HOOSIER DADDY?

 

 

From the Red River Gorge we drove through Lexington and Louisville and on into the Hoosier state.  One of my goals for this trip was to do hikes in some of the states we’d pass through on our way to Wyoming.  Specifically, I wanted to hike in states where I’d never hiked before.  First on that list was Indiana. 

 

Years ago I traveled with a friend to the Boundary Waters in Minnesota for a canoeing trip.  We drove through Indiana on the way.  At some point we passed an impressive escarpment of cliffs.  I thought they’d been just outside of Louisville, Kentucky.  When I started researching hiking options in Indiana, I read about the Knobstone Trail.  The Knobstone Trail follows an escarpment for 58 miles in southern Indiana.  When I read that, I figured it followed the cliffs I’d seen all those years ago.

 

We only had a few hours to dedicate to our hike, meaning we’d only be able to cover a small portion of the trail.  After more research I settled on a short hike near the southern end.  That would be fairly easy to get to, and it sounded like the scenery would be enjoyable.

 

We drove I-65 from Louisville towards Indianapolis.  Unfortunately, I didn’t see the cliffs that were etched in my memory.  This left me puzzled, but we drove on towards the trailhead anyway.  I was eager to get some exercise just to break up the long drive.

 

We found our way to the Jackson Road trailhead, which is high up on a wooded ridgeline.  We followed a dirt road getting there, and found the parking area deserted at our arrival.

 

We released the dog from his confinement and started down an access trail that connects the trailhead to the Knobstone Trail.  The access trail is actually a gravel road that is surprisingly steep.  The rocky descent seemed to go on and on, and I began to wonder if I’d made a good choice for our hike.  Eventually we bottomed out near a small, mostly dry streambed.  There were a few muddy pools of water here and there, and Boone spent time in every one of them.  I’m confident it was his favorite part of the hike.

 

We joined the Knobstone Trail there and immediately began ascending the hill we’d just come down.  The good news is that we were now on a proper trail.  Unfortunately the climb was surprisingly difficult.  To make matters worse, it was brutally hot and humid despite heavy cloud cover.  The bugs were awful, too, and even the profuse summer wildflowers did little to make the hike more appealing. 

 

A bit later we took a break, as Christy was actually feeling nauseous from the heat.  While she rested in the shade I explore a side trail that climbed up to a campsite on a small knoll.  It was a nice spot, but getting water would require a looong walk.  I rejoined Christy, who’d had enough hiking in Indiana for at least one trip.  Instead of backtracking though, I came up with a more appealing plan.  We continued ahead, climbing again, but more gently.  Eventually we reached the ridge and then bushwhacked a short distance over to the road we had driven in on.  From there, it was simple to follow the road back to our car.  That gave us a shorter, and much easier, return to our starting point.

 

Our hike was disappointing, but that may be partially my fault.  In all of my pre-trip research, I’d spent very little time or energy on our hike in Indiana.  I’m sure there are more appealing stretches of the Knobstone Trail than the one we hiked.  Also, that area is probably more enjoyable in the spring or fall when the weather is better.  Perhaps I’ll return some day for another try.

 

We drove straight from there to Lafayette, Indiana.  We had reservations at a Red Roof Inn, which provided cheap, adequate accommodations without any extra charge for the dog.  We checked in around 4pm and showered.  We jacked up the air conditioning, enjoying the cool air after our hot hike.  A bit later we enjoyed an early dinner at Mountain Jacks restaurant, which was conveniently located next door.  I had the Walleye, which was a little expensive, but worth it.

 

 

WHERE WOLVES?

 

 

After dinner we put Boone in his crate before making a visit to Wolf Park (http://www.wolfpark.org/).  I’d first read about Wolf Park years ago, and it had been in the back of mind as a place to visit ever since.  Wolf Park covers 75 acres, and is currently home to 14 wolves.  The wolves aren’t domesticated, but they are socialized with humans.  The first wolves there came from the Chicago zoo.  Today, wolves are occasionally exchanged with other parks and zoos to vary the genetics of the wolves.

 

Although they aren’t exactly wild, Christy and I were excited to see them.  Even though we were headed to Wyoming, we knew that the odds of actually seeing a wolf there were pretty slim.

 

We had timed our visit to coincide with a “howl night”.  Howl nights are special programs that are offered about once per month on Saturday evenings.  Howl nights feature a presentation that includes an opportunity to listen to the wolves howling.  After the presentation, we’d have the opportunity to roam the property and observe the wolves in the evening, when they tend to be active.  This particular howl night also coincided with a full moon, which seemed appropriate.

 

A 20-minute drive took us from Lafayette to Battle Ground, Indiana.  We arrived at Wolf Park a bit early, but had to wait in a long line to get in.  We paid $7 each and found seats in the bleachers just outside the wolf enclosure.  We were introduced to five of the resident wolves, including one young black one.  After an educational presentation, we got to listen to the wolves howl.  Of course they don’t just howl spontaneously.  We had to prompt them.  The crowd (which probably totaled around 200 people) was instructed in proper howling technique, and after a bit of practice, we had the wolves howling.  Even though this was rather contrived, it was still cool watching those wolves throw their heads back and join in.  Aside from the wolves that were being social, we could hear more wolves and even coyotes joining in from more remote parts of the park.

 

After a bit of howling the wolves were rewarded for the efforts with treats, including a deer carcass.  Once the presentation concluded, we were free to walk a trail between the wolf enclosures.  I spent most of that time trying to photograph the wolves.  That was tricky since we were separated by a chain link fence, but I had some success with my telephoto lens.  The highlight though may have been a beautiful sunset over a small pond along the trail.  I took many photos there before catching up with Christy in the gift shop.

 

We headed back to the hotel afterwards, where we had to explain to Boone what we’d been up to.  We went to bed early, exhausted from a long day, and with an even longer day in the car looming.



Continue reading about our trip as we travel to Nebraska, where we camped and hiked in the Wildcat Hills and toured Scottsbluff National Monument.

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