Day Six
Leaving the Mertes family early, refreshed and rejuvinated, under rainy skies, we headed a mile and half down Snake Road to Morning Mass at St Thomas Aquinas Church in Elkhart Lake. The parishioners greeted us warmly and we enjoyed worshipping with them.
We continued through Elkhart Lake, in the rain, to Glenbeulah WI. and stopped for a quick lunch, knowing that the Ice Age trail was just a half mile away. Our spirits were high with the anticipation of reaching the Ice Age Trail after nearly 80 miles of country road – pavement walking. The Wisconsin country side is beautiful, but we longed for the silence and beauty of the forest, and our feet looked forward to softer ground.
We reached the start of the Trail just as the rains stopped; the trail was very muddy, with difficult footing, tough hills and swarms of mosquitos. Still we were excited to be in the forest. We prayed the Rosary, sang songs and swatted mosquitos along the way.
Ellen and Jeff met us again to give us Zoey, my two and a half year old boarder collie. Zoey is good at keeping track of everyone on the trail – she runs from the front of the line to the back, making sure everyone stays together.
As evening drew near, we reached our camping spot for the night; Ann Hayden was already there grilling a delicious dinner for us. We were all very excited to see our good friend, the Ice Age Trail and the mosquitos were a bit more draining than any of us expected, we needed her love and support that night. We set up camp and quickly settled into our tents early as a thick fog rolled in for the night, we were tired.
Pray with Mary, Walk with Jesus.
Eileen