Again, I wander

This is the new header👇

 It is the top of a rock that I took my friend Pat to Friday morning.

Here it the bottom of the rock....👇

I go here a few times a year. The path to this place is not for the light hearted. The narrow footpath travels through dense woods.

In August and September the forest on each side sports amazing fungi. [Of course! I love mushrooms!]

Beware though. The trail is lined with Poison Ivy on both sides. The narrow trail is rough but well worth it.

I took Pat through and cautioned her not to put her hands down in the brush on either side of her until we got to a clear area.

Photo of Pat looking back at the trail that winds up to the top of the rock.

The first view as we emerge from the forest on top of the ridge.

A walk out to the edge.

Me taking the first photo and the new header for the blog.

For this hike I only used my cellphone camera, it was quick and easy. That is Charlie's rear end next to me.

Both hounds came with us of course.

My friend may be as crazy as I am. I invited her to do a pre sunrise hike to the Rock Top where we could sit and have some coffee and watch the valley come alive.

She nodded and said she wouldn't mind doing that. 

About 4 years ago I convinced another hiking friend to do just that. It was the blue hour when we hiked to the top. It was his first and only time experiencing this amazing place.

He was speechless.

I will be going again soon. My last visit there for a breakfast granola bar and coffee was two years ago with Charlie.

We hiked up in the dark. We waited, listened, and watched the world awaken.

I cannot even describe immense emotional feeling of watching the sun rise and listening to the forest below wake up.

My heart slows, my eyes widen, 

my breath is deep,

 and my mind goes quiet and lives purely in the moment.

It feels magical and I don't want to leave. 

Went for a drive

 Oh that sounds so darned silly doesn't it? 

I went for a drive because. Well. Just because. I had a destination in mind and thought I'd take some back roads on the way just for something different to do.

My two trouble makers came along for the ride. My destination was a small State Park called Mill Bluff. Now I could have used my GPS in the vehicle to do the route but I decided to 'wing it'. 

Charlie is not a great dog to travel with. He is nervous all the time and loves to whine and whine and whine. He even gets a bit hysterical when I stop for a stop sign or he hears the turn signal going. Hannah on the other hand is mostly silent and listens if I tell her to be quiet.

When Charlie has a meltdown, she hops out of her car seat and tries to get in his. If she is not tethered she will actually get in with him. That makes for one very crowded spot. 

Charlie has been this way for 8 years. I have at times put a vibration collar on him and sometimes that helps keep him quieter. I think he actually calms down faster with Hannah as company. We are still working on that issue.

Any....way...

I got way off track while driving, but I got to see quite a bit of scenery on the narrow back roads. There were plenty of times I wanted to pull over and just take in the sights. But I was on twisted narrow roads so I just kept going.

We eventually made it to the park. 

I had intended on taking the dogs to the far side of the 'beach' for a dip, but it was crammed with people so we went straight to the Bluff Trail. [no dogs allowed anyway]

This trail of a stone stairway is steep and long. I don't know how many steps one has to take to get to the top of the bluff but it is not for the faint of heart.
One can rest along the way.

Charlie didn't find it that hard going up and we did stop a couple of times. I wanted to get some shots of the stone stairs. I stopped and tied the dogs to the railing so they wouldn't run up or down the stairs. I had to think about what might happen on that terrain if they got excited by seeing another hiker. 

We climbed 120 feet up to the top of the Bluff.

When I first read this sign I thought we were standing on the Long Bluff. What you can't tell is that the sign has been there for quite a few years. I'm supposed to be looking across the way at Long Bluff. It had been so many years since this sign was posted that the trees on this bluff have grown up hiding the view.

The sign says:
Long Bluff which is named for its shape, is one of the many bluffs found in this area. It is approximately 199 feet tall. You are standing on Mill Bluff which is approximately 120 feet tall.

A portion of land visible is an abandoned cranberry marsh. Cranberry farming is an important industry in the Warrens area.

The rest of the sign disappears into old age and water damage.

The state put up a chain link fence around the top of the bluff. I'm guessing to keep fools from trying to climb up or down its steep sides. However, you can see where those fools have gone over. 

I found the fence convenient to tie the dogs to while I took a few shots. We did meet another hiker who was from Pennsylvania. The dogs went nuts as he was a dog lover and cooed over the both of them. 

The second time we saw him, I was able to make both dogs sit in front of me while I used the magic of 'treats' to hold their attention.

At the south end of the bluff we found another old sign.

Sign: 
Volk Field Air Strip
The air filed lying east of Mill Bluff is part of the Volk Field National Guard Training Site located adjacent to the Village of Camp Douglas. 

The airplane runway you see is oriented due east to west.
It is 9000 feet long and 150 feet wide with a 1000 feet overrun on each end. It is capable of receiving and sized air craft presently made.

The farm field in the foreground has been partially drained and is used as pasture land. Most of the land in this immediate area is either very dry or wet and has marginal use for agriculture.

Once again. There is no view here but there it is. Trees grow even on the sides of bluffs.

We decided to go to the other end. 

There was a view! 

You can see for quite the distance from this spot. It is obvious that people have climbed over the viewing area fence to go out to the tip. Mill Bluff sits between WI Hwy 12 and interstate 90-94. As a kid we traveled Hwy 12 and then later the interstate to go to spend the whole summer where our grandparents lived.

We'd stopped at Castle Rock Wayside to have a lunch and a break from travelling. It isn't far from where Mill Bluff.

At the overlook there is a bench and ... this!!!

A selfie stand?

Of course, why not!

After the 'selfie', I set down the dogs on the bench so I could grab a shot at the sign behind me....but....

but...

an older lady was coming up to the overlook and she was tottering along with two walking sticks. She gave me a 'look' when I grabbed my dogs' leashes. They bounced up and down and of course wanted to go see her.

I didn't let them, but made sure we gave the woman space to enjoy what we had been looking at. I'm disappointed that I didn't get a photo of what the sign said.

However, we took the stairs down which were actually harder than going up. I used the handrail for one hand and the leashes in the other. My balance is pretty darned good, but it was a slight challenge. Charlie had a harder time going down than up. I even stepped on his tail one time.

When I got to the car I thought about the lady I'd met at top and wondered how she'd negotiate the stairs coming down.

I considered doing the interpretive trail around the bluff, but the skeeters convinced me to come back after a hard frost.

I grabbed a map/brochure and realized that the park was much bigger than I thought and had another whole section to explore. 

The Ice Age Reserve National Scientific Reserve. There is a trail that goes around 3 more formations.

Cleopatra's Needle
Devils Monument
Camels Bluff

It appears that we will have to go back this fall to check it out.

Rocks and bluffs fascinate me so I'll put this down for a return trip.

Perhaps I'll actually take a shorter way next time. The trip home was much much shorter. I let Google Maps help me.

My intentions this year were to explore more and check out many of our State Parks as day trips before I ever started any overnight trips.

Hiking and doggos...

We were brave souls. Since it was so cool out, I packed up the dogs and we headed to the Reserve to walk/hike along the paved old 131 trail.

My reasoning was that it was nice enough to take a drive and a hike with the dogs and it would be a good way to work with Hannah on some more leash work on a somewhat busy path where we could see horses, bicyclists, walkers, and runners.

The dogs can be off leash now at the Reserve and are only required to be on leash during the nesting season for birds that have ground nests.

I chose to let Charlie drag his leash even though he never chases a bike or horse but will decide to visit hikers with a waggy tail. His recall is excellent while Hannah is still learning so much. Both dogs wear a training collar.

If they get loose and for some reason run off, I can locate them and use the buzzer or the vibration mode to distract them from the chase. They know if the collar vibrates, they should come to me and get a treat. This works so well!

I may have explained before that I got a collar for Charlie after he scented something when he was just a year old and took off through our forest. I spent 45 frightening minutes looking for a 7 inch tall young dog, calling and crying. When the foliage grows up past his height he can literally disappear.

At 8 years old he still is a 'hunter', but he is more reserved about chasing too far. The collar reminds him to come back to me.

The walk started out wonderfully. We were hiking when a heard a voice call out....

Bicycles coming!

Two ladies on bikes came up behind us. I told the dogs to sit. I knelt next to Hannah who always barked alarmingly at any stranger and asked her to sit. I held her 'sit' treat [a Cheerio] above her nose and she glanced at the bikes and at me and at the bikes and me...

and held her sit!

She got 3 Cheerios as did Charlie and a lot of praise. 

The next distraction we ran into was an older couple on some horses. Now, Hannah is more used to the Mules at home. She has been exposed to the Mini Donkeys, mini Goats, and Horses at Kristi's farm so they aren't as alarming to her as they used to be.

I made her sit once more and she did. The couple on the horses said, "Oh what nice pups. You don't have to do that, our horses are okay with dogs." 

I explained that I was training Hannah and she needed to understand that she should be quiet on the trails and not bark like she used to.

They stopped and asked what kind of dogs I had and said nice things about how I was working with my little dogs. 

What I did expect was that we would get attacked by mosquitoes and deer flies as we were hiking a paved trail next to the Kickapoo River. I had sprayed well before taking the trail, but man those bugs were insane! 

All the horses we saw had fantastic riding fly masks which made them look like Medieval Mounts.

Hmm. I like summer, hate bugs. 
So I like winter so much more!

We finally made it to the pond with the floating dock and bench. There was a nice breeze and surprisingly NO bugs!

The View

Water and snack break.

Another view from the bench.

Dogs under the bench in the shade.

See that scummy green water? Guess who decided to go for a little swim? Yes. Hannah. She got covered in duckweed and mud. Hmmm, so smelly and so wonderful! She was sooo happy!

So much for keeping her little seroma dry! [I cleaned that spot off]. That spot is almost perfectly healed at this point!

I decided that we would turn around at this point and call it a good day. The temps were warming up in the valley with no breeze and I didn't want Charlie to get overheated.

Hannah pranced, Charlie hiked like a trooper. The deer flies zoomed in and the skeeters, attacked often until we got out of the valley.

Next week, I'll let the dogs stay home while I take my bike and do the 9 mile paved trail. I usually do that when the weather is hot and buggy because I'm going fast enough to avoid insects, yet can still enjoy the outside and the wild flowers.

Found these on our walk, but stopping for any length of time was asking to be covered with Bitey Insects....

I see that the weather for this weekend is going to be very steamy and dangerously hot again. I guess this afternoon I'll be scrubbing water tanks and refilling them along with making sure the mules and pony have access to good shade.

Thank goodness I spent yesterday afternoon mowing most of the yard. 

I think I'll pick up some items to make a noodle salad and some cold meals for this weekend.

The Hike

We met up at 8am.

Two brave ladies carpooled with me and we met up with 4 other brave souls. I've known two of them from the gym at one time or another. We all headed down trail chatting and laughing.

The first leg of the hike was along the paved multi use trail. One of my friends had never hiked before in her life. The other had never gone further than 7 miles with me and only hiked rarely. 

I think Candace's group had been doing hikes and practicing to do the MammothMarch at the end of June which is a 20 mile hike event.

We all hiked in different small groups, sometimes all together, sometimes on our own. There was a lot of laughter and conversation. 

The sights were amazing as usual.

We encountered two sets of horse riders, a few bicyclists and a couple of folks walking on the paved trail.

Otherwise, we were immersed in nature and each others' laughter.

One of the games we played was 'walking' the Balance Beam otherwise known as a log.

Our hike was not about time or speed but all about enjoying nature and friendship along with laughter. We took frequent breaks and as promised, we did not leave the tired folks behind. 

My two friends who are new to hiking did stop at 15 miles. I walked on to where we'd parked and grabbed my car and returned to pick them up.

When asked if they'd do it again, the answer was a definitive yes. I promised to create shorter hikes. After all who does these crazy super long hikes?

We also witnessed some amazing wildlife!

I didn't have a decent camera with me, but we all stopped at one of the ponds to watch swans swimming with their cygnets.

We saw a fawn walk into the trail and lay down. I asked everyone to be quiet and walk around the fawn and not stop.

17.94 mi

Distance

7:21:48

Time

24:38 /mi

5:55:29

Moving Time

Friendship marks a life even more deeply than love. ...Friendship is nothing but sharing!

Elie Wiesel

So far

So far, there will be 5 other brave women joining me on my Birthday Hike to celebrate 7 decades on this crazy place we call Earth.

This is a huge surprise for me. I know all of the gals from the gym at one time or another. Two of the ladies are going to do the MammothMarch at the end of June which is a sponsored and paid event in South Central Wisconsin. The hike is 20 miles to be completed in at least 8 hours. Not a race, just a day of hiking with others. MammothMarches are held in most of all the lower 48 states that I know of.

I don't want to pay a big chunk money right now for a trip, the hotel room, the entrance fee for a t-shirt and a badge or goodies they are giving out. I figured to do this on my own and celebrate privately. I'm not a huge fan of fanfare or crowds. 

I feel quite blessed in life to have 5 women to join me on this crazy hike. The two that are doing the MammothMarch next month in Wisconsin. They are experienced hikers for the 4 to 5 mile range so this is a test for them.

One gal has never really hiked before so I'll be making sure she is okay. 
[I showed the newby a hydration pack, she was going to use one of those string back packs and put her water in it. The strings would eat up her shoulders so I sent her to the store to grab a hydration pack.]

Another one who is a new person to hiking asked what she thought was a dumb question. What happens if I have to go pee or ????

Bring TP and a baggy to collect your TP. Leave no trace. Not a dumb question.

Good shoes that are ready for the trail. There are plenty of rocks, roots, and things to trip on for half of the hike. 
A light backpack for water.
Good socks.
Water. Water. Water.
Some energy bars.

Water.
First aid kit.
Water.
Bug spray [though it shouldn't be too bad]

While at the gym, the coach came up and said that she and another CF member were 'going to try to come' too. But they didn't want to do the whole thing and 

how long will it take? 
What time will you be done?
[Me thinking...how the heck does one
judge time on an event like this?]

'Welllllllll,' I said, 'I guess I can tell you more when we complete the hike.'

'This is not a speed hike, I know that one of the folks that is coming along has never hiked. I will hike with her abilities in mind. Her pace will be our pace. I do not leave others behind especially if they have never hiked these trails which can be confusing. 

If you or others don't feel we are going 'fast enough' then by all means make sure you have a map and go ahead.'

Well how fast would you hike it?

Me...thinking for a moment. 
'When I hiked 11.5 miles just over a year ago for speed and endurance, I hiked it in 3 hours and 24 minutes. I was pushing it all the way.'

Coach seemed to think on that.
'I averaged 18 minutes a mile with best paces at 13 minutes a mile,' I replied. Half of the terrain on this hike will be very demanding and the last 4.5 miles will be on a paved trail.'

Coach then launched into her reason for wanting to cut it short or for not going. It entailed a long explanation about grandkids and parties and whatnot.

I shrugged. 'Look at the route, bring two vehicles one for the start and park one near a trail that you want to end at. Oh. And make sure you have a physical map. Those trail changes can be tricky.'

When I hike for speed, I go solo. I don't want to watch out for someone else. It is just me, the trail, and a clock. I love competing against myself. This may be one of the reasons I loved Cross-Country in College so much.

No one really believes me when I tell them the map and a compass would really make their hike easier.

I have spent 10 years hiking with others who have various skills and most of them were new to my kind of hiking.
I enjoy it, I relish it.
I love it.

I'm excited about this 'group' hike. Hopefully we will get along without any mishaps. In the fall, I will re-hike this same route just to see how fast I can do it solo.

Controlled Chaos

Some days I wonder why I thought 2 dogs were better than one. The extra demands, the extra attention, the extra training, and the extra effort along with considerations seem in some moments --- a stupid decision.

Then after a day of yard work, play, and walks, the 2 of them fall sound asleep next to me as I read a book on the couch.

And I know... 

 My blood pressure drops low, my heart rate slows, my heart fills with something warm. 

My longer hikes are slowed to an older dog pace while the pup races back and forth on her line that is tied to my belt.

The slow, quiet walk allows me more time to stop and look. There is no hurry. Charlie doesn't hurry when the weather is warm. He even asks for me to carry him so his short legs can take a rest [or he is tricking me into giving him a ride!].

Hannah bounds into quite a few photos that I try to take of the wild spring flowers. But she is learning that usually what I am looking at is nothing that is interesting enough to chew on, eat, or roll in.

Bellwort

Fern Curls

Jack in the Pulpit

Wild Ginger

The Crooked Kickapoo

Mayflowers

We take about 4 hours to explore the trails. I keep thinking I should hurry up and then I remember that I don't have to rush.

There is so much to look at on these out of the way trails.

The dogs get a drink and a dunk
in the foundation of an
old artesian well house.

We head back to the parking area and I think...

Maybe the chaos isn't so bad. 

It is keeping my mind busy and my body active.

Charlie goes to his side of the car and waits. I put him in his car seat and he settles down for a nap. Hannah tries to climb into the car too, she is ready to fall asleep in her crate.

When we get home the two dogs get up on the porch bench and watch me do yard work and hang out laundry.

I eventually join them on the bench and open my book on Hiking Wisconsin. I turn down pages of trails I am interested in and are labeled 'Dog Friendly'. 

Maybe this two dog thing is really worth it.