Day 26: Tuesday August 5th, 2014
Location: Devil’s Staircase Segment, Rock County
We are people who
typically try to fit a little more into a vacation than should properly
fit. This last week we were completing
another journey, following the trail of Makataimeshekiakiak - a.k.a. Black Hawk - through Illinois
and Wisconsin. Trying to peacefully
reclaim the land which had been stolen from him in an effort to feed his
starving people, he was attacked, chased, and eventually captured. Along the way, over 1000 of his followers
died of exhaustion, starvation, exposure, and murder. The tale is a long one – you can read more
about this adventure in my other blog http://blackhawkjourney.blogspot.com/.
So as I said – we were
at the end of a week-long vacation and found ourselves in the Janesville area,
and decided we’d tackle a bit of the trail.
We actually had our bikes with us, but we were in a single car, so
anything we did we had to do twice.
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The Devil’s Staircase
segment has a bad reputation – perpetuated by the foreboding name. In truth – it’s really not all that bad. It is a 1-mile flat roadwalk followed by 0.7
miles of up-and-down terrain made hazardous by the precipitous fall one would
take, should one slip ever so slightly to the downhill side. There are, as the name would suggest, a
number of stone staircases built by long hard labor in what was clearly a hostile
environment. Ledges of stone and dirt were
hacked away creating a Billy goat trail that clings to the side of the cliff
face. It’s not a big cliff, but it’s a
big first step down, and a fall I would not bounce back from unscathed. At one time, the foot traveler was protected
by a sturdy steel cable, affixed to sturdy steel posts, set into the downhill
side of the trail using concrete footings.
I know this because the mangled remains of this system hangs, bent and broken,
in a mostly useless parody of its former self.
I don’t know if it was destroyed when the people who did it would have
been called ruffians, juvenile delinquents, hoodlums, punks or gangbangers, but
the effect is the same. .JPG)
Enough about the bad
stuff. The history of this segment of
trail is delightful. It was built in the
1930s by the CCC, and had deteriorated severely. The Ice Age Trail Alliance, in cooperation
with local government, business, and the golf course, organized an effort to
reclaim and reopen this trail, and it is now an area so ruggedly isolated from
its urban surroundings that hiking is dominated by the scenic view of the Rock
River, even though train tracks and a golf course are a mere 100 above you. You literally lose yourself in the wild feel
of this piece of trail.
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We hiked the section from
east to west, starting in Riverside Park and ending at Washington Street. Of course that meant we had to leave bikes at
Washington Street and bike back when we were done. It was dry and hot when we went there, and I
had a great time looking at the river and the cliffs, but I can see how this
could be far more dangerous in wet weather.
The most noteworthy thing I remember was reaching the end of the trail
and climbing the last stone-step staircase and finding ourselves – surprise! –
on a golf course. It was like coming
back through the wardrobe from the land of Narnia. We even had to wait for a train before we
could cross the track. I simply love the
fact that Janesville has a little hidden gem like this.
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| See the golf course? Neither did we |
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| Rock River View - even the opposite shore is unspoiled |
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| One of several cliff views |
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| Last view of the Rock River |
Down the short remaining
path to the bikes, we climbed into the saddle and rode up Washington Street
(this was actually more dangerous than the hike) and back down to the beginning
of the segment, on Parkside Drive. At
this point we had walked the trail part of Devil’s Staircase and had the road
portion left, exactly 1 mile along the Rock River.
As we do with most of
the road sections of trail, we biked this last mile back to the car. It was 80 degrees and humid when we started
at 4:00 pm, and still 76 degrees and humid when we ended at 6:26 pm. Two and half hours may seem like a very long
time for less than two miles, part of it on bicycle, but I blame the heat and
the fact that we were at the end of a long, arduous vacation already. We were in no hurry, and there was more to do
that day. I'd rate this as a grade 'C+' trail. could definitely stand another round of improvements.
Running total: 217.3 miles of
trail covered; 18.0 miles ‘extra’ hiking/biking.
Day 26 continued
Opportunity and enthusiasm
overruled common sense and we decided to keep going. The days were long, and we knew that what
laid before us was essentially a bike trail through the city of
Janesville. We had previously left 1.6
miles of the westernmost part of the Janesville segment unfinished, and another
4.7 miles of the easternmost part undone. We
drove back to the South Pavilion on Riverside Drive and headed south along the
river at 7 pm, the thermometer still showing 77 degrees. We rode in companionable silence along the
riverfront for 1.6 miles, enjoying the shade of the many trees and the smiles
and waves from walkers, riders, joggers, and anyone else we met on the
way. Then we reached the point we had
walked to the previous February in a blizzard (that
story here) and then biked back up to the car. It was utterly peaceful and uneventful, and soon
we found ourselves loading up the bikes and heading for the other end of the
Janesville segment.
Running total: 218.9 miles of
trail covered; 19.6 miles ‘extra’ hiking/biking.
Day 26 continued
We drove over to the eastern end
of the Janesville Segment to cover as much of the remaining bike trail as we
could, which for us meant getting to the exact place where the trail cuts
underneath I-39 and heading north. So we
parked at Ruger Avenue and rode south the tiny bit until we found our starting
point, then headed north. I’ll say one
thing for Janesville. They really
maintain this pathway well, and it is well-loved and well-used by its
residents. Walkers, bikers,
skateboarders and more all share the trail with equal delight and respect, and
there was hardly a scrap of litter visible anywhere. This paved two-lane bike path rolled
charmingly up and down small hills and through the forested green-spaces set
aside by the city. Alas, we were facing
darkness, and with a return trip necessitated by our single-vehicle status, we
turned around at N Wright Road and headed back for the car. It was 8 pm and it was still 77 degrees. We had achieved 3 more miles of trail covered on
this end (twice), leaving us 1.7 miles more for our next trip here, whenever
that may be.
Running total: 221.9 miles of
trail covered; 22.6 miles ‘extra’ hiking/biking. End of Day 26.
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