Between the St. Croix Moraine on the west and the Chippewa Lobe Moraine on the east lies a north/south, gently-sloping sandy plain.
After 17,000 years ago the Superior Lobe of ice had receded to the north, and then re-advanced south where about 15,500 years ago had stalled along what is termed the Late St. Croix Phase or Advance.
As the climate warmed, sediment-laden meltwaters washed out from the ice in a labyrinth of small braided streams migrating back and forth across the valley floor depositing what is called outwash, exceeding 100 feet in depth.
The outwash plain, sloping 20 feet per mile from north to south, is 100 feet higher (elev. 1310 ft) near Long Lake, five miles north of this location. The outwash plain elevation here is at 1207 feet.
Later, larger glacial rivers (Bear Creek, Brill River, and Red Cedar River) flowed across the outwash, eroded down through the outwash, creating new channels and wide floodplains as they migrated back and forth across the valley floor.
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Ice Age National Scenic Trail (IAT): The Ice Age Trail, a 1,100 plus-mile footpath across Wisconsin, traces the terminal edge of the last great Wisconsin glacier of the Ice Age. The glacial features found along its length offer an educational showplace of worldwide significance illustrating how the massive glaciers shaped the landscape. That, the beauty found along its entire length, and the unique opportunities for outdoor recreation, led to its establishment in 1980. The Ice Age Trail, managed by the National Park Service, is one of just eleven trails with such a designation in the nation.
Rail & Trail History: The 14.5-mile route of the Ice Age Trail between Haugen and Birchwood is on or next to three abandoned railroad corridors: 1) the main Spooner-Altoona Line of the Omaha; 2) the Omaha's Tuscobia Line; and, 3) the Soo Line Railroad's Blueberry Line. When the Tuscobia was abandoned in 1965, Hulda Hilfiker, who owned and operated a cheese factory south of Haugen with her husband Ernest, organized a group of citizens and urged then Governor Warren Knowles to give . . ." .. approval for a very worthwhile project. . . to be used as a scenic and historic trail, which could be enjoyed by nature-loving hikers, horse-back riders, snow-sledders and bicyclists, and would be a definite asset to the area." The State of Wisconsin acquired the 74-mile rail corridor, from Haugen to Park Falls, in November, 1966 for $20,000.
Tuscobia - The Name: The term 'Tuscobia' has a somewhat uncertain origin. Earlier spellings from the 1888 and 1903 Barron County Platbooks include tescobial and tescobia. The Ojibwa language uses the root 'tess'or 'tessa' as part of a larger word or phrase, all pertaining to being level' or 'flat.' This relates well to the terrain of the outwash plain here and the accepted meaning of Tuscobia: 'a flat or level place'.
Superior Lobe Chapter of the Ice Age Trail Alliance: The local Superior Lobe Chapter of the Ice Age Trail Alliance is an all-volunteer organization whose members are dedicated to maintaining, promoting, building, signing, protecting, and hiking along this trail segment.
Trail Management: Management of the trail is shared by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, the U.S. National Park Service, and the Ice Age Trail Alliance, Inc. For a fuller explanation of the roles and responsibilities, see www.iceagetrail.org.
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Source: Intperetive Guide to the Tuscobia Segment of the Ice Age Trail from the Superior Lobe of the Ice Age Trail. Permission to use content and pictures from Sue Greenway, Chapter President.
Permission for this earthcache has been granted by Roy Kenast at the WI DNR.
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To log this cache, you must answer these questions:
1. Which direction are you facing the outwash plain at this viewpoint?
2. What do you notice about the slope of the landscape from this viewpoint? Why do you think this is so?