Mill Bluff State Park, Wisconsin

     Being from Minnesota, but living in Illinois, I frequently travel through Wisconsin on Interstate 90/94 to visit family back in southeastern Minnesota.  About halfway on the trip is a fine state park, right off of the interstate, that I like to stop at, take a break from driving, and check out the view from the overlook.  The place is called Mill Bluff State Park and much of it is designated as a state natural area.
     If coming from the west, exit at Oakdale, and if coming from the east, exit at Camp Douglas. Then follow Highway 12 to the entrance road to the park.  A state park vehicle sticker is required, but a daily pass can be purchased  for $10 (for out-of-state residents), or $5 for a single hour, which is plenty of time when just stopping for a respite from a long car ride.  We paid the ranger, parked our car, and headed for the stairs to the top of the namesake feature, Mill Bluff.
     Only 223 stairs and we were at the top of the bluff!  There is a nice hand rail on one side and the stairs were carved out of the sandstone cliff.  Although they are uneven and challenging for some to climb, it is neat that they were made on site.

Only 223 stairs to the top!

     Pine trees are common on the bluff, and along the trail at the top we observed lots of blueberry (Vaccinium pallidum), native honeysuckle (Diervilla lonicera), and bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum).  Mill Bluff and the other rock formations are comprised of sandstone of Cambrian origin. These many sandstone pinnacles and mesas are geologic features called sea stacks, rock pillars composed of a steep vertical layer of rock formed by wind and water erosion within a large body of water.  Although this area is within the Driftless Area, a region covering southwestern Wisconsin that was never glaciated, the area was influenced by the last ice age, 15,000 years ago.  The rocks were once islands barely visible in a giant waterbody called Glacial Lake Wisconsin.  The giant lake was created when icebergs dammed the outlets draining the area.  Once the icebergs melted, the glacial outwash carved out the distinctive valleys of the Wisconsin Dells area.  Many glacial erratics were also deposited in this area, material carried south by abundant meltwater.

View from Mill Bluff 

   

Selfie

     After taking in the views to the north, we descended the stairs and returned to our vehicle.  But I wanted to see another one of the rock formations.  One of the rock bluffs is not as angular as the rest. This one is called Ragged Rock and it more uneven in appearance because it is not covered in protective limestone cap, like the other rock bluffs are.

Sandstone cliffs at Ragged Rock

     This characteristic also made it easy to scramble up to near the top.  Rock climbing is prohibited, but to me rock climbing is vertical and hiking doesn't require ropes so I carefully made my way up the steep and sandy slope.  I couldn't get to the top without doing some maneuvering that I would consider climbing.  But I did get some good views from my perch near the top.

View from Ragged Rock

View from Ragged Rock

     This unique area was very fun to explore and I only saw a small portion of it.  Looking out across the wide open expanse made me want to hike the area cross country.  But with lots to do, we made our way back to the car.  Along the way back down I found Spinulose Woodfern (Dryopteris carthusiana) and Polypody Fern (Polypodium virginianum), as well lots of Blue Toadflax (Nuttallanthus canadensis).

Spinulose Woodfern (Dryopteris carthusiana)

     This area is a real gem and convenient to stop at and take a closer look.  The geologic formations are really quite fascinating!

Base of Ragged Rock