ABOUT THIS LOCATION
Your quest for this Earthcache is a visit to the Kettle Moraine State Forest Northern Unit. Butler Lake is located in a Wisconsin State Park so a yearly sticker or daily admission fee is required. Hours are dawn to dusk. A paved parking area is a short distance from this Earthcache, a short walk on a gravel trail with very gradual incline. Please be respectful as this is a State Natural Area so a regular geocache would not be permitted at this location. This Earthcache was planned to be as stroller friendly and handicapped accessible as it could be. Dogs are permitted but must be kept on a leash no longer than 8 feet. To help prevent the spread of garlic mustard and other invasive species, before entering this area, please thoroughly clean your shoes and clothing. Seeds can lodge in the cracks of hiking boots and athletic shoes as well as in pant cuffs and socks.
GEOLOGICAL INFORMATION
Butler Lakes features a seven-acre shallow hard-bottom lake surrounded by sedge meadow. Previously, the site contained a tamarack hardwood swamp but a few years of high water levels has killed off most of the trees. Although the groundlayer has also been flooded, the aquatic vegetation and geologic features are still intact.
Chara (muskgrass) covers the marl-bottomed Lake while the dominant submerged aquatic species is Illinois pondweed.
MARL is a rock containing clay and calcium carbonate. It is formed from the erosion of other rocks during weathering; as rocks erode, small sedimentary particles--sand, silt, and clay--pile up on top of each other. Eventually, these sedimentary particles become compacted together to form a new rock. The type of new rock that is formed depends on the original rock that was eroded and on the nature of the erosion. If the new rock contains predominantly clay and calcium carbonate, it is called marl.
Emergents include white water-lily, bull-head pond-lily, and hard-stem bulrush. A small zone of sedges and bulrushes on the north end is the only open wetland. Older tamaracks, which formerly surrounded the lake, have died but the species is reproducing well along the northwestern and southern shores. Of particular interest at this site is the presence two rare species-- the unicorn clubtail dragonfly (Arigomphus villosipes), and the swamp spreadwing (Lestes vigilax). Direct Source: Wisconsin DNR
KETTLES are depressions created by partially-buried glacial ice blocks as they melted. The depressions that filled with water became kettle lakes.
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Kettle Lake - Before
A block of ice is left behind by the retreating glacier. Sediments from the glacier bury the block of ice.
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Kettle Lake - After
After the ice melts a depression is left behind. The kettle is dry if the water table is below the bottom of the kettle. A kettle lake forms if the water table is higher than the bottom of the kettle.
Enjoy your visit!
To log this earthcache, you must complete the following.
1) CLASSIFY THE KETTLE LAKES. The coordinates given will take you to an educational sign about the formation of Kettle Lakes. By observing the lakes and reading this sign, what would the Butler Kettle Lakes be classified as? And, how many Kettle Lakes are visible from this location? Email your answers when posting your "found it" log.
2) BRING YOUR CAMERA (Optional). We would like a photo of your team with your GPSr at the Butler Lakes. However, if you are solo caching, a photo of your GPSr with enough of the location in the background that can be identified, will also be accepted. Please upload your photo(s) with your "found it" log.
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Please be advised, failure to complete the tasks listed above may result in log deletion without notice.
You do NOT have to wait for comfirmation from me before logging your find. Please do not make any reference to these answers in your log.
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![]() IATCC is the cache designation to highlight a series of EarthCaches along the Ice Age National Scenic Trail grouped into a special category called "ColdCache."
The Ice Age Trail is one of eleven (11) National Scenic Trails designated by the National Park Service. This unique trail is entirely within the state of Wisconsin and follows along the terminal moraine of the most recent glacier.
This project is supported by the Ice Age Trail Alliance. The goal is to bring more visitors to the trail and promote public awareness, appreciation, and understanding of Wisconsin’s glacial landscape.
More information on the Ice Age Trail Atlas, the ColdCache Project and Awards Program is available at: www.iceagetrail.org/hiking-awards-and-programs.
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As this a State Natural Area, A Geocache Notification Form has been approved by Thomas A. Meyer, Conservation Biologist, State Natural Areas Program, Bureau of Endangered Resources, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Geocaches placed on Wisconsin Department of Natural Resource managed lands require permission by means of a notification form. Please print out a paper copy of the notification form, fill in all required information, then submit it to the land manager. The DNR Notification form and land manager information can be obtained at: http://www.wi-geocaching.com/hiding