Devil’s Lake is located just south of Baraboo and at 9000 acres is the largest and most visited state park in Wisconsin. It is on the western edge of the last ice sheet deposited during the Wisconsin glaciation. It is known for its 500 feet high quartzite bluffs along the 360 acre lake.
During the hard times of the 1930s depression era, a Civilian Conservation Corps (C.C.C.) work camp was established inside the state park. From 1934 to 1941, about 200 young men worked on many projects that continue to benefit the park even to this day. They built trails in some of the most rugged parts of the park, removed invasive species, guided visitors onto the bluffs, built tables, signs, and benches, built a reservoir, relocated roads, patrolled the bluffs as fireguards, and built at least three stone buildings.
We walked on one easy trail and when we were unable to figure out how to get to a higher elevation, we walked along the lake on the railroad tracks.
We had lunch at Tumbled Rock Brewery and Kitchen.
We recommend Udder’s up cream ale and Quarter Mile pale ale and the French dip (original for Daphne and the Swiss for Darlene).
After lunch we moved on to Roche-A-Cri State Park at Friendship. The park, established in 1948 encompasses 600 acres. Roche-A-Cri comes from French words meaning “crevice in the rock.” The park has a 300-foot-high rock outcropping with a wooden stairway to the top. There are Native American petroglyphs and pictographs. The area with the petroglyphs was closed due to COVID-19 restrictions, as was the stairway. We hope to come back next year and visit those areas.
Finally, since we were in the area and were intrigued by the signs, we took a slight detour on the way home to look up the Federal correctional institution at Oxford.
On the Road With Daphne & Darlene 