The Dead Horse Run, an ATV trail system in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest, runs 56 miles long. With its vastness, you’ll surely find many segments that can be day hiked without the noise of any ATVs; in addition, the trail is closed to ATV use from March 15 to April 30, so any of those warm, dry days during an early spring is perfect for a hike.
One such segment heads from the Dead Horse Slough Trailhead in the Clam Lake area. It runs 4.3 miles one-way or 8.6 miles round trip.
To reach the trailhead, from Clam Lake head east on Wis. Hwy. 77. A little more than two miles out of town, next to the Dead Horse Slough’s east shore, is small gravel parking lot on the road’s north side.
The trail and slough’s name comes from an early 1900s tragedy when a team of horses broke through ice on the waterbody. The team never was recovered.
A trailhead at the lot’s northeast corner heads into a forest of maple, aspen, oak and birch ideal for fox, racoon, rabbits, and of course, white-tailed deer. Expect to see at least signs of such wildlife and others on the trail.
This forest also a great environment for elk, whose primary habitat used is dominated by aspens and with forest openings and ponds or lakes. Because of that, in 1995, Wisconsin reintroduced Rocky Mountain elk in this part of the state. Today, the Clam Lake herd is estimated at around 200 members.
Before the arrival of Euro-Americans, elk could be found all across Wisconsin. Conversion of land to agriculture limited the elk’s range, though, and overhunting finished them off by the late 1800s. An attempt to bring back elk in the 1930s failed due to poaching.
Elk are an impressive sight to behold. A bull elk can reach up to 700 pounds and stand five-feet high at the shoulder; its antlers can take up to 40 pounds of that weight. Cows are slightly smaller at 500 pounds and 4-1/2 feet at the shoulder. Elk typically feed on grasses and forbs but in winter will turn to shrubs, tree bark, and twigs.
Heading northeast, the Dead Horse Run Trail mostly parallels the peculiarly named Dingdong Creek. Located on snowmobile trails, the Dead Horse Run mostly is wide at 14-feet, to accommodate ATVs.
Upon reaching Forest Road 182, turn back. If backpacking, you can continue on, however; the trail loops south and intersects the Tuscobia State Trail just west of Park Falls. Throughout its course, the Dead Horse Run links to Stock Farm Bridge Campground and ATV routes leading to Glidden and Cayuga.
Learn about trail guidebooks available in the Hittin’ the Trail series.
