Hiking the Ice Age Trail near Medford

An Outdoorsman’s Journal

Hello friends, This week I found the perfect place for you to explore if you would like to do a day hike or multi-day trek with a backpack. Read on to get the scoop!

This would be one of those adventures where I had the gear and the knowledge of how to live out of a backpack, but my homework and maps were incomplete.

The Ice Age Trail is one of Wisconsin’s gems and is nearly 1,200 miles in length. My goal was to see what kind of physical condition I was in. In just 95 days I will be living in the Montana mountains hunting elk and mule deer.

Sunday, July 9 High 81, Low 49

I parked my truck at the wayside on Hwy 13 just north of Chelsea, 12 miles north of Medford. With my golden retrievers Ruby and her pup Red, I began my adventure while carrying a 60-pound backpack. We would be heading west. It was just after 3 p.m. and I was thinking that I had a 6-mile hike to the Mondeaux Flowage. The vast majority of a three-day round trip would be in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest with sprinkles of very beautiful privately-owned farmland.

First observation, I started far east and would have a 3.4-mile road walk on Fawn Ave. Not a big problem but I like the trail/woods more. Second observation, lots of deer. Third observation, I had made a mistake and actually had to travel 11 miles to get to Eastwood Campground, which is on the Mondeaux Flowage and is a very quiet campground and most importantly is a place I could get drinking water.

Had I been smart enough to know I had to travel 11 miles, not 6, I would have started three hours earlier. I arrived at Eastwood just before dark, and I was done in. I put up my backpackers’ tent, laid out my sleeping bag and had two cans of air temperature beer as I watched day become night. When I hit the tent, the pups were thrilled to death when they realized they would get to sleep next to me.

Monday, July 10 High, 76, Low 46

I recreated my plan today. I kept my tent up instead of taking my camp down and hauling it on my back all day and then ending up in the same area, as this was a round trip. I left my camp up and hiked with my pack and some water and food. My goal was to hike 6 miles to county Hwy E, turn around and head home. Folks this is the area you need to put it in your memory banks. Much of this hike, since it was round trip, was around the Mondeaux Flowage and it is a beautiful, perfect getaway with three US Forest Service campgrounds on it. The views on the eskers of the west bank, the simple but perfect campgrounds and the narrow, but long flowage are a recipe for a simple and inexpensive getaway for those that take advantage of it. To top it off, the Mondeaux Lodge on the flowage is open Tuesday through Sunday, has a beach, I believe is USFS managed and is like going back to 1970.

I did 12 miles and made it back to camp for a 30-minute break before a rain began that would last all night.

Tuesday, July 11 High 71, Low 45

Sleeping on the ground and I just turned 62 last week. My tent is too small for two goldens and an adult to be real comfy but I made it work. Today I knew would be a test as I had to go 11 miles with my pack and make it home in time for a KAMO meeting. Folks, I aced it, not a single mark as far as my knees, spine or actually just enjoying myself. Once upon a time I hiked 1,244 miles on the Appalachian Trail. Today I met two very cool ladies. Actually I met four very cool ladies on this hike, but I got a picture of day hikers from Chetek and Barronette, Joan Zelltner and Marilynn Shaurette. Marilynn reads this column in the Cumberland Advocate, and we had a very positive conversation.

My legs were sluggish for a couple of days after I got home but I really enjoyed my three days on The Ice Age Trail.

Sunset