleep. There’s something about feeling warm and cozy in my sleeping quilt/liner, it is conducive to snoozing.
It was cold enough this morning for me to wear my merino wool leggings instead of my hiking shorts. First time for that. I also wore my merino wool pullover AND my fleece jacket (which used to be my daughter Sage’s). And gloves. The pullover, jacket, and gloves came off within two hours of walking, but I did appreciate it all when I began the day.
All road walking today. Tomorrow I will reach the northern end of the bifurcation. Today I needed to get to a motel in Friendship. Road walking for 19 miles.
For the most part, the roads were quiet and lovely. The scenery is now different. Lots of trees instead of fields along the roads. Hills in the distance. I like it. I did take a shortcut that put me on a busy road for over seven miles, and that’s wasn’t fun, but that was the price I paid for shaving a mile off my connecting road-walk day.
Things that stood out:
I saw a deer that had recently been hit by a car laying in the brush by the side of the road. Her back legs no longer worked, but her front half did, and she kept trying to get up and move away. I felt horrible for her. I called the local police and asked if there were any animal rescue agencies, but the cop told me there weren’t any for deer. He said he would have someone put her out of her misery. I gave the exact location and went on my way, asking the Universe to take away the deer’s pain and fear and to take her straight to Heaven. I had to snap myself out of the sadness after a while – I can spiral if I think about things like that too much.
Beautiful rural residential areas with tree-lined streets. No corn today! No cows!
A guy at the flea market in Adams offered me free hot chocolate. The market isn’t open today, but he was there prepping his food truck for tomorrow. He was nice, but he told me the government creates the hurricanes to kill all the Republicans. That the boxes on telephone poles synch into the chips in our bodies implanted via vaccinations. That the governments of England and the USA are waiting for “the right time,” then they will destroy Republicans and take over everything. I asked him when the right time might be, as in, what were they waiting for? He didn’t know. He was serious. He said he learned all this on a radio program. He was very kind to me, and he believed every word he said.
There was a discount grocery store in Adams! The kind that sells food that is after the “best by” date (but NOT expired) for cheap. The store had so much variety, and a ton of high-protein hiker food. I bought way more than I need for the next four days and barely spent anything. The downside is my bear canister now weighs a ton. I don’t think it’s been this heavy on my whole hike. I had a hard time getting to my motel. I may try packing things differently tomorrow morning.
Kwik Trips are dangerous places for me. I want everything in them. They have such tempting food choices!! There is one across the street from my motel.
Speaking of motels, I passed two in Adams on the way to the one I booked north of Friendship. The Friendship motel is 1.6 miles farther north than I need to be. Oh well.
14.5 miles until I am finished with the bifurcation.
October 9. Ice Age Trail Day 37.
Friendship motel to Coloma Camperland. 19.7 miles
This was my hardest day on trail yet. The reason was my overzealous shopping from the day before. My bear canister has five or six days of food when I only need four. It weighs a ton.
It is dumb to carry more than you need. Carrying the extra weight does not make you a better hiker. It makes you a dumb hiker. The extra weight is hard on the joints. I did not enjoy my day.
The road walking scenery was actually quite nice and, if I had been carrying less weight, I would have loved it. I took a road just north of the suggested connecting route (Ice Age Trail rules allow you to do your own thing for the connecting routes – as long as you walk, you can connect the official segments however you like). Beautiful shaded tree-line streets that were 98% free of traffic almost all the way until I arrived at where the east and west bifurcations meet.
I took a break every two miles. My back and hip hurt, especially my lower right everything. My canister literally hit a nerve. I tried adjusting things and moving stuff around, but the best I could do was keep everything the way it usually is and take five minute breaks every two miles. Somehow I still averaged over three miles an hour…the flat terrain had a lot to do with that.
Ten years ago I carried most of three people’s gear and food on the John Muir Trail (I did not want my young daughters carrying too much weight). I remember making the mistake of weighing my pack after a resupply and seeing that it came in close to 50 pounds. I also carried everything but the kitchen sink on all those winter NH White Mountain hikes so I could make sure my young daughters and I could comfortably survive overnight in subzero temps if we had a mishap. My last winter of completing the NH Grid was spent breaking trail in three feet of snow straight up some of our country’s most notorious mountains up to three times a week…all with a tumor the size of a honeydew melon attached to my uterus and bladder.
I am no stranger to hiking with a ton of weight or with discomfort.
But still. The pack situation bothered me today.
Could it be…gasp…I am getting older?
The other 2024 Ice Age Trail thruhikers I know of have slackpacked quite a bit. Hikers much older and younger than me. I have only slackpacked 22 miles out of over 600. Maybe I should start reaching out to more trail angels for assistance. I have a hard time doing that since I am so used to being self-sufficient. I have nothing against slackpacking. It’s smart whenever possible. I just have a hard time asking for help. It’s not a pride thing. It’s a I-am-not-used-to-people-helping-me thing.
The pack situation should get better as I eat what I have. I had originally planned on a short detour into a town four days from now for food, but that might not be necessary. We’ll see.
I do like the food I have. So there’s that.
After what felt like a million miles of road walking, I reached the northern junction of the eastern and western bifurcation. Yay!
Official trail again! The start of the Chaffee Creek segment. Also, a little sign marking the bifurcation.
Felt so good to be back on an official segment! The bit I did today was short and sweet, through a meadow.
Next came more road walking, including a jaunt by pretty Pleasant Lake (with its privy-provided pavilion) and a 1.6-mile bonus far north from the suggested connecting route to Coloma Camperland.
The campground owner is a kind lady and the property is nice with a pool during the summer, but the tenting ground is so hard and rocky that I could not get my stakes all the way into the ground. I was able to tie some cord to secure a couple corners, but I can confidently say this is the worst I have ever pitched my tent. At least there’s no wind tonight. Fingers crossed nothing collapses on me.
