City of Eau Claire offers array of great trails

Putnam Park. Photo courtesy of UWEC.

At one time the world’s lumber capital, the west-central Wisconsin city of Eau Claire recently has undertaken an effort to make it a trail-friendly community.

Located about 90 minutes east of Minneapolis-St. Paul and four hours north of Madison, the city of Eau Claire offers a number of excellent day hiking opportunities, whether you be a resident or a visitor.

Among them:
• Chippewa River State Trail segment – Though most of the Chippewa River State Trail runs through rural areas, its most used portion sits in the middle of Eau Claire. A 3.7-mile round trip segment of the trail links the Historic Water Street District to beautiful Phoenix Park. Leave your vehicle at the 10th Avenue trailhead lot.
• City Wells Area Trail – A 3-mile looping cross-country ski trail in the City Wells area can be day hiked the other seasons. Start the loop off of Riverview Drive near the southeast corner of Riverfront Park.
• Eau Claire River Route – Walkers can walk across a unique S-shaped bridge on 0.6-mile round trip urban trail that leads to the Banbury Park area. Park at the L.E. Phillips Memorial Library then cross South Dewey Street, heading east onto the paved trail.
• Fairfax Park walking paths – About 1.17 miles of walking paths (turned cross-country ski trail in winter) run around two ponds and through a small woods at Fairfax Park. Leave your vehicle in the parking lot for the outdoor pool then cross Fairfax Park Drive for the trailhead in the wooded area.
• Fairway Trail – The 1.4-miles round trip linking Boyd and Archery parks, running between Fairway Street (on its south) and the Eau Claire River (on its north).
• Lakeshore Trail – The Carson Park trail runs about a mile one-way. A side trail of the Chippewa River State Trail, it’s less of a wilderness route than an urban walking path. Use the parking lot next to the park’s baseball stadium.
• Pinehurst Park trails – Nearly a mile of hilly trails (used as a cross-country ski trails in winter) sit in the park on the city’s north side. Leave your vehicle in the parking lot off Delbert Road between Eastlawn and Oakland streets.
• Putnam Park State Natural Area trails – Several undesignated trails runs through the 230-acre natural area owned and maintained by the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire. The western section sits on the Chippewa River; access it from campus parking lot #4, following the interpretive trail. The much larger eastern section is largely centered on Little Niagara Creek; access it by walking alongside Putnam Drive, which starts across from campus parking lot #14.
• Sherman Creek Park walking paths – Foothpaths run alongside and cross Sherman Creek in the 30-acre wooded park located just east of Eau Claire in Union Township. Enter the trail off of West Vine Street between Deblene and Redwood lanes.

Learn more about nearby day hiking trails in my Day Hiking Trails of the Chippewa Valley guidebook.

Great trails found in Chippewa Valley’s cities

Duncan Creek at Irvine Park in Chippewa Falls, Wis.

Several small cities and villages can be found in Wisconsin’s Chippewa Valley. Most of those communities have longed served as agricultural centers, but the region’s four dominant towns became manufacturing, education or government hubs. Not surprisingly, those four all are on the region’s three major rivers.

Eau Claire, with a population of nearly 70,000, sits at the confluence of the Chippewa and Eau Claire rivers. At one time, this was the nation’s lumber capital, but that role gave way to industry in the 20th century. Today, it’s best known as the home of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and as a regional government and retail center. Recent efforts to make the city trail-friendly has led to a number of hiking opportunities there, especially in the campus/downtown area and on the Chippewa River State Trail.

Menomonie, to the west, is the valley’s second most populous city at around 16,500. The Red Cedar River, a major tributary to the Chippewa River, runs through town. It is home of the University of Wisconsin-Stout campus and offers several excellent trails, most notably the Red Cedar State Trail.

Chippewa Falls, the valley’s third largest city at about 14,000, also is on the Chippewa River and shares a similar lumbering and manufacturing legacy as Eau Claire to the south. Today, it is headquarters for the original Cray Research and home of the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company. The southern end of the Old Abe Trail is located here; a couple of other good trails also can be found in Irvine Park.

Though smaller than a couple of other cities in the valley – specifically Altoona and Bloomer – Durand with 2000 people is Pepin County’s seat of government. It is downstream from Eau Claire on the Chippewa River, and the Chippewa River State Trail’s southern terminus is here.

Learn more about Chippewa Valley day hiking trails in my Day Hiking Trails of the Chippewa Valley guidebook.

Trail follows ridgeline overlooking creek

Lowes Creek County Park includes about 18 miles of multi-purpose trails.
Photo courtesy County of Eau Claire.

Lowes Creek County Park trails map,
courtesy of Chippewa Off Road Bike Association.

Day hikers can walk a forested trail overlooking a popular trout stream in west-central Wisconsin.

The Ridgeline Trail and the paths leading to it run 1.22-miles round trip at Lowes Creek County Park south of Eau Claire. About 18 miles of multi-purpose trails - frequented by hikers, runners and off-road bicyclists - can be found in the park, which hugs the creek’s course.

To reach the trailhead, from Eau Claire, take Wis. Hwy. 93 south. At Golf Road, turn right/west. In 1.5 miles, turn left/south into S. Lowes Creek Road. The park entrance is in another 1.5 miles; go left/east onto Palomino Road. A parking lot, is at the road's end. An entrance fee is required.

From the parking lot’s northwest side, take the wide trail heading straight north (Two other trails go east.). At the first trail junction, in 0.1 miles, turn right/east, crossing a footbridge over Lowes Creek.

Flowing out of the slope between the Chippewa and Buffalo river valleys to the south, Lowes Creek is a Class II trout stream that eventually makes it way into the Chippewa. Native brook trout can be found between the mouth of Clary Creek north to the Chippewa, but the stream is restocked with brown trout for sports fishing.

At the next trail junction, in 0.08 miles, go right/southeast. You’ll parallel the creek for about 0.25 miles, passing the junction with the Onion Trail, and at last reach the Ridgeline Trail. Go right/south on the Ridgeline, which overlooks the creek about 50 feet below.

While much of the upland surrounding Lowe Creek consists of pine forests, the moist soil along the creek bed yields other trees, including birch, making this a nice trail to see harvest colors in autumn.

Follow the Ridgeline Trail for 0.18 miles until it intersects the Nemesis and Skull trails. This marks a good spot to turn back.

Learn more about nearby day hiking trails in my Day Hiking Trails of the Chippewa Valley guidebook.

Walk quiet woods in historic logging site

Lakeshore Trail (marked in yellow), Eau Claire, Wis.

Day hikers can walk a tranquil, wooded path that at one time was a hub of Wisconsin’s bustling logging industry.

The Lakeshore Trail at Eau Claire’s Carson Park runs about a mile one-way. A side trail of the Chippewa River State Trail, it’s less of a wilderness route than an urban walking path.

To access the trail, from U.S. Hwy 12/Clairemont Avenue in Eau Claire, turn east onto Menomonie Street then left/north onto Carson Park Drive. Use the parking lot next to the baseball stadium. From there, cross Carson Park Drive and go southwest or northeast on the trail.

The 134-acre park sits on a “peninsula” surrounded by an oxbow lake, Half Moon Lake, which once marked the course of the Chippewa River. Today, the river runs east and south of the lake.

Despite hugging Carson Park Drive, the path is quiet with the rustling of leaves in the wind far more common than passing vehicles. That wasn’t the case during the last 1800s, though, when Half Moon Lake was a holding pond for logs awaiting their turn at the sawmill. In 1884, more than 989 million board feet of logs came down the Chippewa River to Eau Claire’s sawmills. At the time, the Daniel Shaw Lumber Company owned what is now the park.

When the trees from up north were all felled, the lumber companies moved on, and for a while the land sat empty and unused. Proposals included building a resort and a race-track there.

Then in 1914 the heirs of millionaire lumberman William Carson purchased the land and gave it to the city on condition that it be used as public park. The following year, the park was named for their father, the former president of Valley Lumber Company.

In the 1930s, a baseball stadium went up in the park. This was soon followed by the Paul Bunyan Logging Camp Museum, another museum for the county’s history, and several other park facilities.

Learn more about nearby day hiking trails in my Day Hiking Trails of the Chippewa Valley guidebook.

Extensive forested area sits in metro area

Trail through Putnam Park State Natural Area, courtesy WI DNR. 

Topo map for trail.

Day hikers can enjoy a walk along two waterways through a wildlife-laden forest in the heart of western Wisconsin’s largest metro area.

Several undesignated trails runs through the Putnam Park State Natural Area in Eau Claire, which boasts more than 70,000 residents. The University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire owns and maintains the 230-acre natural area.

Big trees
Putnam Park actually consists of two sections, which the university campus splits. Both sections are narrow, curving strips along waterways.

The western section sits on the Chippewa River. To access it, from campus parking lot #4, follow the interpretive trail into the state natural area.

The much larger eastern section is largely centered on Little Niagara Creek. It can be reached by walking alongside Putnam Drive, which starts across from campus parking lot #14.

Both areas are heavily forested, with red and white pines dominating the higher ground while hackberry, paper and river birch, and red maple and silver maple thrive in the lower, wetter areas. Tamarack and white cedar also can be found in the eastern portion’s wettest sections.

Day hikers will be impressed by the size of the trees, especially the red and white pine, which have largely been undisturbed for more than a century. Henry Cleveland Putnam donated the areas for the park to the city in 1909, wanting it set aside as a botanical laboratory because of the great variety of plants found there. Indeed, more than 400 species of plants have been documented.

Wildlife
With the diversity of plants and its size, the state natural area is a haven for an incredible range of animals for an urban area. At last count, 23 kinds of mammals – including beaver, white-tailed deer, and woodchucks – called the woods home. Six reptiles, including the prairie skink, also can be found there.

The state natural area is a great place for birdwatchers as well. About 100 bird species – such as eagles, hawks, wild turkeys, and woodpeckers – live there during summer.

One other species you’re certain to find are college researchers documenting plants and animals. In 1957, the city transferred the acreage to the Wisconsin State College, which later became the university.

Learn more about Chippewa Valley day hiking trails in my Day Hiking Trails of the Chippewa Valley guidebook.

Riverside trail includes S-shaped bridge

Banbury Bridge. Photo courtesy City of Eau Claire.

Map, Eau Claire River Route.

Day hikers can walk across a unique S-shaped bridge on a short urban trail in downtown Eau Claire, Wis.

The 0.6-mile round trip Eau Claire River Route – often referred to on maps as a side trail of the Chippewa River State Trail – runs alongside and crosses its namesake. Its connections with the main Chippewa River State Trail allow for quick access to various parks.

Park at the L.E. Phillips Memorial Library then cross South Dewey Street, heading east onto the paved trail. Breaks through the trees allow for views of the Eau Claire River, which in this stretch runs over a series of cascades.

The Eau Claire River is one of the Chippewa Rivers’ major tributaries, flowing for 40 miles out of the east. Two nearby dams back it up into reservoirs.

With the elevation changes on the river, a variety of trees can be spotted along the way, making for a colorful autumn walk. Eau Claire is officially a Tree City USA, and a walk along this trail proves why.

In short order, the trail curves northeast and crosses the river on a trestle S bridge that originally served the railroad. The bridge offers great views of the river and of Banbury Place, which sits on the river’s north side.

Now a complex of apartments, retail shops and offices, Banbury Place used to be the site of the Uniroyal tire plant that before closing its doors during the early 1990s was the city’s largest employer. More than 1350 people worked at the 1.9 million-square-foot plant. The complex stretches a quarter-mile in length.

Upon reaching the Chippewa River State Trail on the river’s north side, turn back. The Chippewa trail runs alongside busy Galloway Street and while pleasant for bicyclists, for hikers it’s more akin to a sidewalk.

If you wish to continue, however, going left/west on the Chippewa trail takes you to beautiful Phoenix Park; you also can turn it into a loop by heading left/south at North Dewey Street and heading to the library. Going right/east on the trail offers access to Boyd Park and the Fairway Trail which leads to Archery Park; just past Banbury Place, turn right/south onto the trail that crosses that river and via a wood-chip path enters Boyd Park.

Learn more about Chippewa Valley day hiking trails in my Day Hiking Trails of the Chippewa Valley guidebook.

Urban hike heads link historic area, park

Chippewa River State Trail from Historic Water Street District to Phoenix
Park in Eau Claire, Wis.

Chippewa River State Trail runs through heart of Eau Claire, Wis.

Day hikers can enjoy a pleasant urban hike along a river in the Chippewa Valley’s largest city.

Though most of the Chippewa River State Trail runs through rural areas, its most used portion sits in the middle of Eau Claire, Wisconsin. A 3.7-mile round trip segment of the trail links the Historic Water Street District to beautiful Phoenix Park.

People have used the route since at least 1882 when the Milwaukee Road set down a rail line on most of what is now the trail. The rail line was abandoned in 1980 and soon converted to a bicycling trail that also can be hiked. Like most former rail lines, the trail is fairly flat and wide (10 feet); much of it is also paved.

Start at the Chippewa River State Trail’s 10th Avenue trailhead. From Menomonie/Water Street, drive south onto 10th Avenue; a small parking lot sits at the road's end southwest of Hobbs Memorial Ice Center. A short stem trail then connects the lot to the Chippewa River trail.

Historic Water Street District
Once at the main trail, go right/north, heading through quiet neighborhood. At Seventh Avenue, you must walk along the street. Turn right/east at Menomonie Street and then pick up the trail again at Sixth Avenue. The trail then passes through Historic Water Street District with the Chippewa River on the trail's right/south side.

The majority of the business buildings in the Water Street District were constructed in the early 1880s. At that time, the lumber industry was king in the Chippewa Valley with logs floating from the Northwoods down the Chippewa River to sawmills in Eau Claire.

Upon leaving the historic district, the trail passes through a small stretch of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire campus, specifically in front of the Haas Fine Arts Building. The university’s music, theater arts, and arts programs, along with performance halls, are located there.

As the river curves north, so does the trail, crossing Water Street and running through Owen Park. Downtown Eau Claire sits on the opposite shoreline. At West Grand Avenue, a bridge crosses the Chippewa, linking the trail to downtown.

Phoenix Park
Next, the trail comes to the confluence of the Chippewa and Eau Claire rivers. North of the confluence, the trail swerves right/northeast and via a trestle bridge crosses the Chippewa and enters Phoenix Park.

A steel company sat on the site for decades, though you would’t guess that today. Several years after the manufacturer closed its doors, the city reclaimed the area as a green space, with the park opening in 2005. A Farmers' Market is held each Saturday at the park, making it an interesting urban hiking destination.

For day hikers, the park marks a good spot to turn back. The trail does continue east, though, following the Eau Claire River, with a spur crossing the waterway to the Fairway Trail, before swerving north at U.S. Hwy 53 on its way to Chippewa Falls.

Generally on the Chippewa River State Trail, passes are required for bicyclists, inline skaters, and horse riders but not for hikers or for casual walking. Pets also are allowed but must be on a leash no longer than 8 feet long.

Alternate south route: Back at the parking lot, going left/south rather than right/north takes you to a junction with the Lakeshore Trail that circles to Carson Park, or you can continue south out of town to Carryville and on to Tarant Park in Durand. The trail sticks to the Chippewa River shoreline the entire way.

Learn more about Chippewa Valley day hiking trails in my Day Hiking Trails of the Chippewa Valley guidebook.