My sister’s girlfriend’s sister’s college friends were heading out here for the weekend, along with my sister and sister’s girlfriend, and I joined them, not knowing what to expect. It’s in the Driftless Area of Wisconsin, a small area where the glaciers did not scour away the earth, leaving limestone hills and ledges.
We set out late enough to only see flashes of lightning illuminating the hills that towered over us, giving us ideas of what we would see in the morning when the sun rose.
Some highlights:
– Hiking in the persistent but warm rain which was between a mist and a drizzle. It felt like we were in a Pacific Northwest rainforest.
– Clambering about on those limestone (sandstone?) formations with other people who also feel inexplicably compelled to climb things
– Meeting a US Marshal, furloughed due to the government shutdown, who was really very drunk
– Re-learning gin rummy with my companions and renewing my commitment to learning basic card games so I can entertain myself and a group without the help of some flashing screen such as a smartphone.
– Sleeping in total warmth and comfort under a copse of immature maples as a violent lightning storm passed overhead
– Hiking through the park with a group of 11 outdoorsy people. All of them were totally game and engaged, finding cool nuts and caves and mushrooms.
pseudoisaac 