Conquering Rock Scrambles

Rock scrambles are a fun way to hike, incorporating a unique perspective to the trail. It’s not exactly rock climbing, but it’s definitely not walking either. I describe rock scrambling as climbing jagged, uneven rocks, often with treacherous gaps or unclear paths, at a steep incline with moderate to strenuous required exertion. Some of my very favorite trails that we’ve hiked have featured these intense beasts. For now, I’m going to focus on our most recent rock scrambling adventure.

In the midst of this pandemic, our main goal was to clear our minds of the stress that all of the uncertainty has caused, and cleanse and refresh our souls, and what better way to do that than hike? We traveled north to the great state of Wisconsin and to a tiny town called Baraboo. We had several destinations in mind, and even added a stop along the way, but our main agenda was to hike Devil’s Lake State Park.

Upon laying eyes on Devil’s Lake, the first thing that I noticed was how vibrantly blue the water was. The jewel-colored lake, with its royal blue waters, lie in the center of the park. From all sides, all angles, its vibrancy and its sheer grandiosity flaunted itself. The trees were slowly coming alive, wrapping their green, leafy arms in a giant hug around the lake. Trails surrounded the lake; rock scrambles scattered the rim, providing unique vantage points of the water and valley below.

During this trip, we hiked two rock scramble trails. The first trail was one that we stumbled upon. We hiked Grotto Trail to CCC Trail, and before we realized what was happening, we were scaling rocks at a rather steep incline. The tree-smattered valley below stretched farther and farther away as we ascended the rocky path.

Upon reaching the top, I was astounded. Breath caught in my throat as my eyes soaked in the sights all around me. Below, tiny diamonds shimmered over the lake’s surface in the bright sunlight. To my right and left, tumbled rocks scattered the hill. Above, the sun shone its vibrancy, showering the valley with glorious, golden light. With one last sweep of the view, we descended the rocky path.

The second rock scramble was definitely the more difficult of the two that we hiked that weekend. The name of this trail was Balanced Rock. We accessed it from East Bluff Trail the first day, and the original trailhead via the South Shore entrance the second day. The first day, we hiked it from the top down and viewed Balanced Rock from above; the second day, we hiked it from the bottom up, and back down again.

Up until this Wisconsin trip, our dogs had never scaled a full-length rock scramble. I ended up carrying my little ten-pound terrier most of the way due to her tiny legs not being able to jump the wide-gapped rocks. Our nine-year-old beagle did quite well, but she was definitely exhausted by the end!

Balanced Rock Trail is only about a mile long, but its quick, 419-foot elevation gain makes this quite the strenuous hike. Some rocks were jagged and cracked, others smooth and slippery; some rocks had wide gaps that required a quick jump, others were smushed against each other. But each rock led you to the next, all the way to the very top. The view from the top was even more spectacular than the other trail, if that’s possible. The massive rock seemed to be hanging on by a thread, balancing precariously, the jewel lake providing its backdrop. The aerial view of what seemed like the entire park encapsulated my vision. Seeing the rocks that we climbed from the top of the hill made the trail look even more intimidating. I felt so accomplished in that moment. My breathlessness should’ve been an indicator of its difficulty, but somehow seeing the steep incline from the top just solidified the incredible achievement. When it was time to descend, we were careful to watch our step as a fall could be fatal. Our beagle led the way, sensing the direction of the trail, and once at the bottom, breathless, I tipped my neck back and stared at the rock scramble that we just conquered, and once again I felt a wave of awe wash over me.

We’ve conquered tumbled charred-black rocks scattered across the Appalachian Trail, ascended a steep, rocky path to a natural bridge in Sedona, climbed Turk Mountain’s sketchy boulders and Devil’s Lake’s rocky trails, and atop each rock scramble came spectacular, one-of-a-kind panoramas. Which rock scramble should we conquer next?