Posts Tagged ‘devils lake state park’

Railways and in-coming Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker just don’t mix.   In fact, here in the Baraboo Hills we could be facing our own little Scott Walker controversy.  You see, one of the fun ideas put forward last year to celebrate Devil’s Lake State Park’s Centennial was to feature Wisconsin’s Governor arriving at the festivities by train.  Of course that was before anyone would have known we’d have a conservative governor who would end many Wisconsinite’s dream of  a high-speed rail service in the state.  I had it put to me recently that if “they” (Meaning conservatives in general I assume) had it their way, there would be no state or national parks today.  Well, that’s certainly painting with a very broad brush.  Still, one can’t help but wonder if Scott Walker appearing by train at a State Park’s Centennial celebration wouldn’t be fraught with controversy and just a dash of irony as well.   Of course, the whole concept is nothing more than coffee table talk and as far as we’ve heard there have been no official discussions either way.  Still, it’s an interesting thought and I’m sure one way or the other the governor and politics will come up as we get closer to next year’s centennial celebrations.   What do you think?  Are you for the whole “Gov-on-a-train” idea, or would you lean more toward “out on a rail”? Maybe the best approach is somewhere down the middle?

We spent about 20 minutes watching this coyote roaming and hunting for small animals at Devil’s Lake State Park this morning near Burma Road.  Click on the video and do your own 67 seconds of coyote spotting.  And yes, I did see that! Bad dog!

Despite predictions of wet weather, a large number of people brought their families out to Mirror Lake State Park on Saturday for the annual Halloween Mystery Hike put on by the Friends of MLSP.  Mother Nature rewarded attendees with a perfect autumn evening. As the sky darkened and a thin layer of fog grew out over the lake, the fires were lit, and cars began filling the lots. Anxious kids were running in all directions to see all the amazing Jack-O-lanterns that smiled and growled around the bonfires.  Hot dogs, brats, cookies and other snacks were served as fast as the park friends could move. Read the rest of this entry »

Here in the Baraboo Hills there is no reason to ride on the coattails of Wisconsin Dells kitsch. Baraboo should instead hear the voices of John Muir & Aldo Leopold which rose from these marshes, hills and savannas not so long ago. We do not live on land in need of a water park to make people come, but sometimes we need reminding.  Aldo Leopold once said, “A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise.”  Read the rest of this entry »

Nearly perfect weather and nearly peak fall colors combined over the weekend to give nature lovers and fall foliage fans the gift of a life time.  Temperatures hung near 80 both Saturday and Sunday as thousands of visitors filled Sauk County’s parks and natural areas.  At Devil’s Lake State Park the parking lots filled as if it were a summer holiday weekend and yet the cars kept coming.  By early afternoon on Saturday cars were lining the the north shore entrance road.  Normally this would not be allowed of course, but our impression is that park law enforcement were simply overwhelmed.  The park has experienced a good jump in visitors over all this year, by some estimates nearly a 20% increase.  It certainly looked like it this weekend!    Read the rest of this entry »

Hundreds of people of all ages, shapes and sizes turned out at Devil’s Lake State Park yesterday to compete in (or simply complete)  the 2010 Devil’s Challenge Triathlon.  The annual race includes a 1/4 mile swim, 15 mile bike bike ride and a 3 mile run and took competitors an average of  one hour and forty-seven minutes to complete.  Air temperatures were in the mid-50′s when the first rush of racers hit the water at 8am. Luckily for them, water temperatures are usually much warmer than the air this time of year.  From then on waves of additional participants followed at timed intervals.

As a light rain began to fall, racers swam west to east across around giant yellow markers, then turned back to the shore where they ran mostly barefoot, to their bikes.  Quickly drying off and in some instances changing clothing as well,  racers made whatever adjustments they needed before heading out onto the slick streets and into the challenging Baraboo hills on their bikes.  Along the way local county sheriff’s officers controlled the light  morning traffic to keep participants safe along the route.  Amazingly some of the first cyclists were returning to the north shore of the park while the last waves were still just entering the water.

In the end almost 550 individuals completed the challenge.  Congratulations to everyone!  Mike Lavery took the winning male individual time with 1:08:32 and Cindi Bannik brought in the best female time at 1:16:24.  To view more results including relay results at Online Race Results, click here.

We’ve also put up a large collection of photos from the event here.  Or click here for a slideshow in a pop-up window.

Recently the folks at OhRanger.com posted their, “Top 10 Parks of the Midwest“. Here in Wisconsin they selected Bong State Park.  Bong?!!  Well, Bong is a great park and all but…

How could they overlook Devil’s Lake State Park?  Read the rest of this entry »

For some time now we’ve been providing cover photos for CenturyLink’s Baraboo area phone book.  Past covers have included shots of the Baraboo Bluffs,  Mid-Continent Railway Museum and more. Above you’ll see the last 2 covers.  Last years was local farm just outside of the Baraboo city limits.  I believe it’s gone now.  This year’s shot is autumn at the north shore picnic area of Devil’s Lake State Park.  While we’ve provided photos for a variety of publications over the years from magazines to maps, it’s still always fun to see your pics in print. Even if it’s only the phonebook!

A Flash Flood Watch continues in Sauk County through this afternoon into tomorrow morning. Thunderstorms will again roll across the area through tonight bringing an additional 1-3 inches of rain.  Currently the Baraboo river while still higher than normal, is staying below flood stage at both the Rock Springs & West Baraboo gauges. The river is above flood stage and continues to rise near the County Hwy X gauge a few miles east of town.  Standing water can be seen in some low-lying areas along the river in that area and along both sides of Co. Rd. W a few miles east of Baraboo. Clark creek (see above picture) on Hwy 113 was still within it’s banks last evening but fast and turbulent.  Skillet Creek is flooding on the south-west corner of town including near the corner of Hwy 12 and Hwy 159. The creek is flooding into nearby fields but not impeading traffic.  Read the rest of this entry »

We were just leaving the Coffee Bean Connection in Downtown Baraboo when the rain began to fall.   Sure, there were flash flood warnings in Sauk County, but we were still hoping to get in an afternoon of paddling at Devil’s Lake State Park.

Now we know why the lake has flooded so often in recent years. Read the rest of this entry »