Wood ducks await at Jones Spring area trail

Wood ducks spend part of their year at Jones Spring.

Jones Spring area map.
Click map for larger version.

Day hikers can enjoy wildflowers and wood ducks in the northern portion of Wisconsin’s Jones Spring area.

The 4.7-miles looping Red Trail runs through Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest. This trail is best done in early spring before the ground has thawed or in late fall after a freeze, as parts of it can be overgrown by summer and too muddy to cross.

To reach the trailhead, From Townsend, take County Road T south. Turn right/west onto Unity Drive then right/west onto Sawyer Lake Road (Forest Road 2122). After crossing Mary Creek, park at the road going left/east into the woods.

Take the stem trail east to the Red Trail. In 0.2 miles at the next junction, you’ve reached the loop. Go left/south.

The loop runs atop a low ridge here. It passes a small pond on the left/east and then Jones Springs.

Wildflowers
The next junction, in a clearing at 1.7 miles, is a stem trail heading right/west to a parking lot off of Jones Spring Road. Continue left/southwest.

A hardwood forest dominates this section of the walk. A number of wildflowers can see here and in the nearby wetlands. Among them are butterfly milkweed, Indian pipe, Northern blue iris (usually blooming in June or July), and partridge berry.

At 2.4 miles, the trail arrives at the bottom leg of the loop. The leg is shared with the Yellow Trail. Go left/northeast.

The trail passes through a wetlands then crosses Mary Creek. Mud can be deep in sections – be forewarned that at times of the year it can be impassable, at least not without sinking up to your knees into the mire. Because of that, you may need to turn back here.

Wood ducks
Along the way through the wetlands areas, you may see wood duck boxes aimed at increasing the wood duck population.

Adult male wood ducks are quite striking. Their plumage is multicolored and iridescent with a white flare running the neck’s length. The eyes are red with black pupils.

Even if you don’t see a wood duck, you probably will hear one. The male’s call is a rising jeeeeee while females squeal cr-r-ek, cr-e-ek if alarmed and do weep do weep when fleeing.

Habitat loss and overhunting for meat and European hat fashions nearly wiped out the wood duck in the 1800s. New conservation laws and measures helped the wood duck begin rebounding by the 1920s. Today, Wisconsin is prime breeding ground for the aquatic fowl.

The next junction, at 3 miles, is at Fanny Lake’s southwest corner. The Red and Yellow trails split here. Turn left/north to start a new leg of the Red Trail loop.

Jones Spring Impoundment
After the trail curves west, it climbs a low ridge. The Jones Spring Impoundment, a six-acre pond and marsh, is on the trail’s right/north side at 4.3 miles. Sometimes sandhill cranes hang out at the wetlands.

The trail then crosses Mary Creek again.

The next junction, at 4.4 miles, heads northwest to Sawyer Lake Road. Continue left/southwest on the Red Trail.

Look for a trail going right/west at 4.5 miles. This is the stem trail that leads to your parking lot.

Dogs are allowed to use the trail but must be leashed. Be sure to bring insect repellent.

Hiking trail circles pretty lake in Twin Cities

Red Trail loops
Eagle Point Lake
on cities' east side

Day hikers can enjoy a leisurely stroll around a scenic lake on the Red Trail at Minnesota’s Lake Elmo Park Reserve.

While several trails crisscross the Washington County park, the one circling Eagle Point Lake offers pretty views and is among the easier to follow. The hard-packed gravel Red Trail forms a 3.7-mile loop.

To reach the trailhead, from Interstate 94 in Woodbury, take Keats Avenue north. At 10th Street, continue straight/north into the park. Use the parking lot on the north shore of Margaret Lake. From the lot's west side, go left/south on the trail to head clockwise around the lake. In short order, you’ll arrive at Eagle Point Lake’s southwest shore.

Woods and meadows
The trail’s southern side is wooded with a variety of trees, including oaks, maples, paper birches and cottonwoods but also a variety of evergreens, particularly cedar, spruce and white pine. This section of the trail makes for a pleasant autumn walk. Patches of meadows featuring islands of ash trees sit amid the woodlands.

Upon reaching a shelter on the lake’s west side, though, the feel of the trail changes. The western and northern sides of the trail run alongside more open and gently rolling oak prairie that feature wildflowers and spruce.

About half-way up the lake’s west side, hikers will notice a windmill left from the days when this section of the suburbs consisted of farms. Lines of evergreens grow across the preserve, most of them planted by those farmers as wind breaks.

Upon crossing Farney Creek, the trail is nearing the lake's northern end. While shallow, Eagle Point Lake makes up for it in surface area at 111 acres. The lake used to be larger, and the trail essentially follows what at one time was its old sandy bottom. Eagle Point is so named because eagles used to nest on one of its peninsulas.

Wildlife
The crossing over Raleigh Creek marks the rounding of the lake's northern tip. Red oaks grow on a knoll to the left/north while on the right/south are the foundations of a former dock. Hikers also can see across the entire length of the lake from a small viewpoint.

As traveling down the lake’s northeast side, hikers are likely to see white-tailed deer if not their tracks on the trail. Raccoons and foxes also reside in park, and the underbrush on this section of the trail makes a perfect habitat for them.

At Trail Junction 29, turn right/southeast then cross another creek. Upon reaching Trail Junction 30, go straight/east, but if your dawgs are tired, take a shortcut by turning onto the Blue Trail. If staying on the main Red Trail, at Trail Junction 31, go south back to parking lot.

As most of trail heads through meadows or the marsh grass-lined lake, it is exposed to the sunlight, so don a sunhat and sunscreen. Also note that the trail sometimes is referred to as Eagle Point Loop; it’s used as a cross country ski trail in winter, and is referred to here by that name.

Learn about trail guidebooks available in the Hittin’ the Trail series.

Trail heads to cascades over red granite rocks at Wisconsin park

Red Granite Falls. Photo courtesy of Markheffron2 / Wikipedia.

Great autumn hike
awaits Copper
Falls S.P. visitors

A river rapids over billion-year-old red-tinged rock awaits day hikers on the Red Granite Falls Trail in Wisconsin’s Copper Falls State Park.

The set of two loops, loosely shaped in a figure 8, runs 2.5-miles round trip to Red Granite Falls in the park’s southern corner. It’s also listed as the Red Trail on the park’s winter maps.

To reach the state park, from the village of Mellen take Wis. Hwy. 169 north. Enter the park by turning left onto Copper Falls Road, and park in the Loon Lake Beach lot. Head south to the beach and pick up the trailhead heading west.

A popular destination at the park, Loon Lake offers a sand beach, swimming area, and canoe launch. Fishermen often can be spotted vying for largemouth bass, northern pike and panfish there.

From the beach, the trail curves away from Loon Lake. It crosses a road and then intersects with a connecting trail going right/north. Shortly beyond that intersection, the trail enters its first loop; at that point, go right/west.

Because of the park’s diversity in trees, a great time to hike the trail is autumn. You’ll find the brilliant yellows of ironwood, paper birch and aspen, the blazing orange of sugar maple, and the scarlet of red oak mixed with the evergreen of hemlock and white pine. White cedars line the riverway.

Half-way through the loop, the trail reaches a connector linking the two loops. Head right/southwest onto the connector.

Wildlife aplenty
With all of the tree cover, you’re likely to spot and certainly see the signs of a variety of animals, including white-tailed deer, porcupines, fishers, raccoons, black bears, wood frogs, and red squirrels. Up to 200 bird species migrate through the park during spring and fall; northern ravens, great pileated woodpecker, chickadees, ruffed grouse, eagles, and loons are common. Each June and July, banded purple and tiger swallowtail butterflies descend upon the woodlands.

When the connector reaches the second loop, go right/west. You’re a little more than half-way on the loop to the Bad River once you pass beneath the power line. As the trail curves south, you’ll find yourself on the river’s shores.

More of a rapids than a falls, at Red Granite the Bad River tumbles over boulders alongside the trail. Though slippery, older children with adults can safely walk onto some of the rocks in the rapids.

Red Granite Falls owes its existence to lava flows from a billion years ago. For the past 200 million years, the Bad River has ran, except during glaciation, over the hardened lava or the sediment above it.

Winter use
In addition to the great geological scenery, the Bad River is an excellent place to fish for rainbow, brown and brook trout.

When the trail curves east away from the river, you’re on the route way back. To ensure you hike the parts of the loops not done on the way in, always go right at the trail intersections.

During winter, the trail is rolled with a snowmobile for snowshoeing and cold weather hiking. Cross country skiing also is allowed.

One final note: If you have a four-legged friend in your family: Dogs are welcomed on the trail, even during winter.

Find out about trail guidebooks available in the Hittin’ the Trail series.

Great trails abound at Kinnickinnic S.P.

Kinnickinnic River Delta, from the Purple Trail. Photo courtesy Wis. DNR.

For residents of the eastern Twin Cities and west-central Wisconsin, Kinnickinnic State Park offers a convenient central location to escape back to nature for a day.

The park is located on the St. Croix and Kinnickinnic rivers, almost equidistant from River Falls, Hudson, and Prescott, Wis. The latter two communities offer bridge access into Minnesota.

Among the trails at the state park (going from east to west):
g Red Trail – The 1.6-mile hike heads through prairie alongside a forest’s edge. Among the highlights is the Vulture’s Peak area. Near the park entrance, the set of two loops can be accessed from the park’s first two parking lot.
g Blue Trail – The 0.7-mile out-and-back trail (1.4-miles round trip) gives hikers the opportunity to explore gorges and coulees into the Kinnickinnic River Valley. Access the wooded trail from the second parking area past the park entrance. Add the 0.1-mile (0.2-miles round trip) Brown Trail, which serves as a sledding hill in winter, to extend the hike.
g Yellow Trail – The 1.2-mile loop edges a forest and prairie area. Watch for deer, pheasants and turkeys along the trail. The Kinni Overlook Lot is a good place to start; the trail can be extended by adding the Green, Orange or Purple trails.
g Orange Trail – A wooded out-and-back trail atop the Kinnickinnic River bluffs, it runs for 0.5 miles (1-mile round trip). Park at the Kinni Overlook Lot and access it via the Yellow Trail; add the Purple and Yellow trails for a longer walk.
g Green Trail – The trail loops about the outside of a prairie area under restoration and is an excellent place to spot partridge, pheasants and other birds. Access it via the Yellow Trail; from the Kinnic Overlook Lot, go left/north on the Yellow for a 1.6-mile round trip (The Green Trail itself is 1.1-miles long).
g Purple Trail – The 1.2-mile loop (when combined with a segment of the Yellow Trail), offers great views of the Kinnickinnic River Delta and the St. Croix River, as well as access to a swimming beach along the St. Croix. Park in the St. Croix Picnic Area Lot.

Read more about day hiking the scenic riverway in my guidebook Hittin’ the Trail: Day Hiking the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway.