The Devil's Punchbowl

Last week I finished my summer travel series to Minnesota's North Shore and now I'm going to share a few posts of our fall hiking adventures.  

Every Sunday, weather permitting, we went hiking after church.  We went to some familiar places, but we also found a few new places to hike like "The Devil's Punchbowl".

The Devil's Punchbowl is a nature preserve located in Menomonie, Wisconsin.  The "bowl" was carved by water over the course of thousands of years.  What you see at the bowl depends on the season, in the spring you could see water flowing over the edge into the bowl, and in the winter there are fabulous ice formations.  We were there in fall, and there was no waterfall, but we could definitely see water seeping from the rocks.

There are two short trails leading to the bowl.  The first one, gives you a view from of the bowl from the top.  The second trail takes you right into the bowl.

This is the view from the first trail, looking down into the bowl.

Now it was time to descend a lot of stairs down into The Devil's Punchbowl.

The bottom of the bowl is very muddy.  I did not bring appropriate footwear, so I stayed close to the stairs while hubby ventured further.

The punchbowl was deemed a "scientific study area" in the 1990's as it is basically a mini ecosystem with cliffs, waterfalls, underground springs, and other incredible natural features. 

The stairs were just re-done, and I must say they did a fabulous job!

I really enjoyed our little stop at The Devil's Punchbowl, but I'd love to see it in other seasons like spring/summer where I can see the waterfall and lush foliage and rare fauna, or in winter to see the amazing ice formations made by the water.  We might just have to go back!

Have A Great Day!  Amy

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