April 30, 2013

This was our first trip up to Devil’s Lake this year. The temperature was a nice warm 84 degrees after a rainy start in the early morning.  We needed lots of energy for hiking so first, we stopped at the Iron Skillet restaurant at the Petrol Stopping Center in Portage. In the entrance they have a cute bear that they dress up for the holidays. He is currently celebrating Cinco de Mayo.

After enjoying their breakfast buffet and getting very full, we arrived at Devil’s Lake.

Our hike began at the East Bluff trailhead, a beautiful butterfly sent us off.

After a steep climb up, we were treated to a breathtaking view of Lake Wisconsin and the woods below.

Do you notice the rippled rock?  That was once an ocean bottom that was here long before.  We saw this too at Ableman’s Gorge in Rock Springs.  As a recap, here is Ableman’s rockface.

A few people were up there hiking, we got our picture taken by a friendly hiker. After that, we headed back to ground level on the CCC Trail.  The trail is only .3 miles, but it’s all up/down on stone steps. My legs sore for two days after that 🙂   Beginning our descent, Al stood under a rock face. He is 6’3″ so this gives you an idea of the scale.   Just ahead were rock climbers.

This view was taken standing while standing on one of the rocks as we headed down.

We made it down!  Now we head west on the Grottos trail towards the lake. We look up to where we were. We are going through the Oak Forest.

Soon we caught sight of the South Shore, then we walked north along the railroad track to head back to the car. Directly across from us are cabins, only 3 three remain. Hearesay is the owners signed 100 year leases to continue living there.

Rounding the bend, we catch sight of the lodge and shelter.

I catch sight of Scaup ducks swimming in the choppy water.

We had a great hike, but long.  Total distance 4.6 miles over 4 hours.  Be sure to bring a snack and wear Camelbaks for adequate water.  A great day for a hike!

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