Enjoy a fall hike on the Ice Age National Scenic Trail in Langlade County on Saturday.
The hike, organized by the Langlade County Ice Age Trail Chapter, is open to the public. Interested persons should meet 9 a.m. in front of the Langlade County Forestry Office at the fairgrounds.
Participants are encouraged to wear suitable clothing and bring a lunch. Transportation to the trailhead north of Antigo at the Jack Lake Cross Country Ski Trail parking lot on County Highway J will be provided from the fairgrounds.
The hike will be a five-mile trek on a new portion of the Old Railroad segment recently rerouted through the Jack Lake ski trail area. The new section of trail was completed this summer by local trail volunteers Lee Auner, Adam Evans, Lloyd Godell and Sam Picone.
The stretch winds through a scenic landscape shaped by a massive sheet of ice over 10,000 years ago. The new trail utilizes a portion of the Jack Lake ski trail so the outing will provide an opportunity to visit the area in this colorful season.
The hike will serve as a local observance of National Trail Day held earlier this summer in other parts of the country. The special day is organized annually by trail groups to observe the signing of the National Trails Act by President Lyndon B. Johnson.
Another portion of the segment will be rerouted in October through the Ventor Lake area by local and nonlocal participants in the Ice Age Trail Alliance’s popular Mobile Skills Crew program. More information and registration for persons interested in participating during the next week’s trail building effort is available at the Ice Age Trail Alliance website www.iceagetrail.org.
The segment is one of four in the county recognized in 1977 by Secretary of the Interior Thomas Kleppe as the Ice Age Recreation Trail in the National Trails System. In 1980, the National Trail Act was amended to designate Wisconsin’s Ice Age Trail as a scenic trail in the national system. There are currently 11 trails designated as national scenic trails.