Ice Age Trail Alliance Celebrate the National Parks Centennial
Chippewa Moraine Chapter On the Ice Age National Scenic Trail
Ice Age Trail Dispatch
August 2016
August Hike This Sunday August 7 at 1 PM
Get out and enjoy a late summer Sunday afternoon hike in the Chippewa Moraine area this Sunday, Aug. 7, at 1 PM. Thousand-miler JoAnn Parks leads us on a walk through the woods as we explore and look for Indian Paintbrush, frogs, and whatever else presents itself. No work today, just a chance to kick back and enjoy the trail. Younger adventurers are welcome.
We’ll meet at the Obey Interpretive Center at the Chippewa Moraine, 13394 Co Hwy M, New Auburn WI 54757, at 1 PM. Bring along water and a snack, and of course your favorite insect strategy.
Mark the Date: Trail Improvement Day on Saturday, Aug 27
Late August brings enjoyable work weather, and we’ll capture some of that for our August Trail Improvement Day. The summer storms have left lots of disturbance to clean up, and several bridges need some tender loving care as well. We will meet at 9 AM on Saturday, Aug. 27, at the Obey Interpretive Center and head to our worksites from there.
Bring along lunch, water, snack, work gloves, and insect strategy of choice. In order to make the best use of your time, please email Jerry Sazama with your plans to attend, and how long you can stay. For more information, call Jerry (715) 723-6955.
Significant Blowdown Leaves Its Mark
Heavy winds early in the morning of July 27 left nearly 100 trees down across the trail or in tangled knots, causing some temporary closures and very difficult hiking in the Harwood Lake segment. The damage was most severe in an area near the Deerfly Trail. Small groups of volunteers were able to wield chainsaws and hand saws and untangle the mess and leave the route generally passable within 10 days. But there are still plenty of downed branches, especially west of Deerfly Trail, which will slow down hikers for awhile until they can all be removed.
We plan to be working again on Friday, Aug 5 to clear more trees and clean up the debris. If you’d like to join, please email the chapter.
NPS Centennial Photo Exhibit Continues at Heyde Center through Aug 26
Don’t forget to check out the NPS Centennial Photo Exhibit at the Heyde Center before August 26. The exhibit features photos and information about a wide variety of National Park Service properties, near and far and well-known and more obscure, including one from the Ice Age Trail. The images are displayed in three galleries and the main floor hall, so allow some time to see it all.
The exhibit can be viewed during regular Heyde Center hours at no charge. The Heyde Center is open weekdays, Mon - Thursday 10-5, Friday 10-4, and during events. The Heyde Center is at 3 South High St., Chippewa Falls WI. More information. Directions
IAT Display Coming Soon to the Chippewa Falls Library
Watch for an Ice Age Trail display coming to the Chippewa Falls Library in mid August. The display will highlight the trail and the many resources available to learn about it, from books to maps to brochures, many of which are available either from the library or right there at the display. The display also celebrates the August 26th centennial of the National Park Service, of which the Ice Age National Scenic Trail is a part.
Trail Condition Reports
Our recent experience with storm damage has brought to light where you can find trail condition postings on the Ice Age Trail Alliance website, http://www.iceagetrail.org. When you want to check the trail status in a particular area, especially if its away from home, go to the interactive map. To open the map, click on “FIND the TRAIL” in a bright yellow box on the right side of the page. When you get to the map, be sure to check the box for Trail Conditions under the map, then zoom into the area of your destination. Or you could bookmark the page: http://www.iceagetrail.org/trail-maps-guidebooks/. In addition to Trail Conditions, you can choose to highlight Parking areas, Trail Stories, and suggested hike Itineraries.
Where to Find IATA and Chapter Event Information
The go-to place to find current information about all our chapter events and IATA events everywhere is the calendar at the IATA website, www.iceagetrail.org. The Calendar link is at the upper right corner of the page, or bookmark www.iceagetrail.org/events/. To find our chapter-specific events, either choose Chippewa Moraine from the dropdown menu under Event Category and click the “Find Events” button, or just bookmark this button ⬇︎
Chippewa Moraine Chapter Events