Day 174: Thornapple Creek Segment (Part 2), Connecting Route, Marathon County

Day 174: Monday, May 16th, 2022

Total Miles hiked for the day: 4.5; Net Miles 0.0

Location 1: The road portion of the Thornapple Creek Segment along Thornapple Creek Road and County Road Z 

1.0 Miles of trail covered

Today starts a new phase in our hiking. Even though we still have 34.3 miles left to hike to complete our fist goal - walking or biking the whole Ice Age Trail - we have firmly determined that our new objective was to get our Thousand-miler status. To do that we would have to go back and walk off all those segments and bits of roadway that we bicycled in the past. 

This provides a unique opportunity for us, because for the first time in ages we now have hiking we can do close to home. 

It's been reasonably warm today - mid to upper 60s, but also windy. Like 20 mph+ windy. So it was also a bit cold. Theresa took the opportunity to come up here earlier today and walk these miles off while I was working, and I drove up after work to meet her. She was then able to be my trail angel while I put on my long legs and started cutting down the miles. 

Theresa took me down to the north end of the Thornapple Creek Segment and I started north at a half-trot. It was paved, and it was basically level, though not utterly so. It was about 6:30 at that point. The wind was dropping, but so were the temperatures. 

When I reached County Z I had to turn north, and head uphill a bit from the river. It was a short distance to the south Trailhead. 

I like spring everywhere, but I've grown very fond of spring in central Wisconsin. 

And I have been looking for these fellows for weeks. All that time I've been wandering around down south wondering where all the trillium are, thinking they were very, very late this year, only to come back home and find out they've been here all along, just waiting for me to notice. 

And not just one trillium, but thousands of them. 

By 6:38 I was finished with that mile of roadway and headed to the next. 

Location 2: The connecting route immediately east of the Dells of the Eau Claire Segment  

3.5 Miles of trail covered

Next, I had Theresa drive me to the south end of the Plover River Segment so I could start walking back west. 

I hike in a hurry when I'm on the road putting on miles, but I try hard not to miss any of the good stuff. Like this old birdhouse someone put up years ago. 

Or these old friends, the bellwort. 

Hello, marsh marigold!

Beautiful horses.

And even a couple of goats. 

It was 3.5 straight and uneventful miles from the Plover River Segment to the Dells of the Eau Claire segment. Some of it is gravel, and some of it is paved. All of it is lonely, and there are few hills to bother about. There are a lot of pretty trees and other nice things to hear, see and smell as you go. 

Today we finished map 40, again, and for the last time. No more 'biked miles' on this map. 

The accounting of miles is now a little funky as we replace biked miles with hiked miles. I decided the easiest thing I can do is tally the changes and not alter the Running Total. 

• Zero new miles covered
• Completed map 40
• Converted 4.5 miles from biked to hiked
• 303.2 miles to go

Running Total: 1175.5 miles of trail covered, 163.0 miles 'extra' hiking/biking. End of Day 174.

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