The Turtle Rock segment of the Ice Age Trail is found about 15 miles North of Merrill, WI and makes use of both County and private land. Still within Northern Wisconsin this segment is part of the Ice Age Trail that is mostly trail with only a few road segments.
Merrill sits on the Wisconsin River and is surrounded by the absolute beauty of Northern Wisconsin. I will take the risk of alienating a whole part of Wisconsin but, for me, Northern Wisconsin starts at Hwy 29. Merrill is a couple dozen miles North of HWY 29. Travelling North, I-39/US 51 passed by Lake Du Bay and Eau Pleine Flowage. The highway continues North past Mosinee, but just after Mosinee a large ridge is crested and the view to the North is of a series of tree covered ridges dominated by Rib Mountain. HWY 29 is only a few miles away and the Wausau area begins the Eastern part of Northern Wisconsin, just as Chippewa Falls begins the Western part. My opinion, but if you ever do take that drive you’ll see well how my opinion is formed.
Merrill is a historic small town of around 10,000 souls. Much in keeping with a River town there are few streets in Merrill that are actually straight for more than a few blocks. The new round-about is confusing and ill-used, making driving a pull behind camper a real treat.
The history of Merrill is dominated by the logging industry that once owned every square acre of Northern Wisconsin. My first wife’s grandfather grew up in Merrill and, as a teenager, worked in the lumber camps in the early 1900’s. He also boasted the first personal automobile in Merrill with his family making a living as one of the few blacksmiths in town. When I’m in Merrill I’m ever aware of the history and people, Melvin’s stories come alive for me.
In 2000 I was part of the GRABAAWR (Great Annual Bicycle Adventure Along the Wisconsin River). Our stop after Day 2 was in Merrill. The first day went from Eagle River to Minoqua. That first day started with thunderstorms and ended trying to sleep in the hallway of a high school with 1100 other wet people, the humidity of wet clothing, and the sound of the electric hand dryers working overtime in the bathrooms. Day 2 started out from Minoqua with absolutely fantastic weather; temps in low 70’s, mostly sunshine, a light Westerly breeze. The ride was along the river and sported nearly constant views of the lakes, streams and rivers along the way to Merrill. My trip partner and I stopped at GrandFather Dam, one of the many dams along the Wisconsin River. In Merrill I had great pizza, got my bike fixed at the bike shop (who worked overtime when 1100 bikers rode into town). After two days of riding 30% of us had some kind of issue. I once again attempted to sleep in high school hallways. Ah, yes, great memories.
Merrill was also the location of the sectional cross country meet in 1986 that sent my team to the state competition. Yeah, I like Merrill.
Two years in a row my wife and I have come up to Council Grounds State Park in Merrill to camp while we go the Big Bull Falls Blues Festival. Yes, one of the highlights of the festival is having one of the bands lead vocalists try to say that 10 times fast. The music is great, the food is awful, the scenery is spectacular.
This year we went up a couple days early with the camper. One of the main features of the camping trip was to tick off another segment of the Ice Age Trail… the Turtle Rock segment.
As is typical when hiking with my wife, the start time is greatly delayed. Most avid hikers understand that and early start is a good start. There are several reasons:
- Earlier in the day is cooler
- Earlier in the day has more bird song
- If you get lost you have more daylight with which to ponder your fate (or find a nearby road, or get un-lost)
- Earlier in the day is just plain the way it’s done, alright?!?
So, at 12:47 we walked across Cty Hwy E parking area to the trail head.
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| Trail Head on Cty E - sharing a snowmobile trail |
The first mile is already a treat. The sky is nearly cloudless and the temperatures are in the upper 70’s. Considering the 90 and 100 degree temps Wisconsin has dealt with this Summer, temps in upper 70’s are nearly Arctic. The trail in this first mile moves from foot trail to snowmobile trail, to foot trail, to dirt access road, back to foot trail. The first mile travels through stands of poplar and hemlock, then through some older growth and a bog before beginning a slow descent towards the river.
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| Trail - the first mile |
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| The Bog |
The trail, a footpath now, winds along the side of a steep hill, hanging just above a small creek. At 13:24 we were at the spot where the creek, and trail, meet the Wisconsin River. A few minutes later Ruth simply sat down at the side of the trail and without fanfare we took our first break. The trail was literally three feet from the river’s edge. She could not have picked a better spot for a break. Much of the trail as it approached Grandfather Dam tightly hugged the river. There were several obvious fishing spots along the trail. This is definitely a part of the trail that might be nearly impassable in the Spring. The River need only rise less than a foot to completely flood the trail in most spots.
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| Trail along creek leading to Wisconsin River |
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| Break on the River |
At 13:47 we hit Grandfather Dam. This is a small dam, like many along the river, and there is not much to see on this side. There are some rocks to climb along and a little down the way there were a couple of families playing out in the water or on the big rocks out in the water. Ruth seemed more motivated to push on, so after about 45 seconds of standing the dam wall, we were off.
The falls is not for from the dam. We could hear it as we passed. I asked twice if “we” wanted to head off the trail out on the rocks and see if we could see the falls. “That’s OK. Let’s keep going.” No falls this trip.
The trail to dam was easy, even when it was a foot path. No hills to speak of, only a gradual downhill. Smooth and even with a very easy stream crossing at the bog. That all changes after the dam.
The landscape by the river after the dam is a series of boulders, smaller rocks and arms of high land. The trail winds up short but steep fingers of land, then falls quickly into valleys that would be a swamp in wet weather. When the trail is not on land, it is going through, around, and over boulders. The ground between the boulders is only inches thick. Water trickles in the hollows between rock and dirt. This is a very rugged and relatively challenging section of the trail. Be sure your boots are laced up good and your ankles are ready.
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| Near Grandfather Falls |
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| Rocky trail along Wisconsin River |
After a half hour and one false climb, the trail makes a real climb up out of the river valley, climbing 165 feet very quickly with only two switchbacks. Soon, though, the climb is over and lands at series of logging roads and foot paths. The guide recommends bringing map and compass and at least the map is very useful in this part. There are several trails and logging roads that lead off in different directions. Pay particular attention to the yellow blazes. There are a few spots where it is easy to veer off the trail.
We took a 20 minute break in a small clearing along a logging road at 14:55. This was a good chance to get some food, get the packs off, and dry myself off. I just have to say that I applaud the advent of quick dry materials.
We listened closely about us for birds and also tried to identify threes. Sadly, there was very little bird song and our tree identification suffers still. We did get a chance during our long break to watch some butterflies play, but were not able to capture a good picture. At the campground, though, we were treated to bald eagles flying directly above and dipping down to the river to catch fish.
After about 15 minutes more of walking on a series of foot path and other paths, the trail joins a well-used dirt access road. This rest of the trail section, about a mile, continues on this easy path until it reaches Burma Rd. Just as we entered this last section we met our first person of the hike (well, we saw, but did not meet the people on the river. They never saw us, being warned not to feed the wildlife.) He was a section hiker like us. He has a goal of hiking all the trail sections of the Ice Age, but has no intention of hiking the connector routes unless they are useful. Interestingly, he uses his bike as a shuttle so that he would avoid backtracking and thus cover more trail. I’d done the same at the Chippewa Moraine a week earlier.
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| The Way Out |
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| Trail Head on Burma Rd. |
We hit the end of the trail and Burma Rd at 15:49. We now had two miles of pavement to cover back to the car. The first mile, Burma Rd, was gravel, but Cty E is paved heading East from the intersection of Burma Rd (heading West it too is gravel). Finishing a hike on pavement seems to be a ritual. I'd really like to know how many hikers experience this. I've done it to make it back to parking areas, to catch the bus, and to make it home.
By 16:07 we’d hit Cty E and pavement. At 16:32 we arrived at the car.
The total trip or 7.13 miles took 3h 50m. Another great Northern Wisconsin adventure was complete.
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