Great trails crisscross Roche-A-Cri park

Roche-A-Cri rises 300 feet above the surrounding plain.

A 300-foot rock formation, ancient petroglyphs, a wooded creek, and more await at Wisconsin’s Roche-A-Cri State Park.

The state park sits off of Wis. Hwy. 13 north of Adams-Friendship in the Central Sands region. During the last ice age, the region was under Glacial Lake Wisconsin, which when it drained away created the Wisconsin Dells’ fascinating sandstone features to the south.

Roche-A-Cri’s six day hiking trails include:
• Acorn Trail – The park’s longest trail at a meandering 3.5-miles, the mowed trail circles the Roche-A-Cri formation. A segment of it crosses a restored oak and pine barrens at the park’s southern entrance off Czech Avenue.
• Chickadee Rock Nature Trail – The 0.34-mile wheelchair-accessible trail runs past oaks, jack pines and blueberry and huckleberry bushes to Chickadee Rock, a 30-foot high formation. You can extend the hike via the connecting Acorn Trail. A parking lot for the trail sits off the park road.
• Eagle Ridge Trail – From the historical marker off the park road (with a parking lot at the trailhead), the trail heads 0.35 miles to the Acorn Trail. The marker notes Roche-A-Cri’s place on the National Register of Historic Places because of the formation’s petroglyphs and pictographs.
• Mound Trail (and Stairway) – At 0.3-miles, the route connects to the Acorn Trail while the Stairway on its heads to the top of the 300-foot Roche-A-Cri formation. It can be accessed via the park road with a parking lot at the Stairway.
• Spring Peeper Trail – Day hikers can enjoy a 0.25-mile walk through a maple and oak woods along Carter Creek; among the seasonal sights are cardinal flowers, dragonflies, marsh marigolds, nesting birds, spring peeper frogs, swallowtail butterflies, and turk’s-cap lilies. The trail starts next to the park office and links with the Acorn Trail.
• Turkey Vulture Trail – The 0.9-mile loop heads through both creekside forest and a restored prairie as turkey vultures and raptors fly overhead. Reaching it requires taking the Acron Trail; the shortest way is via the park’s southern entrance.

Short walk leads to rare ancient rock art

The Roche-A-Cri petroglyphs and pictographs, as well as some vandalism...

Roche-A-Cri rock art map

Day hikers can see thousand-year-old rock art at Wisconsin’s Roche-A-Cri State Park.

The short trail – just a few feet from the parking lot – shows both rock carvings, known as petroglyphs, and rock paintings, called pictographs, etched and brushed onto the base of the Roche-A-Cri rock formation.

To reach the trailhead, from Adams-Friendship take Wis. Hwy. 13 north. Turn left/west at the park entrance. Follow the park road to the south side of the Roche-A-Cri formation, where there is a lot. Head north across the road from the lot to the rock art.

Symbolic meaning
The Oneota people, ancestors of the modern day Ho-Chunk, created the rock art. The petroglyphs are at least 1100 years old while the pictographs are about 400-500 years old.

Those ancient artists used a sharp tool, probably a stone knife, to carve the petroglyphs. A bold red or orange paint was applied with either a reed or an animal-hair brush to create the pictographs.

Archeologists and historians can only speculate about the symbols’ meaning.

For example, the most prominent symbol – a crescent – could show the lunar cycle or a solar eclipse. On the other hand, it might simply represent canoes, which historical evidence shows were sometimes stored on nearby Carter Creek.

The birds might be the mythical thunderbird, which later was important in the legends of Wisconsin’s historical Ojibwe, Menomonee and Winnebago Indians. Then again, they may simply represent the hawks, eagles and turkey vultures that circle Roche-A-Cri.

The most common of the petroglyphs are three lines that look like a fork. They resemble bird tracks but if turned upside down look like a stick figure man.

Disappearing art
Unfortunately, settlers and soldiers vandalized some of the petroglyphs during the mid 1800s. Among the culprits was Company D of the Wisconsin 1st Cavalry Sharpshooters in 1861. In addition, round indentations suggest they also used the rock face for marksmanship trials.

Weathering likely will erase the petroglyphs from the soft sandstone within a half-century. A railing aims to protect the rock art, which can be damaged by a mere touch. Please stay behind the railing to preserve this cultural artifact for as long as possible.

If looking to get in a walk, a couple of trails head out from the rock art. The Acorn Trail heads north around Roche-A-Cri with connectors to the campground and to the stairway leading to the rock formation’s top. Alternately, the Acorn Trail can be taken south from the parking lot to Carter Creek, where it links to the Spring Peeper Trail, which goes to the park office.

Tip: A great time to view the rock art is in autumn when the fallen leaves provides a less obscured view of the petroglyphs.

Trail goes to top of Wisconsin’s Lone Rock

The vista from Lone Rock's northern side.

Lone Rock Trail topo map, Plate 1.

Lone Rock Trail topo map, Plate 2.

Day hikers can head to the top of what once was an island in a vast glacial lake.

The 6.2-miles round trip Lone Rock Trail heads to its namesake in Wisconsin’s Quincy Bluff and Wetlands State Natural Area. Surprisingly quiet, the trail offers that strong feel of isolation so many nature lovers seek.

To reach the trailhead, from Adams-Friendship, take Wis. Hwy. 13 south. Turn right/west onto Dyke Road (County Road E goes the opposite direction at the same intersection). In just under two miles, Dyke Road curves north and becomes 14th Drive. About a third of a mile from the curve is a small sand parking area on the road’s left/west side.

A wide two-track logging trail heads southwest from the lot. To the road’s west is a pine-oak barrens, a sandy terrain that mainly sports grass and sparse growths of trees while to the east is a woodlands. Once past a gate, go left/southwest when the trail splits.

The trail heads along narrow stretches of dry land amid wetlands. During warmer months, sandhill cranes often can be spotted and heard bugling there.

Glacial Lake Wisconsin
The barrens and wetlands sit on what during the last ice age was the bottom of Glacial Lake Wisconsin. Stretching from modern-day Wisconsin Rapids in the north to Wisconsin Dells in the south, the lake formed when an advancing glacier reached the Baraboo Hills to the south, damming the Wisconsin River. The water backed up until reaching a gap so that it could drain out to the Black River to the northeast.

When the glacier melted away from the Baraboo Hills, the ice dam holding the glacial lake thinned until only a sandy moraine and weak, ancient sandstone held the the water in place. Eventually that barrier broke, and the floodwaters swept southward, carving out the Wisconsin Dells’ deep gorges.

At 1.6 miles from the trailhead, the route follows a snowmobile trail south. The quality of the trail changes from an old road to more of a winding lane. In 0.2 miles is a wood bridge over a creek, and then the trail goes under a powerline.

Thanks to the glacial lake, most of the terrain along the trail and across Adams County is flat and sandy. At spots, the lake left up to 300 feet of sediment. The region’s many bluffs were islands in the glacial lake, and without its sediment, one might imagine the bluffs rising even higher out of the plain than they do today.

About 2.5 miles in, the northern tip of Lone Rock becomes visible over the tree line. Lone Rock rises 100 feet above the plain, and large raptors often can be seen riding the thermals around it. On the ground, the barrens gives away to woods as the trees thicken near Lone Rock’s base.

The trail splits in another 0.3 miles. Go right/south so that you are walking along Lone Rock’s western slope. A pine plantation is on the trail’s right side.

At 3 miles in, you’ll reach a T-intersection with a dirt road that is southwest of Lone Rock’s south side. Follow the lane running left/northeast up a slope through an oak forest to Lone Rock. Once at the base, go right/southeast for 200 feet to a 30-foot-wide break in the wall, which despite its size is easy-to-miss.

This canyon leads to Lone Rock’s top. While steep with a couple of high steps, during dry weather it’s the best and easiest route to the top, as pine needles cushion your steps. Be aware that in wet weather the pine needles can be slick.

Great vistas
The top of Lone Rock is more like a mesa of the American West, flat and round. A worn footpath circles the top. Be careful; the drop is straight down, and in some spots, such as the north end’s narrow point where sandstone juts out, are unsafe to walk upon.

Cooler than the barrens and breezy, the top offers great views. Rattlesnake Mound dominates the east while Quincy Bluff is to the west. From the north side, Roche a Cri and Friendship Mound are on the horizon.

Once taking in the view, descend the bluff’s canyon and retrace your steps back to the trailhead.

The trail is best hiked in spring and early summer on dry days. By mid- to late-summer, the trail can be overgrown, and in winter snow and ice often makes the route to the bluff’s saddle impassable. Autumn marks another great time to hike the bluff, as the bugs are gone and the grass a golden hue.

Much of the barrens lacks shade, so be sure to don sunscreen, sunhat and sunglasses on the trail. Insect repellent also is a must given the trail’s proximity to the wetlands. Pets are allowed if on a leash, however. Rock climbing is prohibited. As a state natural area, there are no public facilities.

Stairway scales 30-story Wisconsin rock

Roche-A-Cri rises 300 feet above the Adams County plains.

Roche-A-Cri Stairway map.
Click for larger version

Day hikers can head to to the top of a 300-foot-high half-billion-year-old rock formation at Wisconsin’s Roche-A-Cri State Park.

The 0.12-mile round trip Stairway trail heads up the side of the prominent Roche-A-Cri formation. While short in length, the first-half is all uphill. It’s a beautiful hike in autumn when scarlet, amber and orange leaves line the forest canopy and float upon the stairs.

To reach the trailhead, from Adams-Friendship take Wis. Hwy. 13 north. Turn left/west at the park entrance. Follow the park road to the opposite side of the formation, where there is a lot. A short trail leads to informative kiosks about the formation and the stairs.

Ancient river sediment
The 303-step stairway and observation deck, both built in 1992-94 by Wisconsin Conservation Corps with the deck redone in 2011, are wide enough to walk up hand-in-hand. The stairs is shaded most of the way.

Roche-A-Cri formed when meandering ancient rivers during the Cambrian, creating a braided pattern as heading out to sea, deposited sediment across a vast area. The buried sediment then hardened into sandstone. Over the eons, erosion of that continuous sheet of sandstone have left only several butte-like formations such as Quincy Bluff, Lone Rock and Roche-A-Cri in the region.

About 18,000 years ago during the last Ice Age, trapped water formed Glacial Lake Wisconsin on the Adams County plains. Its waves helped shaped the sides of these sandstone islands so that they appear castle-like today. Roche-A-Chi would have sat near the center of the lake, which could be seen from space, as it was about the size of today’s Great Salt Lake.

Early French explorers gave the formation the name we use today, which literally translates to “rock scream.” (Some books and websites often wrongly claim the name means “crevice in the rock,” for the formation’s large cleft that can be seen a distance.) The name probably refers to the shrieking hawks that nest on the formation’s rocky prominences.

Roche-A-Cri's top
The observation deck at Roche-A-Chi’s top offers spectacular views of other late Cambrian sandstone bluffs and towers rising from the green plain. To the south is Rattlesnake Mound and to the east is Pilot Knob Bluff.

A forest of red, black and white oak with red, white and jack pine sits atop Roche-A-Chi. Plants common in the sand barrens and prairie below also grow here, their seeds blown high by the wind. Turkey vultures roost atop the the high mound.

Because of the top’s sensitive environment, always stay on the stairs and observation deck. No pets, food or beverages (other than water) are allowed at the top. If there’s ice or snow on the stairs, stay off them; it’s a long way down should you slip.

If afraid of heights or unable to take 30 stories of stairs, instead opt for the flat 0.3-mile Mound Trail heading west from the rock formation’s base. The Mound Trail offers great ground views of Roche-A-Chi. The walk can be extended, as it connects to the Acorn and the Eastern Ridge trails.

Trail crosses re-created Wisconsin prairie

Restored prairie in autumn at Wisconsin's Roche-A-Cri State Park.

Acorn Trail segment and Turkey Vulture
Trail map. Click for larger version.

Day hikers can explore a restored oak savannah at Wisconsin’s Roche-A-Cri State Park.

Segments of the Acorn Trail and the entire Turkey Vulture Trail can be combined into a pleasant 1.2-mile walk. Both trails sit on the park’s south side.

To reach the trailhead, from Adams-Friendship, drive north on Wis. Hwy. 13. Turn left/west onto Czech Avenue. In 0.2 miles is a parking lot on the road’s right/north side. The mowed Acorn Trail heads into the savannah from the lot’s north side.

The oak savannah – grasslands with the occasional oak tree – at one time was common in this part of Adams County. Many savannahs were converted to farm fields or became forests when settlers, to protect their homesteads, extinguished the prairie fires necessary to sustain the grasslands.

Oak savannah
This section of the park is just one of two in the vicinity being stored to prairie; another is in a state natural area east of Roche-A-Cri. In both cases, native prairie seeds obtained from the Bureau of Endangered Resource sites and a nursery as well as collected from nearby existing savannahs were planted.

A little more than 200 feet into the hike, take the spur heading left/west to a tree and clump of bushes. Along the way, common prairie grasses – including big bluestem, Indian grass, June grass, and little bluestem – will be easy to spot.

Quite a few forbs also can be spotted amid the grasses. Among them are bergamot, black-eyed Susans, blazing star, butterfly weed, dotted mint, goldenrods, lupine, sky blue asters, round-headed bush clover, spiderworts, thimbleweed and yellow coneflower.

Such plants make a great habitat for grassland songbirds, various insects and reptiles, and game birds such as grouse and ring-necked pheasants.

Follow the spur back to the main trail and go left/north on it. Immediately after intersecting with the looping Turkey Vulture Trail, the Acorn Trail enters the pine, oak and maple woods surrounding Carter Creek. The contrast with the prairie aptly demonstrates the differences between the two, as almost entirely different plants reside in each ecosystem.

Turkey Vulture Trail
Once in the woodline, turn right/east onto the northern trailhead for the Turkey Vulture Trail. If you don’t make the turn and continue north, you’ll cross the meandering Carter Creek and junction with the Spring Peeper Trail.

The Turkey Vulture Trail is a great place to watch the vultures soaring between Roche-A-Cri to the north and Friendship Mound, a mere half-mile to the south. The large birds – which boast a wingspan of 63-72 inches and grow 24-32 inches long – summer in Wisconsin, where they feed on carrion. The best time to spot the vultures is between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., when they are most active.

After paralleling Carter Creek, the Turkey Vulture Trail curls away from it and re-enters the prairie before rejoining the Acorn Trail. Once at the Acorn, turn left/south and return to the parking lot.

Overall, the Turkey Vulture Trail runs 0.9 miles while the Acorn Trail segment with the spur runs a total of 0.3 miles.

A hazard of this trail is that it’s not always open. During spring, prescribed burns remove brush, dead grasses and leaves, which helps the savannah grasses and plants re-establish themselves. They’re able to grow back because their root systems and seeds are protected in the soils.

Trail goes to top of half-billion-year-old rock

Quincy Bluff rises more than 200 feet above a sand plain in Wisconsin.

The Quincy Bluff Trail follows an old logging road.

Day hikers can walk to the top of a bluff that a half-billion years ago sat at the bottom of an ancient river.

The unmarked Quincy Bluff Trail heads to its namesake at Wisconsin’s Quincy Bluff and Wetlands State Natural Area. Reaching the other side of a saddle in the bluff comes to about 1.9 miles round trip, but the hike easily can be extended given the unmarked dirt trails at the top.

To reach the trailhead, from Adams-Friendship, take Wis. Hwy. 13 south. Turn right/west onto County Road H. After crossing White Creek, go right/north onto 16th Avenue then left/west onto Evergreen Avenue. Next, turn right/north onto 16th Drive. About a third of a mile north of Elk Avenue is a parking lot on the road’s right/east side.

Look east. Quincy Bluff rises 200 feet high and extends for approximately two miles north-south. From the parking lot’s northeast corner, follow the dirt trail east for about 400 feet. Once you reach an old logging trail, go right/south.

Located in Wisconsin’s Central Sands region – made famous by Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac – the state natural area is quite unique. This is the northernmost range of the state’s oak barrens and the southernmost range of its pine barrens, so the two mix here.

Making their home in this unusual amalgam are coyotes, bear, wolf, white-tailed deer, fisher, otter, bobcat, jumping mouse, and even slender glass lizards, which look like a snake but is a legless lizard. Frogs and muskrats can be found in the wetlands near the bluff.

Passenger pigeon paradise
The state natural area is a well-recognized birding area. Golden eagles, sandhill cranes and ducks live here from spring through autumn while pileated woodpeckers, blue jay, chickadees stay year-round. Each fall, sandhill cranes roost in large numbers across the natural area’s fields.

Unfortunately, the one bird that once nested here by the millions is gone. In 1871, more than 100,000 people descended upon Quincy Bluff, killing millions of passenger pigeons in what is among the worse slaughters ever recorded of the now extinct species.

About 0.4 miles from the parking lot, the logging trail climbs Quincy Bluff and then heads straight south along a cliffside. The bluff is made of Cambrian sandstone, laid down a little more than 500 million years ago when rivers wandered across a plain. The sandstone once covered all of what we now call the Central Sands region but over the eons has eroded away except for isolated rock formations such as Quincy Bluff.

Waves from an ice age-era lake and since then wind have weathered the bluffs into the steep, castellated formations seen today.

Bluff top views
Around 0.75 miles in, the logging road crosses a saddle in the bluff. Northern dry forest and open cliff ecosystems cover the bluff, allowing for pretty views framed by woodlands. From the saddle and all along the bluff, great views abound; a vast wetlands stretches to the east, while the Wisconsin River flowing through Castle Rock Lake can be seen to the west.

The trail is best hiked in spring and early summer on dry days. By mid- to late-summer, the trail can be overgrown, and in winter snow and ice often makes the route to the bluff’s saddle impassable. Autumn marks another great time to hike the bluff, as the bugs are gone and the grass a golden hue.

Be forewarned: As a state natural area, there are no public facilities. Pets are allowed if on a leash, however. Rock climbing is prohibited.