Roche-A-Cri State Park
Ruthie and I visit lots of places, but for some reason I’ve
never gotten around to writing about our very favorite one. Which is - go
figure, because there it is only a few miles south of our mailbox and towering above
Hwy 13, the tree-covered ridge of Roche-A-Cri Mound State Park. So, I went
there last week to jot down whatever struck me the most. And same as always,
for all the times I’ve been there, some closer looks showed things I’ve hardly
noticed before.
Walking in on the prairie trail, I hung a left to the huge
stand-alone fir atop the rise. Its great-sized branches starting close to the
ground make it the perfect climbing tree not only for young kids to easily
climb but for me too (with adequate supervision by Ruthie).
A short way into the woods, I stopped on the bridge
crossing Carter Creek winding from east to west through the park. Realizing for
the first time how crystal clear the water is, I wondered how anyone could
catch the stocked trout here without their shying off and dodging away. Even
our smart aleck son, Kevin the fishing champ, has caught only a few pan-fish here
(also stocked).
Reaching
the ring road, I looked up and up at what is claimed the most distinctive and beautiful
rock formation (and the highest one) in our whole state.
(Image
# 1; Sheer, red-colored sandstone wall above petroglyphs)
At
its base is Petroglyph Rock and leaned toward it as close as I could, I saw,
also entirely new to me, that Charles Caron chiseled in his name back in 1881.
Before him, a passing explorer or settler simply scribed Oct. 31, 1845 maybe to
say Happy Halloween, if they even had it back then. The sign said that in 1861,
the Wisconsin 1st Cavalry Sharpshooters fired at this rock during
marksmanship trials. More interestingly, it suggested the half-moon crescents
put here by the ancient Ho-Chunk people might
even represent - a partial solar eclipse?
Continuing
around, I picked up a plastic top saying “Made with Real Onions” (Pringles?)
and tossed it into the dumpster. After using the park’s washroom at the office parking
lot I joined three employees, Mona, Scott, and Ron taking a break.
Knowing
Scott, I enthused, “Great job, you guys! This is the best-kept park I’ve ever
seen.”
He
nodded, “Yep, I keep at it with road maintenance and repair.”
Mona
asked, “Notice how clean the washrooms are?”
My
turn to nod - “Mine was spotless and unlike most, it even smelled good!”
Grinning, she gave me a
thumbs up. Next, Ron spoke of the campsites (41 of them!) at the base of the
Mound. “Camping there as a kid, I still think it’s the ideal place for it. Our
campers pick up after themselves pretty well, too.”
I
agreed, “All I found was a can lid some idiot left beside the road.”
Ron
pointed behind me. “Speaking of which – did you lose a water bottle?”
No
longer in my fanny-pack holder it was mine all right. When I picked it up, Ron said
not a word but he wore a big smile.
Continuing
around, I stopped short of the park’s most popular part, the 303 stairs to the
overlook offering a spectacular view in all directions. Among the 5 miles of
trails here, I turned off on the one almost hidden on my right to Chickadee
Rock. A huge favorite of our grandsons, they bee-lined for it the last time we
brought them. Had Ruthie not called a halt, they’d have spent all day tunneling
through its little natural cave and climbing all over the huge boulders. Back
then she finally hollered, “You guys get down here before you’re hurt! You too,
Gilbert!” (Calling me that instead of
Gib means I better or else).
(Image
# 2; Gib and grandsons climbing Chickadee Rock)
We
also climbed the stairs of course, the boys refusing to leave if we didn’t!
Starting up amidst tall oaks of several varieties, red, black, and white, we
relished their blazing fall colors. Higher yet were mostly red, white, and jack
pines whose piney essence filled the air. Matt, the smallest, was struggling by
now. But halting to give him a break, we got told off. “Hey, no stopping! Let’s get to the top!”
And
so it goes, folks, this not stopping thing with most of us who come here. With
so much to see and do at this gem of a park, who wants to?
