I've been stacking up the miles in hiking without even thinking about it. I do hit the 'walk' button on the smart watch and go on my merry way hiking around here or along groomed trails.
I checked my stats and was really surprised by them. If I hike 27 more miles by the 31st, I will have hiked 1,000 miles in one year.
Well damn. That is a lot of miles! I mean I could have walked the nearly the whole WI Ice Age Trail in this year. I did not hike every day and skipped those hot/humid days and of course many below zero days that had dangerous wind chills.
So that is something interesting.
Cool things found when hiking the other day.
The boulder below is probably a ton or so in weight. It stands about 4 feet tall. According to my geologist friend it is a huge fossil from 470 million years ago. A Stromatolite fossil. You can read about them here at Stromatolites at the UW site. These were algae mounds that grew before multicellular organisms.
In the next dry run ravine over, I found this curious root system holding on to the side of the steep bank. The tree is an old oak which has survived many flash floods in this spot. I just find that the root system is simply amazing.
Nature sure can surprise one.
My Geologist friend came out on Monday to explore a formation I've known about for nearly 30 years.
I'd told him about a 'hole' in the field that was a rock like entrance. He wanted to go see it and maybe go down into it.
Finally Rich and Jason got to meet and it actually went very well. Jason is a chatterbox and will pick up any gaps in a lagging conversation.
They discussed the history of the area, rocks, sinkholes, caves, rock shelters, lay of the land, and whatnot. Jason was inquiring about the land around us and Rich was enjoying the company.
Jason wanted to see the 'hole'. And. He wanted to go down it.
Nope. Not my cup of tea. Hubby had a hound dog go down that hole years ago and spend a long time getting the dog out. The amount of scat around the hole said 'Disgusting Gross Poo' to me. I avoid the hole, it gives me the creeps.
After Jason climbed down in, the dogs and I chilled out in the warm sun.
Charlie was more nervous than Felix and Piper. He really adores our friend, the treat man!
Sleepy Hairy Dogs
Happy in the Warm Sun
What did my friend find? He found a 40 to 60 foot 'room' with a ceiling of 2-4 feet tall. It was full of wet mud, and bottles that looked like liquor bottles that had been set there. Most of the items were not broken. He commented that there were hundreds of bottles and jars.
To him it seemed that at one point people used to come down and drink in the 'cave' perhaps. I do know that the previous owner had said that they had a ladder to go in and out of the cave when they were quite young.
That was over 70+ years ago.
Since then the hole has had tires, a window, and even barbed wire tossed down into it. Last year, it was covered in a brush pile to mark it so those working the field wouldn't drive into the hole.
The look on his face when he came back up was priceless. He was incredibly happy.
And...the dogs were happy to see him, despite the fact he was covered in mud.
We hiked through the forest so he could see the Grumpy Face Rock and then headed back to the house so we could share with Rich what he'd discovered.
The huge tract of land next door has a fairly interesting history. There was a Speak-Easy on the land during prohibition. It was located in such a way that anyone visiting there had to walk nearly a mile through the woods to visit it.
The original settler that acquired most of the land was a migrant from Norway. He changed his name when he came to the US as he was 'wanted' back home for something. He built a huge farm, purchased a local bride, and had two boys and a girl. During the Depression, he paid back taxes on farms around him and extended his farm land.
There are many local stories about the original owner. He was considered ruthless.
When the milk man drove his team of horses there to pick up the milk, he'd bring the owner two large jugs of liquor once a week. It was rumored that the husband and wife were not the 'cleanest' folks around. They allowed chickens and other animals to wander in and out of the house.
The land is now in the hands of the third generation. The farmland is rented out, the forest is leased to some hunters, and starting soon a logging company will be coming in to harvest trees.
What an interesting start to the week.
Piper and I.
Photo by Jason.
She is sitting on top of the huge fossil in that
first photo.
