The Night Hikers

Message: "Hey can we go on a night hike?"

It was from my Kenosha Crew. They were coming to visit Rich and I for the weekend.
I typed back: "Yes, of course!"

I had told them how fun it had been to use headlamps and challenge the wooded trials and the creek in the dark.

Years ago my husband and I had redtick hounds and we hunted raccoon at night. I'd always enjoyed our adventures in the dark and rediscovered how fun it actually is to explore trails in the dark.
Things just don't appear the same in the daylight.

After they arrived Friday evening, we gathered up headlamps and flashlights and headed out the door. We headed through the gates and into the cattle's summer pasture.

Photo: Daryl Clausen

We climbed down the steep bank and into the creek bottom. 

Creek Leaping at night is always more fun than in the day time.

During the day one can see exactly where the rocks are to use as stepping stones.

Photo: Daryl Clausen

We got to the ice wall fairly quickly.

The ice wall is way cooler at night...what can I say?

Here the wall was lit up by sticking a headlamp behind the ice.

Day view of approximately the same place.

Friday night's adventure was incredible. The Kenosha Crew loved it.

We used different colored lights in our flashlights to light the ice up from the backside. The kids climbed the ice wall in the dark and slid down it.

Daryl Clausen took this incredible shot of us exploring the ice wall from my Zen rock pile.

We moved on down the creek. We tromped through the snow and headed for the snowmobile crossing. I knew there would be some neat ice formations there.

Amanda and Daryl are rock hounds and they kept finding rocks with Drusy quartz in them. I've learned over the 20 some years of living in this area that even during the most casual walk in the creek or woods in this area, one will always find an interesting rock to pick up.

When we got to the 'Crossing' there were "oohs and ahhhs" as we admired the ice formations that clung to the grasses and roots where the stream had been tamed by the snowmobile club and directed through a culvert.

Photo by Daryl Clausen

Everyone gathered and admired the beautiful ice formations. My cell phone camera didn't do the 'Crossing' any justice what so ever...

But Daryl caught some beauties with his cell phone:

Photo credits to Daryl Clausen

We headed back with the kids and climbed a steep hill to cross the Merry Meadow.
The new snowfall that we'd had earlier this week was wet and heavy. It was frozen and made for difficult walking. If we'd all had snowshoes or had skis, it would have been an easier walk.

Everyone was tired but excited about going exploring the next day to the Ice Cave and the Lost or Secret Valley.

The Kenosha Crew had been hooked by Night Hiking. They definitely wanted to do it again.