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Lapham Peak
Lapham Peak, John Muir, and Nordic Trails in the Kettle Moraine State Forest
Where is Lapham Peak ?
The Lapham Peak Unit of the Kettle Moraine State
Forest is located 42 miles east of Madison near the town of
Dousman. From Madison:
Take I-94 East
Exit Waukesha County HWY C (exit #285)
Turn right (go south) and follow C for about 1 mile
The park entrance is on the left
A second location for skiing in the Kettle Moraine can be found further south near the town of LaGrange. These are the John Muir and Nordic Trails. To reach these trails from Madison travel east on HWY 12 past Whitewater to LaGrange. In LaGrange take county N North (left) a few miles. The John Muir trails will be on your left and the Nordic trails will be on your right.
Old World Wisconsin
Old World Wisconsin, on Highway 67 is 1.5 miles south of Eagle and has great cross-country ski trails. They open the first Saturday in January and will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekends through mid-March or as long as conditions allow. There's a heated rest stop on the more difficult trails, a restaurant for snacks and lunch and a gift shop. Horse-drawn wagon and bobsled rides are available, too. Call (262) 594-6300 for more information. Old World Wisconsin is on 576 acres in the Kettle Moraine State Forest.
What is it like?
Lapham Peak has about 10 miles of groomed trails. The trails are wide and groomed for both skate skiing and classical.
The terrain is hilly. Some of the hills are very fast and occasionally long but most lack turns. There are three overlapping trails that wind through woods and marsh. The shortest trail, Meadow Trail (Green Loop), is the easiest. This trail is flat for most of its 2.0 mile length. The Kettle View Trail (Blue Loop) is 5.8 miles of rolling terrain with some flat sections. The Moraine Ridge Trail (Black Loop) adds just over a mile to the Green Loop and a few more hills. The Green and Yellow loops are rated intermediate while the Black loop earns an Advanced rating. In addition to the groomed trails, there are several ungroomed cut backs and hiking trails that you can use to extend the length of your ski.
A secondary growth forest of mostly pine covers the hill like a green and brown ski cap. The main tail head starts near the Evergreen Grove parking area on the edge of a marsh. You'll have go up to the tower at the top of the hill if you want to get a view of the area.
The John Muir and Nordic trails are not as hilly as the Lapham Peak location but still there are enough hills to make it interesting. Some of the trails have exposed rocks on the downhills so you'll want to be sure there is enough snow before heading out. The Nordic trails are groomed thanks to the efforts of the Nordic Ski Club of Milwaukee. The John Muir trails are not groomed and are intended for use by mountain bikers. I often see skiers on these trails regardless of the rocks and so forth. When I ski this section, I might just bring my binoculars to look at birds.
Who will enjoy skiing at Lapham Peak ?
Novice skiers might find Lapham Peaka bit challenging. There are signs posted at the top of the fastest downhills advising beginning skiers to remove their skis. Most intermediate skiers should have no problem, however. Although some of the downhills are fast, they are fairly straight and smooth. With excellent grooming and a number of fast downhills this is a great place for intermediate and advanced skiers. The one-way trails are wide enough for a lane of skating and a lane of track.
At the John Muir and Nordic location has something to offer all types of skiers. The John Muir trails are left ungroomed and intended to be used by hikers and mountain bikers. The Nordic trails are groomed for both classical and skate skiing.
How much does it cost?
A sticker is required to park. Stickers can be purchased for the day or for the year and are good at all of the Wisconsin State Parks and State Forests.
Skiing Stories from Lapham Peak
The Kettle Moraine Continues to Surprise and Delight
This morning, I and Henry, my longtime skiing buddy, discovered what a park ranger referred to as the best skating terrain in the Southern Unit of the Kettle Moraine. Our find was the Nordic Area, located about 2 mi. N of Hwy 12 (Lagrange) on Hwy N. We had heard good reviews about the 8 mi. blue loop at Nordic and we were not disappointed.
As Madtowners, Henry and I customarily debut the season at either Blue Mounds, Blackhawk or Gov. Dodge. However, we knew that, this time, Dane Cty. conditions remained marginal and that more snow had fallen to the East. It was still dark as we set out from the Beltline South on I-90, exited east on Hwy 59 to Whitewater, caught a shortcut to Hwy. 12 and headed east to LaGrange.
A rising sun etched the clear blue as we pulled into the trailhead. There were four other cars, three from IL. A couple of cheeseheads were preparing to embark from the fourth. After a bit of banter they went right, we went left, and we soon found ourselves in heaven.
Ah, the Kettle Moraine! There was no wind, which was good because the air temp was around 4 above and I'd forgotten the liners for my new gloves. The snow was soft, tracked but only lightly skied. Deeply diffracted sunlight barely illuminated our way through a dense pine grove. The pines soon yielded to mature oaks, skeleton-like against the quickening white. Purple rays signalled occasional openings in the forest. I spotted what I presumed were coyote tracks intermingled with fresh deer prints, yet we saw no wildlife.
The blue loop offers the customary KM roller coaster ride, up and down the eskirs, surprising and delighting with hidden ponds and sumac glades. Given any slope at all, Henry, ever the backcountry man, would plunge off the trail into the untracked glades, his joyful whoops a counterpoint to my methodical grunting on the inevitable ascents.
On this trail one must be prepared for some unsigned acute turns, and for the unexpected potholes left by both browsing deer and unwary schussers. Where the blue, green and yellow trails converge there were some bald spots on the ascents, but these we easily avoided. All in all, though, we found very good conditions, given no more than a seven-inch base. In an hour-and-a-half we encountered only two other skiers.
The obvious comparison here is to Lapham Peak, which although part of the KM, benefits from lots of extra care and grooming provided by a private club. And though I still consider Lapham to be the destination of choice for time-constrained skaters desperate for Birkie training, here is a refreshing, little used alternative which is nearly as challenging.
Submitted 11 January 98 by Michael McQuestion.
Fool's Errand Rewarded with Trip to Magic Kingdom
This is a fool's errand. At least that's what I thought as I drove out toward the Lapham Peak Unit of the Kettle Moraine State Forest. Despite the brown and the green of the snowless farm fields that were racing past my car window, I continued. As I head east, I reasoned, the snow cover will likely increase due to lake effect snows. Unfortunately, by the time I reached interstate exit 282 the snow cover had not increased at all. This surprised me because I had received several recent reports of skiable conditions at Lapham Peak.
After a wrong turn onto County C heading south, I'm back on the right track and turning north from US 18 onto county C toward the entrance to the park. The bits of snow along the side of the county road don't look encouraging.
Upon entering the park I head straight for the peak and tower. Here the ground is completely covered by thick wet snow. Things are starting to look up. After a careful look at the trail map, I reason that the Evergreen Parking lot is the best place to start a ski. There I find a large warming house with a changing room, hot coco, and large picnic tables. I also find the trail head.
The trails were marginal in the lower parts of the park and in fair to good condition near the peak. Although I'm a classical skier, I avoided the remaining tracks as they were rough and icy. The skating area was just fine in most places. The trails were wide and very well marked. The few rocks that poked up through the thinning blanket of wet snow were spray painted a bright orange.
The downhills were a test of skill and concentration -- fast downhills with bare spots to avoid. Some of these downhills were quite long and I was forced to smile wider than I thought possible. Overall and "considering" the rapidly melting snow, I'd say this was one of the more enjoyable skis I've ever had. It was like visiting a magic kingdom for cross-country skiers. It seemed that only a few people knew that this magic kingdom existed because there were only four cars parked below -- on Saturday, no less. I imagine the reputation of the place combined with it's location results in large crowds on most weekends. Most everyone I did meet expressed some surprise at how good the skiing was -- "considering," they said, without exception.
Skiing toward the parking area I find the trail leaves the woods and travels along a marsh. The snow was the worst here but the open view was pleasant. The chatter of some small birds caught my attention so I stopped near the trail head. Here a troupe of Chickadees and a Nuthach danced among the branches of some small trees. I would be further rewarded with the arrival of several Juncos before heading back toward home.
Submitted 14 December 96 by Joseph King.
Fantastic Conditions at Lapham Peak
Writing to report fantastic conditions at Lapham Peak. This is located just south of Rt 94 towards Milwaukee (exit 282) near a small town called Dousman. Enter from County C (northeast of Dousman). Suggest parking at the first lot first time in. Shelter with water and from this lot there are over 2 miles lighted trail. I was there Wed 11-29-95. Grooming is excellent and there are trails from beginner to expert. The expert trails are a bit hairy after sunset. They got about 10 inches of snow and I would expect good skiing there this weekend. Recommend Fluorinated wax in the high ranges for skating. Classical skiing would be best with waxless skies this weekend unless you are very skilled with clisters.
Another possibility is Minooka. It is on Sunset in the south end of Waukesha just off 164. I did not ski there but did a drive through. The diagonal track looked excellent there.
Submitted 11/30/95 by Rick Nelson.
