Hiking the Lists: The Forest Glen 3 in 1

Hike: #12
Title: The Forest Glen 3 in 1
Location: Forest Glen County Preserve, Vermilion County, Illinois
Hike List: Illinois
Difficulty: Mostly easy, although a couple climbs and descents are momentarily steep and it could be quite muddy at certain times of the year.
Duration of Hike: 1-2 hours

OK, so the "Forest Glen 3 in 1" is not an official title for this hike. However, it's a lot easier than calling it the "Willow Creek, Deer Meadow, and most of the Old Barn trails combined into one Hike"*. Although not the longest hike in the park (that's the River Ridge Backpack Trail)**, or most spectacular showcase of Forest Glen's natural beauty (Big Woods), this hike is a good sampler.

Hiking the Lists: Snake Road

Photo by Erin

Hike: #11
Title: Snake Road 
Location: LaRue-Pine Bluffs Natural Research Area, Shawnee National Forest
Hike List: Illinois
Difficulty: Mostly easy, although during spring and fall venomous snakes abound so be careful.
Duration of Hike: No more than a couple hours, depending on how many pictures you take.

Most of the geology of Illinois is dominated by glaciers. The expansive flatness of central Illinois is due to the work of ancient glaciers, as are the occasional ridges which are the remnants of terminal moraines from the glaciers. From Marengo Ridge and Volo Bog in the north, to the ridge that gave my hometown its name (Ridge Farm), the evidence is all around us.

Hiking the Lists #10

Hike: #10
Title: Sosebee Cove Nature Trail 
Location: Chattahoochee National Forest
Hike List: North Georgia
Difficulty: Easy. It's uphill for half of it, but it's so short that doesn't really matter.
Duration of Hike: Walking straight through would take maybe five to ten minutes. More if you take pictures or just want to experience the serenity of nature.

The Sosebee Cove Nature Trail is a short trail, so this will be a short entry. It's not difficult to walk, and is over almost as soon as it begins. When I walked it, it was still winter up in the mountains of North Georgia, so the large trees had no leaves, and the wildflowers were still a couple months away from blanketing the hill side.

Hiking the Lists #9 - Amicalola Falls Loop

Hike: #9
Title: Amicalola Falls Loop
Location: Amicalola Falls State Park
Hike List: North Georgia
Difficulty: Easy, then difficult, then hundreds of stairs, then a moderately easy walk back down hill
Duration of Hike: Two-three hours of hiking, depending upon how many pictures (and rest stops) you take. Be careful, a side trail can take you six months (one way) to finish.

Some of the hikes in this series, particularly the ones in a certain state that rhymes with "thrillinois", are not the most interesting to write (or read) about. They may just be nice walks in the woods, or a sweaty tromp through prairie grasses. They can be a slog to get through, and often put this feature in jeopardy of getting behind.

Hiking the Lists #8: Munising Falls

Hike: #8
Title: Munising Falls
Location: Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
Hike List: UP Michigan
Difficulty: Mostly Easy (Save for one walk up stairs)
Duration of Hike: A short walk to a beautiful waterfall

The cliffs of Pictured Rock offer many scenic sites. The most famous and picturesque are the multicolored rock faces and formations along the shoreline. These sites, viewed primarily by getting on a boat and viewing them from the water, give the place its name. However, there are also many waterfalls of varying size and ease of access. Probably the easiest of the park's waterfalls to visit is Munising Falls. The easy walk to view the waterfall doesn't make it any less beautiful.

Hiking the Lists #7: Mirror Lake State Park Northwest Loop Trail

Hike: #7
Title: Northwest Loop Trail
Location: Mirror Lake State Park
Hike List: Wisconsin
Difficulty: Easy to Moderate (Hot weather makes it mostly moderate)
Duration of Hike: An hour or two of mostly pointless up and downs
First completed: 08/25/2013

Judged solely by the difficulty of the trail, the Northwest Loop at Mirror Lake is not too bad. There are some steep uphill and downhill climbs, but they are very short. In fact, the two steepest inclines (which are still fairly short hills) can be skipped by taking easy shortcuts. This trail only approaches a moderate difficulty because there are so many ups and downs.

However, the day I actually hiked the trail was one of the hottest of the year, which certainly added to the difficulty of the trail..I never reached the point of heat exhaustion, as I drank water every 10-15 minutes or so, but I ended up covered in sweat. Much of the trail is in the shade, so it wasn't as bad as the prairie portion, although it was still warm.

Hiking the Lists, #6: Springer Mountain and Benton Mackaye Legacy Loop

Hike: #6
Title: Springer Mountain and Benton Mackaye Legacy Loop
Location: Springer Mountain and surrounding land, Chattahoochee National Forest
Hike List: North Georgia Mountains
Difficulty: Moderately Difficult
Duration of Hike: A few tough hours

This marks the first of the hikes in this feature to already have been written about before. There isn't much in the way of specifics to add to her tale. In short, the hike is well worth your time, is moderately challenging, and lets you say you were a section hiker on two different long distance trails on the same day. Since time has passed since that hike, I thought I would add a few additional thoughts.

Hiking the Lists #5: Grand Sable Dunes and Logslide

Hike: #5
Title: Grand Sable Dunes and Logslide
Location: Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
Hike List: U.P. Michigan
Difficulty: Easy
Duration of Hike: 30 minutes

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is a great place to hike. Not only is the scenery stunning, it has a great variety of trails, in terms of length and difficulty. From short, flat trails less than a mile, to a rugged 42 backpacking trail that is part of the North Country Trail, there is plenty for everyone to enjoy.

Today's hike is certainly not a long one, and it is fairly easy. There isn't much to it, just a walk from the parking lot to a sand dune and an overlook of Grand Sable Dunes and Lake Superior. At least if you stick to this trail.

Hiking the Lists #4: Garden of the Gods Observation Trail

Hike: #4

Title: Observation Trail

Location: Garden of the Gods Recreation Area

Hike list: Illinois

Difficulty: Mostly Easy (a few uphills and downhills, and some awkward rock steps)

Duration of Hike: A short walk amongst interesting rock formations

Between the 320 million year old rock formations, and the panoramic views of sizable hills, Garden of the Gods feels hundreds, if not thousands, of miles away from the flat prairies and fields that cover most of the state. Although short, the quarter mile loop is a good workout with plenty of odd looking rocks and scenic vistas.

Because much of the path is stone, it can get slippery when wet. The most recent time I visited here* parts of the walk way were slippery, but nothing too hard to deal with. After a short uphill climb (or a longer one, if you go clockwise from the parking lot), you come to the rock formations. These sit high above the valley below, so mind your step. Plenty of the boulders and rocks can be accessed without equipment, so if you are looking for a chance to do some boulder hopping, this is a good place to do that. 

Many of the rock formations have names, which I did not write down at the time I walked it. I recommend that if you are looking for a weekend trip from St. Louis or Chicago, or are traveling through Shawnee National Forest and are looking for something to do, to make time for Garden of the Gods. There's a campground nearby, and many other trails in the area if you are looking for a longer, more challenging hike. 

*The only time I've visited as an adult.

Hiking the Lists #3: Volo Bog Nature Boardwalk

Hike: #3

Title: Volo Bog Nature Trail and Boardwalk

Location: Volo Bog State Natural Area

Hike list: Illinois

Difficulty: Easy

Duration of Hike: Half hour walk

Before I begin, I have to declare something, in the interest of full disclosure. Volo Bog is not a bog, at least not in terms of how a bog is defined. To be a bog, a wetland must get its moisture solely from precipitation, which is why bogs are so nutrient poor. However, there is at least one inlet into Volo Bog, and at least two outlets, which means water flows through here. Thus, it is actually a "fen" and not a bog.

Sure could have fooled me. It definitely looked like a bog, with the sphagnum moss, tamaracks, poison sumac, and various other water loving plant species to be found. Like bogs, this is a place where carnivorous plants live. I'm pretty certain I saw a few pitcher plants hidden beneath the tamaracks.

Hiking the Lists #2: Horicon NWR

Hike: #2

Title: Horicon National Wildlife Refuge

Location: Horicon NWR, near Waupun, WI

Hike list: Wisconsin

Difficulty: Mostly Easy

Duration of Hike: Walking straight through takes about an hour. Longer if you linger on the floating boardwalk looking for birds.

You can't go many places in Wisconsin without encountering somewhere affected by a glacier. When most people think about glacially influenced topography, they look up towards the eskers, kames, and moraines. However, it's not just rocky ridges that the glaciers influenced. Kettle lakes, bogs, and other wetlands were created by the retreating glaciers.

The wetlands of Horicon National Wildlife Refuge are the remnants of an ancient glacial lake. It one of only 22 wetlands in the United States that is considered a "Wetland of International Importance". It is home to thousands of birds living in its wetlands, prairies, and small tracts of woods, as well as temporary respite for many more thousands of migratory birds. If you are a avid bird watcher, this is somewhere you've probably either been, or wish to visit some day.

Horicon would be a great place to visit if wildlife viewing was all you could do there. However, there are several hiking trails to be found, especially near the auto driving tour on the north side of the refuge. It was here that I hiked three loops: Redhead, Red Fox, and Egret. 

To some, it may have been too dreary of a day to hike. For me, however, it was perfect, as the temperatures were in the low sixties and the sky clouded over, keeping the unshielded prairies from becoming too hot. A normal July day, this trail would not have been too fun to walk on, at least not the prairie side.

The prairie section of the trail, which was most of the Redhead and almost all of the Red Fox, teemed with wildflowers of many colors. Unfortunately, I have yet to learn the names of most of these plants, but the flowers were predominantly purple and gold. Alas, what made the day so enjoyable to hike also made it hard to get good pictures of the flowers. Overhead several types of birds, mostly tree swallows, darted down and around the tall grass, going into the small stands of trees or diving close to the water's surface in the marsh areas.

Without a doubt the highlight of the hike was the floating boardwalk, which let you walk out onto the water and see all the birds and animals that hang out there. Of course, there were plenty of Canada geese around. What a surprise to see them in their natural habitat, instead of sitting in ditches at a sewer plant or along retention ponds. Several terns floated in the water, or sat atop posts on the boardwalk. I'm pretty certain i saw a few gulls who may have made their way over from Lake Michigan, and at times saw larger birds flying farther out. Apparently in the summer White Pelicans hang out at the refuge, although I didn't see any. 

After the boardwalk, about half of the walking remained, but it couldn't match just being out on that water. Had I the time, i probably would have sat out there for a few hours, just to see what I might see. Instead, I had a three hour drive awaiting me, and a hike to finish. Unbeknownst to me, the actual length of my walk was longer than what the book said it was, mainly because they had forgot to add the boardwalk's distance to the total. Except for a few short climbs up prairie hills or down towards water (either the wetlands or the Rock River), it was a fairly flat trail. However, the back part of the Redhead trail had some weird footing which I found a bit difficult to deal with. The pitch of the path was pretty steep, as they had just mowed a path along the hillside.

Before I had read about this hike, I had no idea this place existed. I am glad that I found it, as I will be going back again. So far I've walked 2 of the 58 trails on the Wisconsin list, and can't wait to see what other natural wonders those Cheeseheads are hiding up there.

Darn...and Hooray!

Just got the 2nd Edition of 50 Hikes in the North Georgia Mountains, and two of the hikes I walked in the 1st Edition were cut, with none of the new ones being trails I've hiked. Oh well, I'll still be writing about those hikes, and both books are valid in my "Hiking the Lists".

Also, I just discovered that the L.P. Michigan book has 60 hikes, like the Wisconsin one. So instead of 317 hikes, it's more like ~335 hikes.

Just means more hiking for me, I suppose.

Hiking the Lists #1: Au Sable Lighthouse

Hike: #1

Title: Au Sable Lighthouse

Location: Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Hike list: U.P. Michigan

Difficulty: Easy

Duration of Hike: A couple leisurely hours

It started with a book I bought in the Fall of 2010 titled 50 Hikes in the North Georgia Mountains, by Johnny Molloy. Once I had read a few entries in the book, I decided I would start keeping track of them all, hopefully at some point finishing them. I didn't get all of them in when I lived in Chattanooga, but I did get several (and got another couple later on).

Now it's 2013, and I still have that book to complete. However, those 50 hikes have been joined by 160 more from three different books in the same series. There are 60 hikes in Wisconsin, and 50 each for the Upper and Lower Peninsulas in Michigan. In addition, I have a big book of Illinois day hikes, which isn't part of that series, but is still a worthy book to go through and check off hikes.

Every so often, I'll be sharing my adventures following the trails from these books. For hikes that I've yet to hike, I will share those tales shortly after I check them off. For the many I've already hiked, well, that's what off weeks are for. We start today with the mostly easy, yet scenic, out and back along the North Country trail to the Au Sable Lighthouse.

Save for a nerve-wracking (at least for me) descent down sandy stairs, and a few tricky sandstone outcroppings on the beach, this wasn't the most challenging trail. However, it had plenty of great views of Lake Superior, shipwrecks, and the lighthouse on Au Sable point. The walk was mostly level along both the beach and the trail, and the trail footing was mostly gravel, as it is also the access road to the lighthouse.

Although I just walked this about a month ago, this is actually the first one of these hikes that I ever walked. You see, this was one of the walks my family and I took when we went to the U.P. in the 1990s. I remember the lighthouse and the shipwrecks, but I didn't remember having to climb over small rocks and a few sandstone outcroppings out on the beach. We must have only walked along part of the beach, as there are few real ways to access the beach from the trail.

All in all, it was a perfect day to be out there. The sun was shining, and the lake and the sky were beautiful shades of blue. It wasn't cold, but it wasn't hot either. The only part that wasn't really enjoyable was walking down the "stairs" from the lighthouse to the beach. The stairs were basically waterbars across the sandy hillside. The wooden bars were not really conducive to standing upon, and when you stepped in the sand behind them, it would shift down the hill. If you weren't careful where you put your feet, they could get trapped under the bar. Not wanting to hurt myself, I was extra careful on this part.

Considerably more fun were the parts of the beach that weren't sand. Although I had to be careful that I didn't turn a knee or ankle on them, it was kind of fun making my way through the small and medium sized rocks found at several points. It was also a nice challenge figuring out the best way across a sandstone outcropping, which eventually resulted in me having to get my feet a bit wet in the cold waters of Lake Superior.

I imagine there are times when the place is pretty busy (although I doubt it is ever as busy as Miner's Castle), but that day was not one of them. Except for a family that arrived as I was heading down to the beach, I had the lighthouse area to myself. Walking back along the beach I only met one group of people.

It wasn't the longest (although definitely not the shortest) hike from these lists, and it wasn't arduous, but it was a good way to stretch my legs, and the views (at least at the lighthouse and along the beach) were well worth it.