What’s happening on the Ice Age Trail

The Marquette County Chapter of the Ice Age Trail continues to work with the National Park Service, the Ice Age Trail Alliance and the DNR to complete the Corridor Plan and Environmental Assessment for Marquette County.  It is near completion and that means the general direction of the trail through the county has been decided upon and approved.  The next step, slowly, and increment by increment, is to work with all those who help manage the trail to build more off-road sections on public lands and work with willing landowners to build more off-road sections of the National Scenic Trail in Marquette County.  

In addition to this planning work, the local chapter assists hikers who travel through Marquette County, volunteer to maintain the existing trail, and hold regular hikes in Marquette County.  

Hikers regularly need assistance traveling from one point to the next or to overnight accommodations and Marquette County Ice Age volunteers help them with their trip through the county.  Jan and Colleen Mink and Gary Ertl often pick hikers up at one spot and deliver them to overnight accommodations or help them get to their next trail head.  Hikers through Marquette County give high ratings to the help they receive here including the local motels where through hikers stay. 

The next hike offered by the Marquette County Chapter is their annual Prairie Hike on August 20 starting at 9 AM.  Watch the Marquette County Tribune or the Marquette County Chapter of the Ice Age Trail Facebook page for more information.  There will also be a Full Moon hike on September 10. 

Through hiker (that means someone who walks the entire 1,000-mile trail in one continuous adventure) Nancy Krueger from the Milwaukee area came through Marquette County in winter.  She’s one of several through hikers this year helped by the local chapter.  She’s shown here at the Greenwood section in Waushara County after she passed through Marquette County.  

Section hiker (someone who hikes the trail one section at a time) Jeff Schaetzke from Milwaukee was also assisted by local Ice Age volunteers as he hiked through Marquette County this year.

This past Saturday had hikers Jeff Frazer, Jan and Colleen Mink, Judy Rogala and Mary Fullmer, along with Marquette County Chapter President Gary Ertl (taking the photo) following trails at Pine Lake for the National Trails Day hike in Marquette County.