Thank You for a Successful 2023 Trailbuilding Season

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Nearly 15-miles of brand new Ice Age Trail!

Photos by Patrick Gleissner, Dave Caliebe, and Rick Gamble.
Photos by Patrick Gleissner, Dave Caliebe, and Rick Gamble.

Two words – New Trail – describe the Ice Age Trail Alliance’s 2023 Trailbuilding Season!

Nearly 15 miles of brand-new Ice Age National Scenic Trail took shape, creating a banner year.

The season’s true superstars were the 1,031 volunteers who donated 24,725 service hours, an impressive amount!

Dave Caliebe, Trail Program Manager for the Ice Age Trail Alliance, attributes the extraordinary number of volunteer-related hours to “a great group of new volunteers who are finding value in giving back to the Ice Age Trail after hiking it.” Caliebe noted, “They are excited about learning from our long-time Trailbuilding folks, and several individuals have taken the next step, becoming volunteer Crew Leaders.”

Two volunteers paint yellow blazes on a wood post.
Photo by Miranda Murphy.
Volunteers build box steps.
Photo by Dave Caliebe.

With input from the Alliance’s Trail Team, Chapter-led initiatives opened more than two-thirds of the new miles.

“Our chapter members took ownership, getting more Trail on the ground in their counties,” said Chad DuChateau, the Alliance’s Director of Trail Operations. “New miles take a long time to come to fruition, and volunteers helped all along the way: from establishing contact with landowners to being involved with the compliance process to crafting tread.”

A group of smiling volunteers pose for a photo.
Photo by Amy Lord.
Two volunteers work to install a wooden post with a painted yellow blaze in the ground.
Photo by Patrick Gleissner.
Two volunteers work together to move a large rock.
Photo by Patrick Gleissner.
A group of volunteers pose for a picture on a new constructed stone staircase.
Photo by Dave Caliebe.

Yellow blazes now wind through Evansville, Cornell (an Ice Age Trail Community), and Gibbs Lake County Park in Rock County. Chapters constructed Trail through the Alliance-owned Ice Override Preserve in Langlade County and extended the Waterville and Scuppernong Segments in Waukesha County and the Chaffee Creek Segment in Waushara County. They also tackled reroutes, new bridges, and other Trail improvements.

BEFORE and AFTER: Waterville Segment

Volunteers work to clear the corridor for new Trail.
Photo by Pat Witkowski.
Brand new Trail is lightly covered in snow. A tree with a freshly painted yellow blaze stands off to the side.
Photo by Pat Witkowski.

BEFORE and AFTER: Ice Override Preserve

A group of boy scouts working together to build new Trail.
Photo by Patrick Gleissner.
New Trail on a frosty morning.
Photo by Patrick Gleissner.

Land hosting the Trail also received attention and care. In January and February, three Habitat Improvement Program events took place on Alliance-owned preserves. Volunteers played a crucial role in land restoration efforts, helping create conditions for remnant and restored prairies to flourish.

A volunteer throws logs of wood into a large pile of burning brush.
Photo by Maura Hanley.
A volunteer in protective gear uses a chainsaw to cut a large branch.
Photo by Bob Leedle.
A group of smiling volunteers pose next to a burning brush pile.
Photo by Claire Finucane.

The Trail also received a new level of targeted maintenance with volunteers joining a “Roving Crew” – a pilot program designed to respond to immediate needs. Additionally, funding for a WisCorps crew helped cross off a wide range of projects from the Trail’s Team to-do list.

Three smiling volunteers wearing blaze orange and yellow take a selfie.
Photo by Melinda Nelson.
A volunteer in protective gear uses a brush cutter.
Photo by Mark Ormsby.
A WisCorps crew member in protective gear smiles as she holds a large tree branch.
Photo by Mark Ormsby.
The Year-in-Review: Enjoy project-specific photos, outcomes, and maps

2023 Outcomes: Trailbuilding, Maintenance, and Habitat Improvement Events  

  • Nearly 15 miles of brand-new Trail open!
  • 1,031 volunteers who donated 24,725 service hours
  • 2,092 feet of boardwalk
  • 124 feet of bridges
  • 258 feet of retaining wall
  • 76 stone steps
  • 36 timber steps
  • 2,250 meals served
  • 24 campfires burned
  • More than 100 gallons of coffee brewed
  • 3 Alliance-owned preserves received habitat improvement efforts during the winter burn season.
A group of volunteers sit around a picnic table and enjoy a meal together.
Photo by Patrick Gleissner.

We Couldn’t Do it Without You! 

A big thank you also goes out to Alliance partner organizations, individuals, foundations, and businesses of all sizes. Your support provided the bedrock, underpinning this season’s impressive achievements.

Your generosity made the season’s achievements possible.

Special Thanks To:

Partner Organizations

Individuals and Foundations

  • Alliance members whose support helps conserve, create, maintain, and promote the Ice Age National Scenic Trail! Membership donations helped make the season’s work possible.
  • Lee “Butch” Clendenning and Gale Clendenning for donating the gap-closing easement for the Rib Lake Segment.
  • Judith DeCoster for funding the stone staircases installed along the Iola Ski Hill Segment in memory of her late husband, Robert E. Culligan, Jr., who loved the Central Sands region.
  • Bob and Ann Rusch for decades of commitment to the Ice Age Trail and being the driving force in rebuilding the Rib Lake Segment.
  • The SwampLovers: a team of landowners who began the land’s restoration (along the Table Bluff Segment) and transferred the property’s ownership to the Alliance.
  • The Dwight and Linda Davis Foundation (Sturgeon Bay Segment).
  • The Jenni & Kyle Foundation (Cross Plains Segment).
  • Athletic Brewing Company through its Two for the Trails Program (IAT-U).
  • The Department of Natural Resources Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program for providing funds for Trail construction (Sturgeon Bay Segment).
  • The National Park Foundation provided crucial support for a WisCorps crew which tackled a wide-range of projects from maintenance to structures to brand-new tread.
  • The National Park Service through its Connect Trails to Parks Fund (Storrs Lake Segment boardwalk).
  • The National Park Trust and National Park Service for the financial support through a Challenge Cost Share grant (IAT-U and Sturgeon Bay Segment).
  • The Trails Capacity Program is administered by American Trails and primarily funded by Bronco Wild Fund, a Ford Motor Company program dedicated to connecting people to the outdoors, responsibly. The goal of the Trails Capacity Program is to invest in building trails community capacity nationwide through research, education and stewardship (Iola Ski Hill Segment).

Business Partners

Chapters and Friends of the Trail

Up Next:

The 2024 Trailbuilding Season will be unveiled, soon – stay tuned!

Save the Date (see links for more information) for these rapidly approaching 2024 Habitat Improvement Projects (HIP):

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