4th Annual Ice Hike~ Parfrey's Glen

Well, it was that time of year again. The Annual Ice Hike.

It started a few years ago when my friends took me to Parfrey's Glen just outside of Devil's Lake State Park near Baraboo.

Last year I drove in a rain/snow/sleet event to get to our annual "Ice Hike". This year? Well, I followed the events of a snow event that dropped about 4 or 5 inches of snow on my travel route. It made the drive a bit more interesting, but it wasn't too bad.

We went to Parfrey's Glen as our first stop in hopes of seeing Skillet Creek running over the rocks or some magnificent ice formations.

Well that wasn't to exactly 'be'.

As I slugged through the roughened snow trail, I thought how nice it would have been to have my snow shoes on.

This area never really is disappointing and it is always in a state of change with the weather. In places the creek was solid with snow covering the ice. I could hear the water running underneath us.

We probably shouldn't have come to the Glen so late in the day. But there we were, making our way upstream to the water falls.

However I thought it would be a good idea...

well, that didn't really pan out. 

I should have known how quickly it gets dark in these areas. After all, when I am at home I know it gets dark quickly in the deep valleys.

Things get quite tricky after you leave the "maintained" trail. 

It became obvious to me that my snow shoes although very handy for part of the trail would have been a real pain in the rocky boulders.

We reached the water falls at the end of the trail and did some exploring. It was obvious that the day light was fading fast.

The light in the gorge was fading but above us it was still sunny and bright.

We didn't want to have to scramble over the icy and snowy boulders in the dark so we headed back.

But not until we had some fun of course...

The danger of having another photographer around is that they will 

get that shot of you...that you don't want shown to the world.

Aren't those gloves just precious? 

And then, with the light fading, we headed back to the Subaru.

Oh yes. Waterproof boots are a great idea on this hike.

Saturday was going to be a busy day. We were going to see how many of the State Natural Areas we could explore.
We had one place in particular that we wanted to check out.

Take a Hike at Parfrey's Glen State Natural Area!

Parfrey's Glen.
This was the Cedar Glen before the beautiful rocky gorge of Parfrey's Glen.

The hike isn't very difficult. If you want to have the place to yourself you need to get there early. By 10 AM there is a crowd and you can't hike anywhere without running into another group.
I was there about an hour after sunrise and had the place to myself. I went to the spot where the stream came through the Cedars and just hung around looking for interesting spots to take a photo.
I was not disappointed.

My friends showed up not too long after and we hiked up through the gorge.

I was lucky to be able to get some fairly nice shots and avoided the folks hiking there.

I've only been to Parfrey's Glen once before and that was in the winter. It still is very impressive.
But the colors in October are incredible.
The trees above are various shades of autumn colors which contrast with the green pines and the vibrant green mosses that cover almost everything in the Glen.

I think everyone goes to the end of the gorge to see the famed waterfall.

It is pretty and worth seeing.

There are so many other things to see. I could spend much more than 3 or more hours exploring photographic opportunities.

The gorge walls themselves deserve a whole day of studying!

But alas, I stuck to the stream this time and didn't get any great shots of the imposing rock walls.

However this shot with my cell phone ought to give you an idea of how imposing this place actually is.

If you go.
Be prepared to get your feet wet.
Don't hike in sandals or high heels. If you do, don't go past the maintained trail sign.
Respect the trails, don't wander off trail. The area has some very precious plants and there is no need to trample them.

Take your garbage out with you. Don't leave stuff behind.

Most of all, enjoy the natural beauty and take a moment to learn why Parfrey's Glen is so unique.

Pewitt's Nest

On the same day we hiked Parfrey's Glen in the Baraboo area, we found Pewitt's Nest.

I was told about the place but didn't really know what to expect and neither did my friend's but they were up to exploring the 'Nest'.

Pewitt's Nest is a nature reserve.  The gorge was formed by Skillet Creek which runs through the gorge.  The water's depth and  strength depends on the rain fall in the area.

We didn't know the history of the place.  Before we walked up the trail we didn't know what to expect.

But we chose a perfect time to visit.
During the summer Skillet Creek runs through it and the only way to enjoy most of the gorge is by hiking around the top of it and looking down from various perches.

The depth of the gorge is supposed to be 30 to 40 feet.  For me, standing in the bottom on top of the frozen stream...it felt much taller.

We walked up through the big pool of water.  There had been holes drilled through the ice and we were able to see that the ice was at least 6" thick.

[View from the pool of water ~ next shots were taken from the top of this ice formation]

But we had no idea how deep the pool of water encased in this rock was.  We did get an idea that it was fairly deep as my friend who is 6 foot tall demonstrates with his walking stick.

This point of view was from above one of the first frozen falls.



We could hear the water underneath us and it was a bit spooky sounding.

We made it to the second set of waterfalls and climbed up its frozen surface.

Again, we could hear the water flowing beneath us.

As we moved up the creek the gorge widened.  The hiking was easier also.
Apparently when the creek is flowing, the public is supposed to stay on the trails above the creek.

This is an easier hike to get to than Parfrey's Glen and it is apparent that it gets more foot traffic as it gets more popular.

The rock formations are incredible and quite beautiful.  Well worth the short hike.

The view from the trail on top of the gorge is also stunning.  

I have seen photos of this place taken during the summer and it is breathtaking.

However when I come back to see and photograph it, I'll make sure to come early in the day and in the middle of the week.

We only encountered a couple of other people at Parfrey's Glen, but we encountered many people at Pewitt's Nest.

Perhaps it was because it was much later in the day, but I prefer my hikes to be a bit less populated!

Next on my list are Ableman's Gorge, Baxter Hollow, Durward's Glen, and Fern Dell Gorge ... which is supposed to be very hard to get to.

However that makes it so much more appealing to me.

Until then I enjoy our own natural wonders in the valley and the 'Hollow' or 'Rocky Glens' that we have even though they are on a much smaller scale in some spots.

Parfrey's Glen

I went to meet with a former 4H student of mine who is now ALL grown up...and married!

We've kept track of each other over the years, but finally decided to get together and do what we both love.
Hiking.

They guided me first to Parfrey's Glenn in Devil's Lake State Park.

We came to the cedar grove and began to explore.  The kids were fascinated by the formations of ice. And how slippery it was.  We spent quite a bit of time enjoying the small frozen stream.

I loved the textures and colors of the cedar trees by themselves.
I made a mental note to come back again.

We went on to explore Parfrey's Glenn.

I learned that walking sticks are probably the most helpful item one can have to check your footing before you take a step.

And I found out the hazards of having friends who have cameras also....

This was what I was taking a photo of....

The water was running under the ice and we could hear it and were constantly checking if the ice was thick enough. It was very slippery and I'd wish I'd brought my ice cleats along.

We hiked all of the way up to the falls and then spent time just enjoying the place.

The weather really came through for us.  It was temperate enough to be comfortable in good winter gear and wonderful for hiking.

Next stop, Pewitt's Nest.
And we had no idea what to expect there as none of us had been there before.

But I did know this.
Parfrey's Glen, I will be back!