Janesville is mile 831 for eastbound thru-hikers like me. I like to say “EABO” instead. The next trail town I aimed for is Delafield, which is 81 miles beyond Janesville. I am now watchful of the numbers because Delafield is just 242 miles from the Eastern Terminus of the IAT. As I write this in Delafield, I have hiked 79% of the trail. This is very exciting because I love the IAT experience and anticipate the pride that emerges when completing a long hike. You can follow my daily progress on the Garmin InReach map:
The five-day hike to Delafield included the parks of Janesville, the small town of Milton, Storrs Lake, and the southern unit of Kettle Moraine after a long roadwalk. The daily miles walked were 14, 18, 19, 23, and 6.
It was very warm and humid as I hiked out of Janesville, followed by thunderstorms while I was in Milton. I sought refuge in a small café that served bubble tea and a pavilion within Milton’s war memorial park. Thankfully, the weather cooled after that storm.
The day I entered Kettle Moraine, May 18, my sport watch recorded 2,300 feet of accumulated ascent. The terrain seemed pleasant and gentle despite the recent days of what seemed like all roadwalking. My log sheet informed me that it was the third highest amount of daily ascent. The wildflowers and forested hills of the moraines encouraged me to stop and photograph the colors of Kettle Moraine.
After taking a wrong turn on one of the numerous intersections, I followed my nose to a café in Whitewater and a unique restaurant that served wood oven pizza. When burning over 4,000 calories per day, a hiker should always stop for the pizza and beer! The university commencement in Whitewater that day attracted a lot of diners at Whiney’s, where a guitarist sang songs that included some by John Prine. The servers were kind, and the pizza was fabulous!
As the rain got intense in Delafield, I walked a little farther to a Great Harvest Bakery shop on a hunch I would enjoy the vibe there. I was greeted by Jim, who was curious about my hike. That led to Jim introducing me to Cub, a long distance hiking veteran of the PCT and AT, and a baker at Great Harvest!
Greg in Wild hikes on!