In our family, sometimes a text message from the kitchen to the living room is the only way to get our teenage girl to the dinner table. Like much of society, every member of our family often seems to have an electronic device in hand.
To combat the electronic addiction, we frequently plan mini-escapes into nature. Wyalusing State Park near Bagley, Wisconsin is a great destination for family friendly fun. A visit there can be for a few hours, a weekend, or an extended trip. Wyalusing offers camping, hiking, picnic areas, biking, canoeing, limestone caves, amazing views, and more.
During a recent excursion, we had only an afternoon to explore. Jumping from the mini van, our 7-year old boy immediately discovered a frog hopping by and followed it down the trail towards Point Lookout. After just a short walk down a paved trail, we found ourselves marveling at the view of Prairie du Chien, the Mississippi River, and the Wisconsin River. We watched an eagle circling overhead, standing on top of the bluff in the circular stone lookout, about 500 feet above the water below.
Never still for long, the children continued to explore, running up and finding a historical marker noting “At the foot of this eminence Marquette and Joliet entered the Mississippi River on June 17, 1673.” This lead to a spirited discussion about the history of America and if we could walk on the same trail as the famous explorers. The kids speculated if any of the giant trees in the woods were old enough to have been small saplings in 1673.
Soon we followed the wide trail into the woods. Shaded by a canopy of trees and hearing only bird calls, the children ran ahead towards Sentinel Ridge Trail and Loop. This trail is 1.6 miles and turns the corner from the Wisconsin River to the Mississippi River. It also features Indian mounds, prompting more discussion about the history of the area. The trail descends sharply, leading towards the backwaters of the Mississippi River, where we watched people paddling downriver on a canoe trip. After a short rest, we headed back to the Point Lookout Shelter where we enjoyed a picnic lunch in a shelter that looked as if it were made of the same limestone rocks at the huge bluffs around us. The only time anyone used an electronic device was to take picture of the natural beauty.
All too soon it was time to pack up and leave, but the kids continued pouring over the map of the park we received at the entrance. They happily planned another visit, where we could explore a different trail (Wyalusing has 23.7 miles of trails, including 22.2 miles of hiking trails , 2.4 miles of interpretive nature trails, and 0.8 mile of trail accessible for people with disabilities). They were very excited to try the Sand Cave trail, which travels past Big Sand Cave and Little Sand Cave. Both are washed out areas of limestone with small waterfalls. It was wonderful to have an outdoor adventure together, as well as something to look forward to for a return trip.