Wednesday, July 29, 2020

Day Two of our Wisconsin Staycation: The Dells Of The Eau Claire

Have you ever lived somewhere and have always wanted to visit some sight nearby but never did?  Well for me one of the places I've always wanted to go to is "The Dells Of Eau Claire".  I saw so many beautiful pictures of this place and told my husband multiple times, "Someday we have to check it out".  Well, after living in the same area for over 25 years, my wish finally came true and we took a day trip to see the dells!  

Now, even though the dells are named "The Dells of Eau Claire" they are not actually located in Eau Claire but in a small town about fifteen miles from Wausau.  It is a county park, so you don't need a pass.  My husband could not believe this beautiful area was a county park and not a state park.  He said, "This is the prettiest county park I've ever seen!"


If you just want to see the dells, there is a parking lot nearby, and it's just a short walk from the lot to a scenic overview of the dells.  We however, decided to walk the Ice Age Trail, and boy we're we glad we did because it was one of the prettiest trails I ever did see.



The entire trail runs alongside the river, so you constantly have gorgeous river views and you're always hearing the soothing sound of water.  There are multiple bridges that add to the scenic beauty too!




You can leave the scenic view area and scramble down to the rocks, but there are lots of warning signs about swimming.  We did see one person swim in what appeared to be an area that did not have rapids, but most people stayed on the rocks.



If you look at the bottom, right hand corner of the picture below you can see someone swimming.


I loved that we could be up high and get a scenic view of the dells before going down into them to explore some more.


The trail leading to the dells was so peaceful and beautiful.  It meandered along the river, through a forest covered in moss and ferns.  My husband found this unique tree on our way to the dells.


There were plenty of scenic places to stop and take photos.



There were also plenty of spots where you could get off the trail and meander into the river a little bit.



All the bridges also provided lots of opportunity to get up high and see the river from the middle of it instead of the side.






My daughter and son-in-law gave me these walking sticks for Mother's Day.  I was so elated!  I've been wanting a pair ever since hiking in Zion National Park.  They are so helpful to me, I can keep up with "the boys" better with my walking sticks...especially when rock scrambling.



The Ice Age Trail is on one side of the river and the South River Trail is on the other.  I found the Ice Age Trail to be the prettiest trail, but the South River Trail is where you get your gorgeous, high up views of the dells.  We did them both as a 2.5 mile loop.  We started on the Ice Age Trail, the crossed a bridge to the other side when it came to an end and got onto the South River Trail to the dells and it eventually led us back to where we started.




I've always loved moss and ferns and there were plenty of both on this trail.  Look at how the bank of this river is covered in moss.  So pretty!


And I love this moss covered rock and tree.  Can you see the ferns growing on top of the rock?  Amazing!  No soil whatsoever, just growing in the organic matter on top of the rock.


Here is a close up of this beautiful moss covering the rock.


I hope you enjoyed reading about day two of our staycation.  If you're ever in the Wausau area, be sure to check out this pretty little county park.  You will be very pleased!

Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!

29 comments:

  1. That river and trees around are so beautiful. Thank you for sharing.

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    1. Yes they are! You're welcome. Thanks for visiting.

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  2. A fantastisc Post for the a Corner of the World. A wonderful day in nature.
    Stay healthy and well.

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  3. What a beautiful place to hike!!

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    1. It really was one of the prettiest hikes I've ever taken.

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  4. Such a beautiful place. I so want to visit there.

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  5. How great to find such beauty close to home! I love the rocks.

    I'm so happy to see your link at 'My Corner of the World' this week!! Thanks for linking up with us.

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    1. Yes! It's nice not to have to drive for days to get somewhere. Thanks for visiting.

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  6. Looks like a gorgeous place to hike! I'd love to explore the place.

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  7. Such a beautiful area! I love moss covered rocks! And yes, what a unique tree your husband found!

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    1. Yes it is! I am always fascinated with moss covered rocks too.

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  8. The dells remind me of Jay Cooke State Park in Minnesota. Really cool. I grew up near the real Eau Claire, WI.

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    1. Oh, I'll have to google that park and see if it's within driving distance for me. Small world!

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  9. Looks like a fun park! What a nice place to visit, walking around the river would be so relaxing :)

    Hope that you are having a great weekend :)

    Away From Blue

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    1. Yes it was. I hope you have a great weekend too.

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  10. That river and nature look amazing. I hope so that you have great time and enjoy so much.

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  11. So glad you finally made your way to the Dells Of The Eau Claire. Worth the wait!! In the photo where you are sitting on the rocks, the rocks in the foreground almost look like broken down cardboard boxes resting atop the water. Beautiful scenery.

    We walk with yucca walking sticks. We found them on a trail we were hiking. Took them home and decorated them and now hike with them every chance we get.

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    1. Yes, it definitely was worth the wait. A natural walking stick works great for hiking too, but what I like about my manufactured ones is that they have different tips for all types of terrain...including snow!

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  12. Oh, wow! What an exciting adventure! Lovely photos!

    xoxo
    Lovely

    http://mynameislovely.com

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  13. What an amazing hike you went on, I'm loving seeing nature at it's best and the fresh air and blue sky!
    Wren s

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    1. It definitely was. I love being out in nature too.

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  14. Looks a lot like our BC forests and rivers running over granite outcrops. - Margy

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