Home >  Plan a trip >  Outdoors Recreation >  Hiking >  Along for the walk

Other stories in "Hiking"

• Goin' on a treasure hunt
  We jump on the geocaching bandwagon and get hooked.
• Hiking in Duluth
  The city sections of the Superior Hiking Trail are spectacular.
• Tracing the Ice Age Trail
  In north-central Wisconsin, a slow-moving monolith left a playground for weekend wanderers.
• Greatest hits of the Ice Age
  In Wisconsin, the best walking trails are gifts from the glaciers.
• Devil's heaven
  In the Baraboo Hills, a splendid park makes people come running.
• Walking in Duluth
  Trails along creeks, ravines and bays provide stellar hiking in the heart of town.
• Quiet time on the North Shore
  Late fall is marked by stark beauty, cheaper stays and the gales of November.
• Trek to Timm's Hill
  The highest point in Wisconsin is the gateway to a forest full of trails.
• Hiking the North Shore
  For most, it's the preferred way to soak up the scenery.
• Five ways to walk the Superior Hiking Trail
  On a guided trip, you can pay a lot or a little.
• Hikes with benefits
  For exercise as well as edification, tag along with an expert.
• King of the hill
  With a huff and a puff, hikers earn a view of fall colors.
• 12 great fall hikes
  For a perfect day, hit the trail and do some sightseeing, too.
• Isle Royale reverie
  Whichever face it shows, the Lake Superior wilderness is beguiling.
• Walk 'n' roll
  Thanks to a bike trail, backtracking on the Superior Hiking Trail is a thing of the past.
• Bird walks
  In spring, a symphony of trills and chirps draws hikers into the woods.
• Peak hiking
  For Highpointers, nothing but a summit will do.
• Preventing Lyme disease
  Bite of a deer tick can cause major headache.

Along for the walk

In fall, join a group hike through the glowing forest.

In fall, everyone wants to be in the woods.

The Superior Hiking Trail Association organizes hikes on Minnesota's North Shore. The Nature Conservancy and Sierra Club host forays to their favorite places. State-park naturalists lead walks. Volunteers on the growing Ice Age National Scenic Trail show off their latest handiwork.

The rest of us get to come along for the ride. One year, I joined the annual Parade of Colors Fall Hike from the Chippewa Moraine Ice Age Interpretive Center, between Bloomer and Cornell in western Wisconsin.

Here, the Chippewa lobe of the vast Wisconsin Glacier began to recede, dumping debris and chunks of ice that became pristine kettle lakes, and the trails are among the loveliest of the Ice Age Trail's zigzagging, 1,000-mile route across Wisconsin.

To start the hike, a volunteer drove a carload of us six miles east to Plummer Lake Road. From there, we followed the Ice Age Trail west, crossing golden meadows and passing under red pines as we skirted 21 glacial lakes, their serene waters reflecting the branches of maple and birch.

It was a walk in the park for anyone used to the rocky, root-choked paths of the north woods. The volunteer trail builders had worked hard, placing boardwalks over soggy spots, benches in the shade alongside lakes, yellow blazes on trees and signs at junctions.

Back at the center, there was a free picnic of sandwiches, apples, carrots, cookies and granola bars; a brass quintet played for the tired hikers. Many of us couldn't resist hiking a little more, through a shady bowl sprinkled with kettle lakes on the Woolly Mammoth Nature Trail.

It was a lovely gift for a lovely fall day.

As nice as it can be to hike in solitude, organized group hikes allow participants to travel one way, seeing as much terrain as possible. And it's fun to have everything organized by someone else, see new places and meet new people.

Here are some of the guided fall hikes planned for 2009. All are free and open to the public.

Sept. 19 and 26 and Oct. 3 and 17, near Hackensack, Minn. Tree Top Tower Hikes at Deep Portage Learning Center, 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. $5.

Sept. 25-26, Logan Creek Rambles near Jacksonport, Wis. Naturalist-led hikes in the old-growth forest of this Wisconsin state natural area in Door County, 10 a.m. $5 for adults. Preregister with Ridges Sanctuary at 920-839-2802.

Sept. 26, Minnesota's North Shore. The Superior Hiking Trail Association will hold an 11-mile hike from Silver Bay to Highway 1, starting at 10 a.m. Hikers will be organized into a shuttle.

Oct. 3, Chippewa Moraine Interpretive Center near New Auburn, Wis. Registration for the annual Parade of Colors Fall Hike, six miles or any shorter distance, is from 9-11 a.m. There's a free shuttle and picnic. The center is seven miles east of New Auburn on County Road M. 715-967-2800.

Oct. 3, Itasca State Park near Park Rapids, Minn. Fall Colors from the Fire Tower Hike, three miles, 1 p.m.

Oct. 3, Interstate State Park near Taylors Falls, Minn. Color Crazy on the St. Croix! hike at 11 .m.

Oct. 3, Duluth, Minn. The Superior Hiking Trail Association will hold a 9½-mile hike from the Munger Trail to Kingsbury Creek in Duluth, starting at 10 a.m. Hikers will be organized into a shuttle.

Oct. 3, Havenwoods State Forest in Milwaukee. There's a Autumn Leaves Family Hike 10:30-11:30 a.m. No admission.

Oct. 17, Lake Kegonsa State Park near Stoughton, Wis. Candlelight hike.

Oct. 24, Effigy Mounds National Monument near Marquette, Iowa. A Moonlight Hike includes walks along the Yellow River Bridge Boardwalk Trail and along the Fire Point Trail to the top of the bluff above the Mississippi River Valley. Reservations are required, 563-873-3491.

Trip Tips: Hiking clubs

Hiking clubs hold walks throughout the year, often as part of overnight trips. Generally, participants on day hikes needn't be members.

Minnesota Rovers Outdoors Club: It's based in the Twin Cities and holds weekend and Wednesday-evening hikes as well as backpacking trips.

North Stars Ski Touring Club: It's based in the Twin Cities and often holds day hikes as well as weekend hiking trips around the region.

Wisconsin Go Hiking Club: It's based in Milwaukee and plans four hikes a week in southeast Wisconsin and beyond.

Forest Trails Hiking Club: This club, founded in 1942, is based in the Chicago area and holds weekend day hikes in northeast Illinois and beyond, typically of 10 to 12 miles.

St. Paul Hiking Club: It was founded in 1921 and holds many hikes around the Twin Cities; 651-793-4412.

American Volkssport Association: Based on the German Volksmarch, or people's walks for fitness, the group includes many chapters, including the NorthStar Trail Travelers, who hike in Minnesota state parks; the Madison-based Dairyland Walkers, who hike around Wisconsin; and Twin Cities Volkssports, who hike around the Twin Cities.

Sierra Club, John Muir chapter: It's based in Madison, Wis., 608-256-0565.

Sierra Club, North Star chapter: It's based in Minneapolis, 612-659-9124.

Ice Age Trail Alliance: The foundation, based in Cross Plains, Wis., coordinates the many local chapters, 800-227-0046.

Last updated on October 6, 2009