It was mid-January, time for the Hoofer Outing Club's annual cross-country ski trip in northern Wisconsin. The club has been coming to Delta Lodge each winter for the last thirty years. This was my fourth Delta Lodge trip, and as usual, it was a great time.
After getting fattened up for Christmas, I took off with some friends on a road trip to northern Wisconsin. Our first stop was Nine Mile County Forest for some cross-country skiing. The park was beautiful, with well-groomed trails and nice weather.… Read More: Getting Outdoors in the North Woods »
Last weekend I went on the Hoofer Outing Club's annual whitewater fall colors trip. We camped at the club's land called “Hooferland” in northern Wisconsin and kayaked different rivers each day. The trees were still mostly green and the water was a bit low, but we managed to… Read More: Fall Colors, Whitewater Edition »
“A group of twelve, huh?” asked Smokey. He was past retirement age and seemed like a nice enough man to have as a campground host.
“Yes,” Ted said. “Is there enough space for us for two nights?” We were still in his car and had just pulled into the campground when Smokey stopped us.
After coming home from my fishing trip, I traveled with a group of twelve Hoofers to the Arkansas River in southern Colorado for a week of whitewater kayaking. Five people from the group were advanced kayakers who had already run far more challenging rivers. The other seven (including me) were intermediate and hadn't run anything… Read More: Colorado Kayaking, Part I »
I spent the weekend brushing up on my kayak rescue skills in northern Wisconsin with the Hoofers Outing Club. Our instructor for the day was Scott, who works at the Bear Paw Outdoor Adventure Resort on the Wolf River. We spent Saturday morning going over the basics in the… Read More: Kayak rescue training and how not to run a whitewater… »
Ever since our bicycle excursion to Devil's Lake last month, my girlfriend Katie and I have been talking about other places we could bike to. We got our chance last weekend when we took a sixty-mile round-trip ride to Blue Mounds State Park with some friends from the Hoofers Outing Club.
We were supposed to… Read More: Biking to Blue Mounds »
A couple of times per year, the Hoofers Outing Club holds a Day of Instruction (DOI), where they teach new members basic skills in canoeing and kayaking. Because of the construction at the Memorial Union, this summer's DOI was moved to Devil's Lake State Park. It's the most scenic park in Wisconsin, so this wasn't… Read More: Devil's Lake Day of Instruction »
I spent another Memorial Day weekend whitewater kayaking with the Hoofers Outing Club. This is one of my favorite trips of the year as it's beginner-friendly and we get to camp on property the club owns in northern Wisconsin known as Hooferland.
Twenty-four people went on… Read More: Memorial Day Kayaking »
I spent a recent weekend with 7 friends climbing at Jackson Falls in the Shawnee National Forest of southern Illinois. I had no idea there was an actual forest with hills and cliffs in Illinois. I always thought the state consisted of Chicago and a bunch… Read More: Southern Illinois Climbing »
