Hike Somewhere New: The Best Trails in Southeastern Wisconsin to Explore This Fall
Fall is hiking time in Wisconsin.
Low humidity, mild temperatures and bright, vibrant colors. It’s no longer blazing hot, so the whole day is open for runs and walks and not just the hours around dusk and dawn.
This week I want to challenge you to get out there and pick a route that you’ve never done before. Or at least, one that you haven’t done this year yet. It’s easy to get stuck walking the same neighborhood loop during quarantine, but southeastern Wisconsin is home to hundreds of fantastic hiking trails. Plus, we’re approaching peak fall colors mid-October, so there’s no better time to get out and enjoy the natural beauty our area has to offer.
Good For Your Physical And Mental Health
While we know walking is good for the body, research is also beginning to reveal how it impacts brain function. Anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues can all be eased by some time in nature — especially when that’s combined with exercise. A recent study found that walks outdoors were associated with decreased levels of anxiety and bad moods, and another found that outdoor walks could be “useful clinically as a supplement to existing treatments” for major depressive disorder.
New research also shows that walking might be an effective way to slow or decrease the cognitive declines that come with aging.
A study of older, sedentary adults found that daily walking over a period of 6 months improved the ability to plan and organize. Studies also have found that that walking and other aerobic exercises can increase the size of the hippocampus, the brain area involved in memory and learning. Researchers think brisk walking might improve brain plasticity, or the ability to grow new neurons and form new synaptic connections.
Go Faster, Live Longer
A recent review study involving around 50,000 walkers linked faster walking speeds to a reduced risk of dying from almost everything. The faster walkers — around a speed of 3 miles per hour (a 20-minute mile) — could expect to live roughly 15 to 20 years longer than slower walkers, or those who clocked 2 mph (a 30-minute mile.) 100 steps per minute or greater is a commonly accepted threshold for turning a walk into a moderately intense exercise.
If you’re looking to further kick it up a notch and start trail running, Couch to 5K is a great program for starting from scratch.
The Best Milwaukee-Area Hiking Trails
Lapham Peak
W329 N846 Co. C, Delafield
Open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Admission: A state parks vehicle admission sticker is required. A daily pass can be purchased for $8.
About: The Kettle Moraine and Lapham Peak were formed 10,000 years ago when a glacier covered much of Wisconsin. More than 1,000 acres of this hilly terrain are within the Lapham Peak boundaries. Lapham Peak has a variety of sights and activities to offer, including 21.2 miles of hiking trails and a 45-foot observation tower atop the highest point in Waukesha County (1,233 feet above sea level).
Bong State Recreation Area
26313 Burlington Rd, Kansasville
Open: 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Admission: A state parks vehicle admission sticker is required. A daily pass can be purchased for $8.
About: Just 40 miles outside of Milwaukee, this 4,515 acre park offers trails for every season. The trails are set in a series of concentric circles which total almost 50 miles!
Havenwoods State Forest
6141 N. Hopkins St., Milwaukee
Open daily from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Admission: free
About: Located right inside the city of Milwaukee, Havenwoods contains more than six miles of trails, inviting visitors to explore the property’s woods, wetlands, and grasslands. With several different trail segments, visitors can choose a hike of varying length.
Several geocaches and way marks can be found at Havenwoods State Forest. Complete the Trek Through Time, a geocaching adventure and earn a collectable wooden geotoken.
Ice Age Trail – Holy Hill Segment
1525 Carmel Road, Hubertus
Admission: free
About: Standing atop the observation deck at Holy Hill provides an amazing view – at 192 feet tall, you’ll see a stunning view of the Kettle Moraine Southern Unit. Head up the 178 steps to the observation tower and you’ll see the Milwaukee skyline that’s over 30 miles away. Park at the base of the hill to the basilica, hike up to the church then down the paved path through the Stations of the Cross. At the parking lot, hop on the Ice Age Trail for a short out-and-back hike to Highway 167. Back near the basilica, grab the blue trail spur back to your car.
Kettle Moraine State Forest – Pike Lake Unit
3544 Kettle Moraine Rd, Hartford
Open: 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Admission: A state parks vehicle admission sticker is required. A daily pass can be purchased for $8.
About: This 678-acre park provides panoramic views from atop Powder Hill as well as nine different hiking trails that provide hikers with a variety of topography and scenery. Users will pass through wetlands, maple, oak, and basswood stands, open prairies, and a variety of glacial terrain. Some of the more popular trails include Black Forest Nature Trail – a self-guided 0.8-mile hike, Astronomy Trail – a half mile walk through the solar system, Powder Hill – a glacial kame (the accumulated deposits of sediment at the front of a stationary glacier) which is one of the highest points in Southeastern Wisconsin, and Ice Age Trail – part of the National Scenic Trail that explores approximately 475 miles through significant glacial heritage. The boardwalk trial runs through a wetlands area along Pike Lake.
Lac Lawrann Conservancy
300 Schmidt Rd, West Bend
Open daily 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Admission: free
About: Lac Lawrann Conservancy has 4 miles of trails that lead hikers through deciduous woodlands to kettles, kames, an esker, as well as ponds, wetlands, prairie, and a red pine plantation. Neighboring Royal Oaks Park adds another 1.5 miles of trails. Hiking trails include the Lake Loop, Railroad Spur, Esker, Northern Wetland, Pine Plantation, and Prairie Trails.
Lion’s Den Gorge Nature Preserve
511 High Bluff Dr, Grafton
Open from sunrise to sunset
Admission: free
About: Lion’s Den George offers 73 acres of hiking trails, boardwalks, wetlands, forest and beachfront along the shore of Lake Michigan. Offering 1/2 mile of 90 to 100 ft bluffs, the preserve is one of the last stretches of undeveloped lakefront property between Mequon and Port Washington, and is adjacent to a 44-acre wetland complex dedicated to enhancing populations of migratory birds and other wildlife.
Ice Age Trail – Monches Segment
Trailhead located on E Kilbourn Road, Hartland, just West of Laskin Road
Open from sunrise to sunset
Admission: free
About: Located in the hardwood forest north of Hartland, this section of the Ice Age Trail offers some of the most spectacular fall hiking in the state. The 2.7-mile one-way hike follows the route of the Oconomowoc River including idyllic views of clear water and small bubbling brooks, with the backsplash of colors from the fall leaves of oaks and aspens.
Nashotah Park
W330 N5113 County Hwy C, Nashotah
Open from sunrise to 10 p.m.
Admission: $5 per car
About: Nashotah Park is a 444-acre park nestled among rolling hills, woodlands, wetlands, and grasslands that offer habitat for deer, waterfowl and a variety of songbirds. 7 miles of nature trails lead through easily identifiable landscape types that were created by the last glacial advance more than 10,000 years ago: a natural lake system, an oak forest, an oak savanna (an area sparsely populated with trees), a cedar glade, a floating leaf marsh.
Riveredge Nature Center
4458 County Hwy Y, Saukville
open daily from dawn to dusk (check website for visitor center hours)
Admission: $4 for adults, $2 for children 14-4, children 3 and under are free
About: With over 379 acres of land and ten miles of meandering trails, its easy to lose yourself in one of the most beautifully restored natural sanctuaries in southeastern Wisconsin. With prairies, woods, ponds, and over one mile of Milwaukee River shoreline, there is always something to explore.
Schlitz Audobon Nature Center
1111 E Brown Deer Rd, Milwaukee
Open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Admission: $8 for adults and $5 for children & veterans, members are free
About: Once a farm for the Schlitz Brewery draft horses, the center offers six miles of trails that take visitors through 185 unique acres of forests, wetlands, restored prairies, ravines, bluffs, and Lake Michigan shoreline.
Seven Bridges Trail in Grant Park
100 Hawthorne Ave, South Milwaukee
Open daily 6:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Admission: free
About: Enter this wild wood and view the haunts of nature. As you wind your way through the ravine on unpaved and Lannon stone paths, Lannon stone staircases, and numerous foot bridges, you’ll discover the delights of nature – a carpet of spring wildflowers, the songs of migratory birds, fabulous fall color, the refreshing sound of water rushing in a brook. Following the trails, you’ll be led among enormous trees such as the native beech, along creeks, into secluded areas, and onto the shore of Lake Michigan.
Wehr Nature Center
9701 W. College Ave, Franklin
Open every day from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (Closed some holidays, check their website)
Admission: free, but $3.50 per car parking fee
About: Wehr has over five miles of trails on their 220 acres that link the Center’s natural communities: the Woodland, Wetland, Prairie, Oak Savanna and Lake. Interpretive signs introduce self-guided visitors to the homes and habitats of Wisconsin wildlife. Study sites along the trails allow guided groups to investigate the natural world face-to-face.
The Ascent Chiropractic Difference
Is pain preventing you from getting outside and being active? Whether you’re a pro athlete, weekend warrior or just looking to tone up, study after study shows that regular chiropractic care is an essential part of correcting problems, reducing pain and reaching your full potential. We want to be part of your team! To make an appointment at Ascent Chiropractic, call 262-345-4166 or schedule an appointment with our online scheduling app.
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Great list! Sounds like fun!