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Epic Midwest Adventures by Land and Water.

Curated hikes you (and your dog) can enjoy in Wisconsin, The UP, and Minnesota's fabulous North Shore plus summer boating destinations on Lake Michigan.

11/02/2026

Emmons Creek Ice Age Trail. No bushwacking today. Just a plain old tame AWESOME Halloween hike in Waupaca County.

We parked Roc Holliday in the parking area off of 2nd Avenue and headed north on the Ice Age crossing Emmons Creek and then Stratton Lake Road, before tagging Emmons Creek Lane and heading back south.

On the return leg we caught the "Faraway Valley" loop that takes you to 3rd Avenue and then back to join the Ice Age.

The Faraway Valley segment was probably the most scenic of the day although we were traversing that after sunset in late twilight and couldn't fully appreciate the landscape/horizons due to darkness.

We finished the last mile or so in darkness with just our necklights to guide our way which felt somewhat spooky and appropriate given it was Halloween.

After our hike we drove a few minutes northwest to Fountain Lake, parked in the boat launch area and had a nice dinner in the HILT!

Not necessarily a destination hike, but surely a beautiful one for an 'easy' trail-based afternoon.

10/28/2026

Potter Preserve was full of color (and history)!

While 2026 hasn't been a great year for vibrant color it was about as good as we were going to get for the Baraboo Hills area. Potter Preserve is a 400 acre parcel that is part of the Baraboo Hills Recreation Area just Northeast of Devil's Lake.

This land was originally owned by Alfred Ringling (of the Ringling Circus family) with Baraboo being the birthplace and winter home of the Ringling Circus.

Potter Road juts south of County Road W and takes you into a canopy of color and a small parking area near a gate. We first hiked up several hundred feet of elevation on a wide 2-track former driveway to the high ground of this parcel where the path narrows and vegetation encroaches. The fall colors made for a beautiful and quiet hike. There are some long horizon views to the north that were obstructed with leaves on trees. A winter hike here would be rewarded with some great scenery.

We made a loop around an area of evergreens and then followed our path back down to the lower section of the property where we took a second narrow footpath that paralleled a stream that bubbled and fell over some rocks and boulders for more great photos.

Not the most amazing place we've ever hiked, but definitely a great location and a quiet spot to visit for those who like to explore the lesser known places in the Baraboo Hills!

10/22/2026

A trip to Michigan's Upper Peninsula isn't complete without at least one waterfall!

This easy trek (2.5 mile round trip) is just off Hwy 45 north of Bruce Crossing.

Parking area just off the highway (easy to miss the little sign). Falls are along a section of The North Country Trail as well.

10/21/2026

Remote... Rugged... and Majestic... Hiking the Trap Hills section of the North Country Trail is breathtaking!

The Trap Hills section of the North Country Trail falls within the Peter Wolfe Chapter. We visited this same area last year but due to 'break-in issues' with our previous overlanding van, the trip didn't go as planned and we didn't have a chance to truly enjoy the splendor of this incredibly remote and rugged area of Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

We decided to return to redeem ourselves this year with our new GXV HILT "Roc Holliday". Nothing like having a luxury condo as a hiking basecamp in the middle of a national forest!

Spectacular weather for a hike with mid 50's. Samson was living his best puppy life on our 6 mile trek Saturday afternoon. This area was just past peak color but couldn't have been more satisfying. We boondocked down Ottawa National Forest Road 326. Arriving around midnight Friday and not seeing another human being until after we left Sunday.

With no cell service, Starlink and emergency satellite calling from your phone are the only connection to the world. That said any 'help' would still be at least 2 hours away between the drive-in and then the trek out to the trail/ridge line itself. But as I always say... If it isn't a little dangerous, is it really an adventure?

About a 5.5 hour drive from Waukesha County but this destination hike is well worth the trip. Drop me a DM if you want to give this one a shot and I can send you GPS coordinates and a route map.

10/12/2026

Devil's Lake South Bluff!

We knew Devil's Lake would be packed to the gills this past Saturday given 80 degree October temperatures so I banked on beating the crowds by hitting the South Bluff and what an awesome hike it turned out to be!

We crossed the Merrimac Ferry about 3pm and by the time we rolled in to Devil's Lake South Shore every lots was packed to capacity. I banked on parking Roc Holliday (our Overlanding Rig) in the overflow parking area since that was the ideal basecamp to ascent the south bluff and see what I believe are called "Castle Rocks".

While every other lot was full since it was late afternoon the overflow lot had some space. We headed south through a tall-grass field, crossed the train tracks and began our 500+ foot ascent. 75% of our ascent was through class 3 boulders. Very challenging. Blood may have been drawn. ;) But we were rewarded with a really cool cave just prior to reaching the top of the South Bluff.

The views from the south bluff are amazing. No trials, no people. It was great to be at Wisconsin's busiest State Park and not see a soul... EXCEPT for one group of cool adventurous kids we stumbled upon who had made an awesome weekend camp on the South Bluff summit near a rocky opening. (rule benders after my own heart!)

Wow did they find a great spot with a million-dollar view.

We were a little crunched for time and definitely didn't want to get caught up on the South Bluff after dark given the treacherous bouldering we would have to do on our decent so we wished them well and headed back east and down.

We passed the spot we came up and found another descent a few hundred yards further east that was just as steep but was about 50% class 2 and 50% class 3.

Reaching the bottom we ran into the other half of the camping crew we had run in to early and had a nice chat.

We got back to Roc Holliday about 6pm where a tasty post-hike cocktail was waiting for us.

We then headed around the south shore and over to Sauk Prairie where we found an extraordinary secluded place to grill steaks and have a few more drinks.

EPIC DAY - The South Bluff isn't easy but its SO worth the challenge!

09/20/2026

COOL CAVES!!! We adhere to the philosophy "Never let the weather win". So a rainy Saturday seemed like the perfect time to trade sunshine for headlamps in the dry confines (sometimes a little too confining) of the Cherney Maribel Caves.

About an 1hr 40min from New Berlin, we arrived at 3:30pm and were surprised to find, in spite of the off-and-on rain of a dreary fall day there were a number of cars in the parking lot. I suspect this gem is very busy on days with good weather.

When I saw many of the people milling around their cars had headlamps and dirt all over their clothes I knew we were in for a good time!

This Manitowoc County Park has 11 different caves. Some are locked with steel gates but others are 'self-explore' and we did just that.

Kim has a higher tolerance for tight spaces than I do, so she followed Samson far deeper into the caves than I dared go. Some caves go in quite a distance with branches off in different directions. Make sure to bring a headlamp/necklight. You will need it!

The largest cave is the "New Hope Cave" which is locked behind a steel gate and is only accessible on the 3rd Sunday of every month when the park staff give guided tours of the monstrous cave. (the largest on the property) with several chambers, the largest of which has 10 foot ceilings and 30 feet of width.

After caving for a bit (and Kim banging her head on a low hanging rock) we walked along the West Twin River for some additional great views in spite of the rain.

Well worth the drive! If we could do it again I'd bring knee pads for crawling into the caves to save some skin.

DON'T FORGET YOUR HEADLAMP/NECKLIGHT!

09/09/2026

After leaving our desert boondock in New Mexico our maiden voyage in the new GXV HILT continued in Colorado!

We made it to Durango, CO and grabbed take-out at a great local BBQ joint. Found a quiet gravel parking area/kayak launch along the Animas river and had lunch with mountains towering around us out of the windows of the HILT and the mountain river rippling past.

The drive out of Durango becomes extremely mountainous and exciting... sometimes thrilling as we headed up through the San Juan Mountain range of the Colorado Rockies.

Our next stop was Silverton Colorado where we grabbed some ice at a local general store and had a tasty adult beverage before heading into the famous and treacherous "Million Dollar Highway" between Silverton and Ouray.

This route, recommended by a friend, is described as the most scenic road in the US! It was all of that and more.

This route runs through the Uncompahgre Gorge and up to Red Mountain Pass at over 11,000ft. Its a narrow 2 lane road cut into cliffs with steep grades, tight switchbacks, sheer drop-offs and little or no guard rail.

The views are outstanding and as always... pictures truly don't do them justice. The magnitude and danger of being there in person is so much bigger than a phone camera can capture. Worthy of an I-Max movie!

After we finished the Million Dollar Highway you descend down into the most awesome little town of Ouray which felt like an old western/Colorado version of Bourbon Street in New Orleans. 2 story restaurants and bars all with massive outdoor seating and balcony terraces lined main street with diners and revelers enjoying the holiday weekend surrounded by towering mountains in this box canyon. The street was packed with motorcycles and pedestrians with the smell of mesquite wood wafting down the valley.

Truly an experience we will never forget! Put this on your bucket list!

09/08/2026

A new adventure begins! We flew into Phoenix on Thursday to take delivery of our 2027 Storyteller GXV HILT on Friday.

We immediately embarked on a 3 day adventure taking the scenic route back to Wisconsin!

First day we headed out of Phoenix over the McDowell Mountains, Tonto National Forest, and Mazatlan Mountains before having dinner in Payson, AZ.

We left Payson as sunset drifted over the amazing canyons of the Mogollon Rim with views of the White Mountains as twilight arrived with the Stigreaves National Forest.

We headed north through Holbrook where we joined I-40 through the Petrified National Forest before leaving the interstate to head north eventually finding a spot to boondock near 2am in the desert on some BLM land near White Rock in Northwest New Mexico on the Navajo Indian Reservation.

Sunrise Saturday gave us astounding views of the desert.

I stepped outside of the HILT and a herd of wild horses were galloping past just north of our location. Sounded just like thunder as they passed.

We departed about 11am headed for Colorado!

08/23/2026

Mirror Lake is a great little paddle.. drinks and appetizers at Ishnala is a fun midpoint refuel stop too!

07/19/2026

Where Eagles fly...

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