Governor Nelson State Park #35

Governor Nelson State Park is a day use park offering a sand beach, boat launch, fish cleaning facility and playground area. It is located on 10,000 acre Lake Mendota and has great views of hte capitol and downtown area. There are 8.4 miles of trails, that wind around effigy mounds, through wetlands and prairies, and forests. This is a popular park for visitors who boat and fish on the lake.

We visited on a sunny September morning, and were surprised (as we actually frequently are), that there weren't any other visitors to be seen. We hiked over to the beach, out onto the pier to enoy the view (G was camera shy today). There is a great playground there that G loved, and as you may have guessed, refused to leave. So, it was yet another park where we carried him out of the playground area under an arm, while he exercised his right to yell...very loudly. Next stop, Merrick State Park!

Buckhorn State Park and Devils Lake State Park #33 and #34

Somehow, we thought visiting state parks on Labor Day weekend would be a feasible undertaking. And we were half right, but as lifelong Wisconsin Residents, I'll just say, we should have known better...

We visited Buckhorn State Park and Devils Lake State Park on a sunny Labor Day weekend. Buckhorn was lovely. Prairie, wetlands, a nice lake, great hiking, and the best kids' area in a park office we have seen to date. Buckhorn is an approximately 7,000 acre park on a peninsula that extends into Castle Rock Lake. We hiked the Barrens Nature Trail which has a 20 foot observation tower and an eco box on the way to the tower, that plays a message about the park and surrounding area. It was a nice park, we would like to return and enjoy the lake, including a 1.8 mile canoe trail!

 

Next up was Devil's Lake State Park, one of my favorite parks, and now I feel qualified to say, it's definitely one of the best in the system. Devil's Lake State Park is the largest parks in the system, and has the most visitors, approximately 1.3 to 1.7 million per year. Founded in 1911, Devil's Lake is the third oldest park in the system and has a wealth of history associated with it along with outstanding geographical features. The 500 foot quartzite bluffs offer stunning views of the 300 acre lake. There are 29 miles of hiking trails, two beaches with shelters and concessions, as well as kayak, canoe and paddleboard rentals at each beach location. There is plenty to do in the winter too, with cross country skiing, snow shoeing and ice fishing.

 

The history of this park is varied and intriguing and can't be covered in a paragraph, (the DNR website has a lot of great information, check it out!) Once the lake started to be discovered by European settlers in the mid-1800s, visitors started flocking to the lake in droves. At one point, there were several hotels, two steamboats that operated on the lake and a golf course. It is even said that the Ringling Brothers Circus, which was based in nearby Baraboo, Wisconsin, let their elephants swim in the lake!

 

The day we arrived at the park it was so busy we couldn't find parking in the lot, and ended up parking on a road just outside the north beach area. Devil's Lake is such a large park, (9200 acres), it can typically absorb a phenomenal amount of people, with space to spare. On this particular day, there were lines for the bathrooms and for the concessions. Unfortunately, we didn't realize that the line to concessions was unbearably long until we got there, (and has already promised G a blue moon ice cream cone). It was ugly, so ugly, when we had to break the news to him that we weren't able to purchase ice cream there. He screamed "Blue moon on my face" all the way back to the car. Luckily, the plethora of people there didn't bat an eye at one screaming kid.

 

Bottom line, great park, visit not on a holiday! Next stop, Governor Nelson State Park!

 

 

 



Wyalusing State Park #32

We had been looking forward to returning to Wyalusing State Park, as we had visited a few years ago in the Fall and enjoyed the park immensely. After stopping at Nelson Dewey, we headed up to Wyalusing along the Wisconsin River Road, it was about a half hour drive, with pretty scenery pretty much the entire drive.

Wyalusing State Park is one of the oldest state parks in Wisconsin, established in 1917, it was part of the original four areas recommended to become state parks as part of a report from the state legislature in 1909. People began arriving in this area approximately 11,000 years ago, with the Red Ochre Culture appearing about 1000 B.C., followed by the Hopewell Indians and the Effigy Mound Builders. If you have time, I would highly recommend visiting the Effigy Mounds National Monument, about a 15 minute drive across the river. The first Europeans to visit the area were Marquette and Joliet, who recorded seeing the meeting of the Wisconsin and Mississippi Rivers in 1673. 

We enjoyed the Bluff Trail, which had outstanding views which we have come to expect from the parks along the Mississippi River. There is so much to do at this park, including canoeing trails, biking, and an astronomy center. There is a nice play area and gift shop, which we were able to explore, (well, we had to, or there would have been a mutiny from G, he can only take so much hiking and car rides). We will be adding this to the list of parks to revisit next year!

Nelson Dewey State Park #31

We visited Nelson Dewey State Park and Wyalusing State Park on the same beautiful summer day. Nelson Dewey was up first, and is dedicated to the memory of the state's first governor. Dewey is an interesting figure, first working as a clerk for land speculators, and later practicing law and eventually elected as governor at age 35 in 1848. Unfortunately, his personal life was slightly bumpier, as after his term as governor when he moved back to Cassville, he became estranged from his wife, who moved to Madison with his children. He spent a great deal of time trying to revive Cassville, and ultimately suffered a stroke while arguing a case in 1889 and died shortly thereafter.

The park is a lovely tribute to his memory with breathtaking views of the Mississippi River and the surrounding countryside. Visitors are able to drive to many of the scenic views throughout the park, but there are still hiking opportunities to see even more. We had the best picnic spot to date, (see pic below!) Dewey's house and a few other older outbuildings are on the grounds, and tours are offered during the summer months. There is a living history village, "Stonefield", located across the road from this park, and although we didn't have time on this day, we would most definitely return in the future when G is a little older.

 

 

 

 



 



Lake Kegonsa State Park, #30

Lake Kegonsa State Park is located on the northeast shore of Lake Kegonsa, a 3,209 acre lake offering fishing, swimming and boating. We headed out to Lake Kegonsa State Park on a humid, drizzly day. At this point, when we tell G we are going to a state park to hike, his response is inevitably "let's do this!", which never fails to crack me up. We decided to hike the White Oak Nature Trail, which conveniently began at a playground area, so G (and Pete if we are being honest) was delighted with that.

About 10 minutes into our hike, it started raining fairly hard, but we were mostly shielded by the trees forming a canopy above us. It was almost peaceful, listening to the rain coming down on the tree tops, as we trudged along. As always, rain when it first starts is slightly dreamy, but as it continues, the trails inevitably become squishy and muddy.

The hike itself was pretty, a mostly even trail, through wooded areas. Lake Kegonsa is a popular fishing lake, and was known by early settlers as the "first lake" because it was the first of the four Madison lakes traveling up the Yahara River. The name "Kegonsa" is attributed to the Ho-Chunk Indians who lived in the area, and means "Lake of Many Fishes". Definitely a nice place for a day visit, and to enjoy the lake itself. Next stop, Nelson Dewey State Park!

Brunet Island State Park and Lake Wissota State Park #28 and #29

Brunet Island and Lake Wissota were our 5th and 6th parks of our Weekend O' State Parks trip. We stopped at these parks on the way home heading south from Pattison State Park. When we started out from Pattison in the morning, we didn't know if we would be able to do two more parks on that day, but after the biggest breakfast I've had in years (luckily Pete's surprise was tinged with respect or that conversation may have turned out differently), we decided to give it a go.

Brunet Island State Park was named for explorer and settler Jean Brunet who was born in France in 1791 and came to America and settled in St. Louis in 1818. Brunet was an influential man in Wisconsin, first living in Prairie du Chien, and then settling in present day Chippewa Falls. He was responsible for establishing the first dam and sawmill in Chippewa Falls, and served as the first judge and legislator in the Chippewa Falls area.

The park is 1,300 acres with a 169 acre island in the Chippewa River, which has outstanding views of the river and the larger part of the park on the opposite side of the river. We enjoyed the Jean Brunet Nature Trail, which wound through forests and along the river. G insisted on wearing his backpack (which is about half his size) to hike, so maybe he knows how it feels to carry him? We crossed the river to get to the park on an old wooden, one lane bridge, definitely a standout for the car ride portion of our trip. There were a lot of people enjoying the park by boating and fishing, and if we were in the area again, we would definitely take advantage!

Lake Wissota was our next and last stop of the day, I had spent a lot of time at Lake Wissota during my time at college, so was very much looking forward to returning. The park's namesake, Lake Wissota is 6,300 acres, and offers pretty much every activity one could want, including biking horseback riding, camping, boating, canoeing and kayaking. It's a beautiful park, with a lot of amenities, including a 285-foot swimming beach. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to swim, and G was pretty much past tired, so we enjoyed our hike on the Lake Trail and headed home. Don't be fooled by G's apparent happiness in the selfie below, it was an odd spurt of energy before he fell asleep again on my back! Next stop, Lake Kegonsa State Park!

Amnicon Falls State Park and Pattison State Park #26 and #27

We visited Amnicon Falls State Park and Pattison State Park on the same day during our "Weekend O' State Parks". We traveled from Big Bay State Park heading west across the northern part of the state. Amnicon Falls was as we expected, a beautiful park. It has a 55 foot bridge, called a Horton or bowstring bridge. This type of bridge is built using arched beams connected with hooks and clips instead of rivets and bolts. Today there are only five other Horton bridges are known. While G wasn't riveted by this piece of history, he loved running back and forth on the bridge. This particular bridge was moved into its' current location in 1930, to allow visitors the ability to travel to the island around which the river flows.

 

 



After thoroughly inspecting the bridge, we hiked the trail around the falls and up and down the river. It was a nice, relatively easy hike, affording views of the three main falls; upper, lower and Snake Pit. It was a nice park, clean and not too busy, with a lot to see in a compact area.

Next stop was Pattison State Park, our home for the night. At this point, after having spent a decent portion of the day attempting to explain some semblance of campground etiquette and appropriate volume to G, (and having failed miserably thus far), we were hoping for families with small children camping nearby, so G's vocalizations could just "blend in" with theirs. We found that although the campground was moderately busy, there was no one right next to us, and the sites were spaced far enough apart, it just wasn't an issue.

Pattison features the highest waterfalls in Wisconsin and the fourth highest waterfalls east of the Mississippi. The falls were breathtaking, definitely one of the favorite places we have visited thus far. Big Manitou Falls is 165 feet high, and was magnificent enough for us to trek back for a second view at sunset. In addition to beautiful waterfalls and a clean, and quiet campground, there was a great beach, grassy hill to lounge on by the beach, and a circa 1930 changing house/bathhouse built by the Civilian Conseration Corp (CCC). We have learned a ton about the CCC. The group was created and functioned during the 1930's, to create jobs for young, unemployed men during the depression. If you have visited a state or national park, you have most likely seen their work.

The CCC had camps at some state parks, including Pattison and Wyalusing, where the young men lived and worked. In fact, they hauled sand from the shore of Lake Superior to create the beach at Pattison State Park. This is a park that we would love to return to, and would definitely recommend to others. Next stop (next day), Brunet Island and Lake Wissota State Parks!