Wednesday, November 1, 2023

Exploring Sauk County Wisconsin in the Fall

For our last fall weekend getaway of the year, we explored the southwestern part of our state, Sauk County.  Other than visiting Spring Green when I was in college, my husband and I have never really ventured that much into this part of the state.  There were several state parks we always wanted to see, so it was nice to finally be able to scratch them off our bucket list.

Natural Bridge State Park


Our first stop was Natural Bridge State Park.  This is a itty, bitty little park with one attraction, the natural rock bridge pictured above.  


There is one very short trail you can take in and out just to see the bridge, or you can hike the one mile loop. We chose the loop, it was a nice little walk through the woods and we saw several interesting rock formations.



The Natural Bridge is actually very impressive, but because I have been spoiled by Arches National Park, I wasn't awestruck.  I did include myself in the photo below so you could get an idea of its size.  I always find the trees growing out of the rock so interesting.  The bridge is 25 feet high and 35 feet wide.


The one mile loop was easy to follow and well maintained for a park that doesn't get a lot of visitors.  We were the only ones there until we were getting ready to leave, and then another car showed up.


There was one nice spot to get a view.



Tower Hill State Park



If you like history, Tower Hill State Park is the place for you.  The highlight of this park is its shot tower where they made lead shot in the late 1800s.


There are several old historic buildings and landmarks in this park.


There are two miles of trails in this park, where you can hike the bluffs and see river views, but we really just had time to see the tower, so we took the tower trail through the woods.


The Shot Tower is a short, steep climb up some stone steps.


Inside the tower you can read all about the history of the tower and see you the lead shots were made, plus you can look straight down into the tower!


After spending some time inside the tower, we walked around to the lower part.  We wanted to see the tunnel under the tower, but the trail to the tunnel was closed. 😢



The top and lower photos were taken below the tower looking up.


Governor Dodge State Park

Our next park, Governor Dodge State Park we heard so many good things about.  It's one of Wisconsin's largest state parks at 5,000 acres and considered a "family favorite".  We had high hopes about this park but honestly, we didn't like it.  The waterfall and trails were just "meh".  We really didn't like how all the trails were intertwined.  They seemed very hard to follow and not well marked.  And frankly, there just wasn't a whole lot of jaw dropping beauty in this park.  I think it's just located in a more populous part of the state full of city folk who don't get outdoors too often and don't have a clue about some of the beautiful parks in the rest of the state.


Like Tower Hill State Park, there is a lot of history in Governor Dodge State Park.  In 1948 Iowa County presented one of the farmsteads to the state of Wisconsin, and some buildings of this farm are still there, like this old spring house.

The easy, short, paved trail down to Stephens Falls, the parks biggest highlight, is very beautiful, especially in the fall.  Be sure to watch the last video at the end of the post showing me walking this lovely 0.5 mile trail.



You will have to watch the videos if you want to see the waterfall.  I did two videos:  one up close to the falls and then a full 360 view.  It was just trickling when we were there, but I guess in the spring there is a lot more water gushing over the edge.

The next trail we went on was to lead us to the next big highlight of the park:  Cave Trail.  I really didn't like the hike at all.  It was so hard to follow, and we had to hike two different trails, just to get to the Cave Trail Loop to see the Cave.  What could have just been a 1.2 mile loop ended up being a 4.3 mile out and back trail because we had to walk so far just to get to the loop.  


There are multiple lake views with the surrounding hillside on the Woodland Trail leading to the Cave Trail.




Eventually we made it to the Cave Trail Loop (I was beginning to wonder) and started seeing some interesting rock formations.



The cave is pictured below.  You can see my hubby peering inside.  You can go inside the cave a little bit, but neither one of us dared. 😱






Blue Mound State Park




We were disappointed we never got to see any great high views in Governor Dodge State Park.  We read reviews of other trails in the park that might have offered views but everyone said they were overgrown, weedy, tick-infested, and hard to follow so that discouraged us not to try them.  However, we did discover that there was another park nearby that had not one, but TWO towers you could climb to see great views, so we decided to check it out.


It was just a short hike from the parking lot to the tower and we finally got the fabulous fall views we were looking for!


 We drove around this little park before leaving and decided we liked it more than Governor Dodge State Park and wanted to come back another time to explore it more.  We learned it's the only state park in Wisconsin with a swimming pool and splash pad, so we thought it would be a great place to take the grandkids!

And before you go, be sure to watch these short videos of Governor Dodge State Park.




Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!

33 comments:

  1. Oh I get so frustrated hiking places where the trails aren't well marked; most of the Audubon places in our state are like that. They have some trail markers out in the trails but the names do match up with anything on any of their maps or they cross each other so many times we can't keep track of what trail we're on at any given moment. It really does take away from the enjoyment. Other than one disappointing park it does sound like you found some other neat little gems. That natural bridge is really neat looking and those views are incredible in the last park.

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    1. I'm so happy to have a friend who can relate. I always say to my husband "I want the job where I get paid to hike all the trails and mark them the way the average person thinks." :). I can't tell you how many times we're hiking and then we come to a fork in the trail and there is no marker. No wonder people get lost. And we are very experienced hikers too, and we still always have trouble.

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  2. Beautiful places to hike! We know some friends from Eau Claire. Not sure how far that is from them.

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    1. They sure are. We actually live 45 minutes from Eau Claire and it's our go-to place for shopping/church/work, etc. These parks are about three hours south from Eau Claire.

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    2. A friend of mine just complete her post on my blog. Check it out
      at https://mvmaithai.blogspot.com/2023/11/fall-foliage-in-eau-claire-wi.html

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  3. That natural bridge is beautiful. I love state parks.

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  4. Enjoyed seeing your pics. Love all the rock formations! Thanks so much for linking up at the #UnlimitedLinkParty 136. Pinned.

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  5. On our recent trip to McKinney Falls SP in Austin, TX we spent a whole morning wandering around looking for the two falls in the park. Luckily there was a Wilderness Class in the park learning to use a compass so I was able to ask the teacher to point us in the right direction! I enjoyed your tour of the parks you hiked in and am glad you warned us about the one disappointing state park.

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    1. Yes, a compass would come in handy in some of these parks. You might still like Governor Dodge State Park. It's very popular. They have two lakes and two beaches, we're just more into hiking than lakes and we didn't care for the trails.

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  6. You got some beautiful pictures here, especially love the natural bridge! Sorry one park wasn't what you hoped for, you still have some pretty pictures from it but I can understand the frustration of unmarked trails.

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  7. Oh, my gosh, the serenity of those hikes. Almost soundless except that water dripping. I miss hiking. PC just hasn't been up to doing much since his surgery in June. We go back to the doctor next week. Hope maybe he can suggest something that will boost his energy and stamina. Lovely land bridge. Great shots of the tunnel under the bridge and the steps up to the tower.

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    1. Yes, it was very quiet as there weren't many other hikers. I'm sorry to hear that about PC. That's strange that he had the surgery so long ago and still isn't feeling himself. Thanks so much.

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  8. Amy, CONGRATS! Your post is FEATURED at the #UnlimitedLinkParty 137!

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  9. So lovely! The colors are beautiful. I love the ferns! Thank you for sharing this post at the Will Blog for Comments #14 linkup. Hope to see you there next week as well!

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  10. Absolutely outstanding hike and beautiful area. We have recently (actually about a year ago) moved to a new area with lots and lots of hiking areas and only now after my knee surgery and recovery being able to start doing hikes. Oh, it's so so pretty.
    Thank you for sharing your links with us at #286 SSPS Linky. See you again next week.
    Feel free to come and share your pictures with us at our weekly #WW as well

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    1. Thank you. I just had hip surgery two and half weeks ago, so I can relate. Glad you can hike again!

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  11. Amy, thank you so much for sharing your lovely photos from your nature hike at The Crazy Little Love Birds link party #12. It's always a pleasure to have you join us.

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  12. These photos look so beautiful! What a wonderful place to hike!

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  13. I love road trips and how great to find a vacation spot so close to home. Love your caputures here good job!

    Allie of
    www.allienyc.com

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  14. Another place I'd love to visit, and it's not terribly far from where we live. Thanks for sharing! Visiting from Sweet Tea & Friends today.

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    1. It's a very pretty area. I want to go back in the summer and explore the Spring Green area some more.

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  15. Sauk County sounds beautiful. I love your photos.
    Thanks bunches for sharing this with Sweet Tea & Friends this month dear friend.

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