This Is Drivel

Category: travel

  • One of these days

    One of these days

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    We got on the wrong bus in NYC and by the time we realized it was going the wrong way and jumped off, we were three or four blocks away from our route. Walking back up the street, we came across a statue dedicated to famed NYC bus driver Ralph Kramden! Can’t just walk past… Read.

  • IAT Whitewater Lake segment

    IAT Whitewater Lake segment

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    This was a very pleasant afternoon walk in the woods. Moderately easy, but still a satisfying hike over gently hilly terrain. I parked my van in the lot on Clover Valley Road and walked as far as Esterly Road, 2.8 miles, before turning back. I would have liked to go as far as Highway 12… Read.

  • The Porcupine Mountains

    The Porcupine Mountains

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    I’m back home from a three-day hiking trip to the Porcupine Mountains in the upper peninsula of Michigan. I left Madison last Sunday morning, hiked the back country Monday and Tuesday, and returned home this afternoon. I didn’t camp in the back country. Looking back now, I kind of regret not doing that, but this… Read.

  • IAT Brooklyn segment

    IAT Brooklyn segment

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    I walked the Brooklyn segment of the Ice Age Trail from the north end to the south and back to the north end, about 6 miles in two and a half hours. I’m feeling pretty well-chuffed about going that far in less time than the 3.7 mile hike I made yesterday, both with a 20-pound… Read.

  • East Star Lake 9-15-2024 — 9-18-2024

    East Star Lake 9-15-2024 — 9-18-2024

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    I drove up to Star Lake on Sunday, September 15th. I left home a little after nine o’clock in the morning and arrived at the East Star Lake State Park at quarter past one in the afternoon. I had booked a site at West Star Lake State Park, on the other side of the lake,… Read.

  • IAT Lodi Marsh segment

    IAT Lodi Marsh segment

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    I walked only a short section of this segment today, partly because the trail was really very muddy, so muddy I thought a one point about halfway up the hill I was pretty sure I was going to slip in the mud and slide though it all the way down the hill. Happily, that did… Read.

  • IAT Cross Plains segment

    IAT Cross Plains segment

    I needed to get out of the house today, so I walked a 2.7 loop on the Ice Age Trail, just far enough to stretch my legs and get some fresh air. The trailhead is a twenty-five minute drive from Our Humble O’Bode, very easy to get to. There was just one other car in… Read.

  • Fayette State Park 27 May 2023

    Fayette State Park 27 May 2023

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    I woke up a little before six on Saturday morning, way before anyone in the campground was up and about. They all stayed up late the night before, gathered around the massive bonfires they built up in nearly every camp site. These were the quietest bunch of campers I’ve been around yet. I’ve been to… Read.

  • Fayette State Park 26 May 2023

    Fayette State Park 26 May 2023

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    I paid a visit to Upper Michigan’s Fayette State Park last weekend and it was, I am happy to report, worth every minute of the hours and hours it takes to drive there from Our Humble O’Bode. The park is beautiful, the campgrounds are comfortable if just a tiny bit cramped, and I had gorgeous… Read.

  • the camping thing – progress 5/6/23

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    Every day I try to do at least one thing to make continual progress getting The Camping Thing ready for the season. Some days it doesn’t seem like much, but on a day like today when I can see what the end product is going to look like, the feeling of satisfaction is pretty great.… Read.

photo of the author and the author's best friend