We spent three nights recently at Wildcat Mountain State Park in
the driftless region of southwestern Wisconsin near the small town of
Ontario. While the glaciers barreled through much of Wisconsin leaving
many rounded land forms and lakes, the driftless region features deeply
carved river valleys. The Kickapoo River meanders back and forth for 126
miles, nearly meeting itself at times, before entering the Wisconsin
River.
We live fairly close to Devil’s Lake State Park, which has more
visitors than many national parks. In the summer, that park is filled
with crowds of tourists. Campgrounds book up quickly, beginning 11
months in advance. We were looking for a different experience without
having to drive more than two hours, and we found that at Wildcat
Mountain State Park. The campground had about half a dozen sites with
electric hookups, a bunch more rustic sites without hookups, and more
walk-in tent sites. For all campers, there were flush toilets, hot
showers, picnic tables, campfire rings, and a dump station. We had no
trouble getting reservations a few weeks ahead of time, and some
non-electric sites were still vacant for those showing up on Saturday
night. We rarely encountered hikers on the trails and never felt
crowded.
The longest trail in the park is Old Settler’s Trail (2.5 miles). It
rises up and down steep valleys and crosses several streams. Hemlock
Trail is shorter but climbs to the top of Mount Pisgah ( a big hill).
Most of the Hemlock Trail is in a state-protected natural area and
doesn’t allow dogs, although we didn’t see the small sign until after we
completed the hike. Callie said that it didn’t matter because she is
part dingo and not really a dog. The last trail that we hiked in the
park was the Ice Cave Trail. In June, it features a small waterfall.
While I kicked back with a book/nap, Julia went on to kayak for two
hours down the Kickapoo.
We then drove through the back-roads of Amish farms and stores, which
featured freshly- picked morel mushrooms (only in season this time of
year), maple syrup, baked goods, honey, and many other items. One farm
advertised fresh trout, and it turned out that the fish were so fresh,
they hadn’t been caught yet. If you could catch one, the Amish would
clean the fish for you as part of the price.
We passed on the trout, but we did scoop up morel mushrooms, maple syrup, and home-made chocolate toffee.
That night we prepared our mushrooms (sauteed with a whole stick of
butter), steak, and a spinach salad, washed down with Snappy IPA brewed
by the Hillsborough Brewing Company. Then we enjoyed a campfire and
daylight that continued past 9:30 p.m.
On Saturday, it rained off and on, but we found time to drive to the
Kickapoo Valley Reserve,
which is a beautiful 8,600 acre tract of land between LaFarge and
Ontario. Because the trails were very muddy, we stayed on the paved and
gravel portions of the multi-use bike, horse, and hiking trails. We
only saw two people on our hour hike. One young man was Amish and brave
enough to make a friend of Callie.
Saturday afternoon, we drove to the Hillsboro Brewing Company for
nachos and tap beer. Julia had “Treat Yo Self” (unfiltered northeastern
IPA, and I had a Contented Cow (milk stout). I loved the space, but
they are moving to a bigger space with more parking.
By Saturday night, the skies had cleared, and we had another long
campfire. Even at 10 p.m. the skies were not completely dark. Temp
dropped into the 40’s, which made for great sleeping. We got up early
Sunday morning for breakfast and one last hike.
This
is not the first time we’ve been to Wildcat Mountain, but it has been
many years and far too long since the last time. Julia liked the area
and the Amish vibe so much that we had to check out the real estate
listings in LaFarge. But the good thing about the Brew Hut is that we
don’t have to buy real estate or a cabin to enjoy an area. There are
many undiscovered and re-discovered gems, such as Wildcat Mountain.
Having said that, we will be back and hopefully soon.
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