Engaging presentations by Ice Age Trail Alliance staff or expert volunteers will set the stage for the coming Field Experience. Ideally these presentations will be scheduled one to two weeks ahead of the outing.

We’ll talk about:

• The effects of the receding glaciers on Wisconsin’s landscape;
• How the Ice Age National Scenic Trail allows Wisconsinites to get up close and personal with the last Ice Age;
• Why one of eleven National Scenic Trails is located in Wisconsin; and, as a bonus,
• We’ll provide hints and tips to help the students have a successful hike.

Teachers will receive:

• Transportation costs fully covered via reimbursement for 4th graders*;
• A toolkit that includes geology features, lesson plan activities, and a recommended hike location on a nearby Ice Age Trail segment.
• A map, directions, parking instructions, and description of Trail terrain;
• An Ice Age Trail Alliance representative able to lend his/her expertise and join you on this field experience (depends on availability).

*Transportation funding is available for only 4^th graders. If the trip includes other grades, for example 3^rd or 5^th, the transportation funding will cover the percentage equal to the number of 4^th graders. Funding is first-come, first-serve based on school registration date.

A report will be emailed to teachers after the hike to be completed and returned to the Ice Age Trail Alliance office, along with a transportation invoice(s)*.

The report will include:

• Number of students, teachers, parents involved;
• Hike location and miles hiked;
• Testimonials; and
• Two high resolution photos that can be used publicly.

*A reimbursement check will be issued to the school once the post field experience report is complete and an invoice has been received by the Ice Age Trail Alliance.

Learn about the Ice Age National Scenic Trail and the Ice Age Trail Alliance, the organization which works to conserve, create, maintain, and promote the Ice Age Trail. The stories of the Ice Age Trail and Ice Age Trail Alliance are a fascinating mix of vision, conservation, and passion, involving both famous Wisconsin politicians and thousands of private citizens.

Learn about the glacial land forms you may see while hiking the Ice Age Trail. The Ice Age Trail primarily interprets continental glaciation, but the story of the Trail goes back much farther on the geologic timeline. Did you know that as you walk the Ice Age Trail, your footsteps will take you back in time almost 2 billion years?

When people begin hiking the Ice Age Trail, interesting new words become part of their vocabulary as they learn about the geologic features along the route, including kames, drumlins, ice-walled-lake plains, outwash plains, eskers, and tunnel channels. Check out the Ice Age Trail Glossary for definitions of these and other features you are likely to encounter while hiking the Ice Age Trail.

As of 2020, the Ice Age Trail Alliance owns and manages more than 4,000 acres of land. A special Alliance-owned property, Swamplovers’ Preserve, received decades of restoration efforts to transform it into a diverse habitat for native plants and animals. You may also learn more about land management initiatives along the Ice Age Trail as well as the Alliance’s efforts to help protect the Karner blue butterfly.

Learn about how to have a safe and fun hike on the Ice Age Trail, your favorite park, or going for a walk around the block.

VIDEO COMING SOON!