Finding Fall in the Northwoods of Wisconsin

We wrapped up our trip to northern Wisconsin, completing another segment of the Ice Age Trail, and returning to Illinois on Monday. Even though we were only gone for 4 days, it felt like we were away for much longer. I won't lie, reentry was tough after being off the grid and immersed in beauty and solitude. This trip was wonderful. It also made me question why I'm postponing retirement, as I struggled to find my center this week. I'm hoping that with the Mammoth Trail Challenge completed and getting back into my routine, I'll feel more settled. 

If you missed my last 2 posts, here are the links to read about my other Mammoth Trail Challenge adventures:

Trail Magic

A Week of Challenges

Weekly Rundown

Sunday: Ice Age Trail Blue Hills North Segment 9 miles

Monday: drive back to Illinois

Tuesday: Yoga with Adriene

Wednesday: Fluid Running

Thursday: strength training

Friday: run 6 miles

Saturday: Yoga with Adriene

October total miles: 93

On Sunday, I wrapped up the Mammoth Hike Challenge with a 9-ish mile hike on a very challenging segment! My aunt's husband drove my son and me to the south trailhead after leaving my car at the north trailhead. This enabled us to hike the entire segment instead of doing an out-and-back, which I normally do. The segments up north are so much longer that having a sherpa is ideal--covering more ground than you would by yourself. 

 

Note the beaver dam along the bottom of the photo

This segment was probably the hardest one I've tackled yet. There were lots of hills, but more interesting were the parts of the trail that took us across several beaver dams. These were very narrow and required balancing skills. The beavers are very active in this segment, and their work was quite impressive. We saw lots of downed trees, as well as soon-to-be downed trees in progress, which are used to build the dams. One of the dams was about 7 feet high! They also built large lodges on the lake shores where they live during the day. The many lakes and creeks in this segment were a very pleasant surprise. 

beaver dam

We didn't see a lot of wildlife, but my son was excited to spot a few woodpeckers, including a red-headed woodpecker, a rare sighting indeed! I am so grateful to my son for accompanying me on this journey. The two segments we did 'up north' were such a treat. After completing the Blue Hills segment, I feel completely legit as a real trail runner, lol.

Part of the trail challenge requirements includes visiting at least 3 trail towns. I actually visited 4. While we were visiting my aunt, we checked out the little town of Rice Lake, meeting them for a beer at The Knapp Stout, a little pub in the quaint downtown. On the way home, my son and I stopped in Baraboo at our favorite place, Tumbled Rock, located right outside Devil's Lake State Park, for lunch and a beer. We also stopped at an apple orchard to pick up some apples to bring home. The fall colors were really popping in this part of the state! During the previous two weeks, I stopped in Lodi (naturally!) for some really delicious coffee at Codiwomple Coffee. I also bought a bag of beans to take home. In Whitewater, I stopped to buy gas, lol. I was too tired to go anywhere but home!

When I returned home, I wanted to give my legs a few days to recover. After all, the past 3 weekends had 15+ miles of running/hiking. So on Tuesday, I did a Yoga with Adriene class, and on Wednesday, I returned to the pool for a Fluid Running class. On Thursday, I went to the gym for strength training. It was a deload day, with back squats and bench presses, 4 sets of 3 reps at 70-80% were on the board. Since I missed Monday, which is deadlift day, I did those too. This was a perfect opportunity to tweak all 3 lifts and I focused on one issue I've been having with each lift. 

With bench presses, I've been struggling with keeping my shoulders down on the bench, so that was my focus. I did 4 sets at 65#. With back squats, yep, it was depth, and with 100# on my back, I was able to get low! With deadlifts, I worked on lifting with my legs and not my back, and was successful with 145#. Have I told you all how much I love deadlifting? I'm excited to see how my lifts go this upcoming week!

On Friday, it was back to the bike path for my fast Friday 6 miler. It was pitch black when I left the house; there still was not one sliver of light when I started running on the bike path. I won't lie, it was a little unnerving, and I even considered running on the street for 3 miles, then hopping on the bike path. But I was wearing my Noxgear vest and headlamp, and that really lit the way for me. I even passed a couple of other runners doing the same thing. It was cool and crisp, and my legs felt light for the first couple of miles. But after the turnaround, I really felt my effort and my pace slowed down. I'm not sure what it was, but I suspect the strength training the day before. The sun came up, and by the time I returned home, it was a beautiful morning!

Off the road...

While up in the northwoods, we stayed with my aunt and her husband, who live outside of Birchwood, on Big Cedar Lake. Every morning, they wake up to this view, and I can't imagine anything better.

How was your week? Are you enjoying fall colors? Do you enjoy getaways to nature? What goals are you working towards right now?

I'm linking up with Deborah and Kim for the Weekly Rundown.