Day Four Of Our Wisconsin Staycation: Wyalusing State Park

Like many people this year, due to Covid we had to cancel our big vacation plans and take smaller ones closer to home.  One of the things we did was take a "Staycation" in our home state of Wisconsin.  Most of our activities involved just a day trip (see these posts HERE and HERE) but we also did one overnight trip so we could go kayaking on the Kickapoo River, and then visit Wyalusing State Park the next morning. 

Wyalusing State Park is one of Wisconsin's oldest state parks.  It encompasses 2700 acres with amazing overlooks of the confluence of the Wisconsin and Mississippi Rivers. It has 14 miles of hiking trails, and we had plans to hike a lot of those trails, but it ended up being such a hot and humid day we were quite miserable.  So, we hiked only one loop and called it good, planning to come back in the fall when it is cooler to see the colors.  It ended up being a good thing we left early because we had to take quite a long detour home as a major road was closed.

After looking at a map, we decided to do a loop and take the Old Wagon Road Trail to Bluff Trail, and then back to the parking lot.

Wyalusing is located on the very bottom west of our state.  We are rarely in this area, so we really wanted to make it a point to see this park.  It's a shame we couldn't stay longer to explore.

The Old Wagon Trail was originally built to carry wagons from the bluff tops to Walnut Eddy.  It is a very forested trail.  Most of the trail looks like the top two pictures.  We did cross a little stream at one point, and when you near the end of the trail you are actually walking along the side of the bluff and can see pretty views like this through the trees.  I would imagine in the fall/winter when the tree foliage is gone, the scenic views will be much more grand.

Once we neared the end of the Old Wagon Road Trail we hooked into the Bluff Trail, which was an absolutely incredible experience.  It's a series of steps surrounding massive rocks leading to a small cave and another scenic view.

Most of this trail is fenced off for safety.

As always, my eye was drawn to all the moss covered rocks and ferns growing everywhere.

It's always fun to see how far you've climbed.

This little space between the rocks is part of the trail.  What a fun place to explore!

Here is hubby on the other side.

This steep staircase leads to "Treasure Cave" a small limestone cave.

I was a little nervous getting too close to the cave fearing bats would suddenly fly out.

Coming down the staircase was a little more difficult than climbing up.  Hubby suggested I turn around and climb down as if I were on a ladder.  That worked much better!

This little side excursion off the trail is called "The Knob".  It suddenly comes to a complete stop, so we had to turn around back the way we came.

At the end of Bluff Trail is another scenic overlook.  Picture time!

If you're wondering what that is around my neck, it's a waterproof IPhone case.  I used it the day before kayaking, and actually found it quite handy for hiking because I didn't have to hold my phone the whole time.  

Because we were so hot and dripping wet from the heat and humidity, we decided not to hike anymore trails.  We did however drive through the park to check out their campsites (which are amazing, because they are high on top of a bluff, so all the campers have amazing views) and the boat landing.

People fish off this pier, but most people come here to get their boats, kayaks, and canoes in the water.  Wyalusing State Park actually has a six mile canoe trail that takes you through the Mississippi backwaters to the main channel.  You can rent canoes at the park concession stand.

And that concludes our Wisconsin Staycation!  We do have other plans this summer/fall, so you will be seeing more travel posts soon!

Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!

 

Day Three Of Our Wisconsin Staycation: Kayaking On The Kickapoo River!

Like everyone else in the world, Covid has affected our lives in many ways, one of them not being able to travel.  We normally take at least two major road trips across the country in a year and multiple smaller trips.  This year, we cancelled our major road trips and decided to stay closer to home.  We went on several day trips to go hiking, but we also did an overnight trip to Ontario Wisconsin so we could kayak on the Kickapoo River.

Ontario, Wisconsin is known as the "Canoe Capitol of the Kickapoo".  People come from all over to canoe, tube, or kayak this shallow, gentle river with gorgeous scenic views.  

Now I can not swim, and I am terrified of water, so I was pretty nervous about getting in a kayak.  I've only been in a canoe once in my life, and never in a kayak.  So my husband rented us a tandem kayak and he did all the paddling and steering.  I just sat in front and enjoyed the ride.

And quite a view it was!  The scenery is very diverse so you are never bored.  Sometimes you are in an open, sunny area surrounded by prairie land, then you paddle a little ways and you're seeing forests and amazing rock formations.

We rented our kayaks from Drifty's Canoe Rental, but there are multiple rental agencies available in the area.  You can choose how long you want to kayak ranging from  two and half hours to two days.  We chose the four hour trip, which was just the perfect amount of time for us beginners.  If you have your own canoes/kayaks, you can just pay to be picked up.

There are multiple bridges on the Kickapoo River and they are all labeled.  When you rent your kayak, they tell you what bridge to get off and then a bus or van picks you up and takes you back to your car.

We first heard of kayaking on the Kickapoo River when we went on a fall hike to Wildcat Mountain four years ago.   It was on that hike that we saw all the kayakers in the river and thought how fun that would be.  My husband has wanted to go ever since, but it took Covid to make it all possible because we were always headed out of state for vacations before that.

I just loved all the gorgeous, moss covered rock formations.

My son vacationed with us all week.  He really enjoyed this experience too.  He had his own kayak and like us, he never did it before either.  He managed pretty well and said "Either this is really easy, or I'm just naturally good at this!". 😂 Of course we were in the most shallow, gentle river possible.  There was only one small rapid part...that was my son's favorite.  He wished there were more of those.  I said "Well, we've never been kayaking before,  and I can't swim, so we wanted a safe river."  We did make a lot of mistakes.  If I ever go kayaking again, I'm gonna study up on it.  We almost tipped over once, but re-steadied ourselves.  And it was super hard to stop and land our canoe.  We almost missed our bridge stop!

We had so much fun!  The only bad part of the day was that my son left his sun hat in the car.  He just shaved his head and was worried about burning it so he took his shirt off and put it on his head.  He ended up getting the worst sunburn of his life on his chest.  He put sunscreen on his back, and he thought he put enough on his chest/stomach, but apparently he did not.  I was really worried about him for days and didn't know if we should take him to the ER.  We just read on the Internet what caution signs to look out for (blisters, fever, etc.) and he never had any of those so we just self treated at home.

I just bought a new Phone and I was really worried about dropping it in the water.  I had a waterproof case that I purchased when we hiked The Narrows at Zion last year, so I kept my phone in that around my neck.  It worked out really well!

I thought it was so cool to be kayaking and end up in the back of someone's farm land.  So picturesque!

It was so nice to see my such a big smile on my son's face!  He really appreciates coming home and being in nature now that he lives in the Chicago suburbs.  He always says about where he lives:  "Theres just too many people!" 😂

There were these beautiful tall yellow blooms everywhere on the river.  They were so stunning.

Finally, I want to leave you with a very short video of the trip where you can hear nothing but the sound of the water and the birds, and my own voice.  It was so peaceful.  We went on a weekday and started early in the morning, so there was hardly anyone there.  When I read the reviews on-line the only common complaint was that the river was too crowded with kayakers, many of whom were loud and rowdy.  We did not experience that.  Our bus driver said to always come during the week, because it's a lot less crowded.

Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up With These Fabulous Blogs HERE!

Ageless Style Link Up "The Heat Is On"

The Ageless Style Link Up-  The first Monday of every month a group of over forty fashion bloggers pick a monthly theme and show different ways of styling it. 

Welcome ladies to another Ageless Style Link Up.  This month's theme "The Heat Is On" was chosen by Debbie.  Debbie said "Do with it what you will...enjoy!" so I decided to feature an outfit  that I wore on a hot day visiting friends:  A day I really did "enjoy!".

Now if this outfit looks familiar to you, it's because it is!  I've shown it to you before HERE and HERE.  You will be seeing lots of my clothes on repeat, because I am just not buying new clothes during Covid...no matter how good the deals are.  I did buy a few pair of shoes, but that is all I've purchased the past five months.  Fashion just seems an unnecessary luxury during these trying times.

Now we've been having a lot of hot weather in Wisconsin this summer which is quite unusual for us.  When the weather gets warm, I like to wear lightweight clothes with the least material possible but still stay modestly dressed.  Skirts are my go-to item all summer long.  I wear shorts at home, but rarely wear them outside the house.  I prefer skirts or skorts to shorts anytime, and I enjoy off-the-shoulder tops like this one for keeping cool.

I also prefer comfortable sandals over sneakers or shoes.  They are so much more cooling than shoes that cover the entire foot.  I also have issues with my feet swelling on super hot/humid days, and sandals are more suitable footwear for that problem.

Now if you're wondering where all these beautiful photos have been taken and who these adorable pet animals are, they are all my dear friends.  She has lots of sun on her property, so she has the most beautiful flower gardens.  I am a lover of animals, especially cats, and I just went ga-ga over their kitten.  They also have two dogs, both of whom are as sweet as can be.

I will close this post with more pictures of my friend's beautiful garden.  Enjoy!

And now, be sure to check out the other ladies of Ageless Style and see how they interpreted the theme "The Heat Is On".

Amy ~ Amy's Creative Pursuits Blog, Facebook, Instagram, Google+, Pinterest

Bettye ~ Fashion Schlub Blog, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube

Daenel ~ Living outside the stacks Blog, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter

Debbie ~ Fashion Fairy Dust Bloglovin, Blog, Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter

Jennie ~ A Pocketful of Polka Dots Blog, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Bloglovin

Jodie ~ Jodie's Touch of Style Blog, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Bloglovin, Twitter

Julia ~ When the Girls Rule Blog, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram

Kellyann ~ This Blonde's Shopping Bag Blog, Instagram, Bloglovin, Twitter

Shelly ~ The Queen in Between Blog, Instagram, Bloglovin, Pinterest, Facebook

Shugunna ~ Nzuri N* Simplicity Blog, Pinterest, Instagram

Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!

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