Wyalusing in November

This State Park is quite the gem. It has become one of my favorite places to hike.

I have only explored 1/2 of this park yet find it so diverse and beautiful.

The park is just miles from Prairie du Chien in SW Wisconsin. 

I followed the Old Wagon Road Trail to the Immigrant Trail which drops steeply off the bluffs above the confluence of the Mississippi and Wisconsin Rivers. I usually only hike this trail in early spring or late fall after the mosquito season has come and gone.

I don't know if the sun will even shine on this part of the trail in the winter!

 

The area is steep as you can see. The shot below is pretty typical of the 'driftless landscape'. Rocks, bluffs, dry runs, and gullies.

According the the GPS, I descended approximately 725 feet from the parking area to the Wisconsin River.

This also means that eventually I have to climb 725 feet to get back up to the parking and family campground.

Lucky for me, when we got to the bottom, Hannah spotted a little trail that led us out to the Wisconsin River shoreline. I spent quite a bit of time just watching the river.

It was so blue and so peaceful. 

In a wet summer after heavy rains and humidity, the trail is miserable with all the bugs near the backwaters of the rivers. But this day was a beautiful and unusual November day.

Far off in the distance we could hear the sounds of an Eagle. I walked slowly along the trail watching the skies and trees.

I was rewarded! It was such a treat to stand quietly and watch these two. The younger eagle took off and hunted while the other watched. 

I tried very hard to get a shot of the Pileated Woodpecker that kept flitting about near us, but I never did get a shot of it. The dogs were very quiet and behaved well.

Okay, I take that back, they both got very excited when they spotted squirrels in the trail just ahead. They didn't bark, just pulled on their leashes until I told them to chill out. 

I will admit that by the time I got back up to the bluff top after finishing the switchbacks and stairways, my legs burned and I was tired.

[Next time, I'll reverse the hike and do the stairs first!]

Funny how Hannah seemed to have quite a bit of energy even after a more difficult hike than Sunday's stroll.

She actually didn't want to get in the car and leave. This time it was Charlie and I who were happy to get in the car.

Go figure.

I looked up the distance I've hiked in one year and it surprised me quite a bit.

1,957 miles since last November 10th.

I guess I really enjoy hiking/walking through the forests.