Sometimes it’s too much.
As beautiful as southern Wisconsin is, I remember a visit when the trees pressed in on me too closely, the sliver of sky frustratingly small. I knew how much bigger the sky was, and it troubled me not to see it.
But on this day, when we stepped onto the trail at Lapham Peak, a trail whose primary material is grass – grass! – I was ready to be swallowed by green.
At home it was 102 degrees, forests closed for fire danger, all living things parched.
We arrived at Lapham Peak, part of the Kettle Moraine State Forest, on a brilliant, sun-drenched morning after days on end of rain. The wide green trails gleamed in the morning light. Waist-high grasses and wildflowers surrounded us, and the tree canopy overhead sheltered us.
Our destination was the Butterfly Garden, a riot of wildflowers that 12 of Wisconsin’s butterfly species call home. We spotted five of those species, from the small cabbage white to the great spangled fritillary.
We dawdled there, my husband watching a garter snake slither through the flowers, plants and butterflies dancing on the breeze.
A narrower trail through what appeared to be fields of wild spinach and rhubarb led us to an observation tower, our original primary destination. The tower was founded as a National Weather Service station that transmitted data from the weather station on Pikes Peak to Chicago, and it boasts views of many surrounding lakes. But it’s closed indefinitely for repairs.
We walked back to our car on a path sprinkled with some of the wildflowers we’d seen labeled in the butterfly garden, allowing us to name them. An Eastern bluebird darted from tree to tree as we returned to the trailhead.
You could wander the extensive network of trails at Lapham Peak all day. We spent 90 minutes there before a busy day of family activities began. Even that short time in the forest’s embrace made a difference.
Wisconsin bestowed abundance on us all weekend: its sparkling waters, its lake breezes, the land and its growth pulsing green and blue and fuchsia.
Family and food washed over us in waves, too, as we gathered to mourn one we lost suddenly in January.
At one point, a long-lost relative kayaked up to my husband’s aunt’s house, strode into the back door and was embraced as if it had been days instead of decades.
All weekend, people said this was what they lived for, why they called Wisconsin home, what carried them through the darkness: these short weeks into which nature pours all its riches at once.
It’s a shock to the eyes, and the heart, what land and love can deliver.
Hike length: 2 miles
Trail traffic: moderate
Difficulty: easy
Wildlife spotted: butterflies, dragonflies, Eastern bluebird, chipmunk, squirrels, garter snake
Woman Seeks Elevation 