Learn About the Park

Timberland Hills Segment trailhead on the Ice Age Trail in Burnett County, Wisconsin.

NPS Photo / Billy Flynn

 

In the Footsteps of Mammoths

The Ice Age National Scenic Trail is a 1,200‑mile footpath that winds across Wisconsin, tracing the edge of a colossal glacier that once blanketed the state.

Stretching from Potawatomi State Park on the shores of Lake Michigan to Interstate State Park along Wisconsin’s western border, the trail leads hikers through open prairies, dense forests, rolling hills, and a stunning variety of glacial landscapes.

Established in 1980 to highlight the remarkable features shaped during the last Ice Age, it is one of only eleven National Scenic Trails in the United States.

The Ice Age Trail is a federal, state, and private partnership between the National Park Service, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and Ice Age Trail Alliance.

 

Photos of the Trail

Photo galleries from segments along the 1,200-mile Ice Age National Scenic Trail.

 

Path of the Ice Age Trail in Wisconsin.

NPS

National Significance

Glacial Features

The Ice Age National Scenic Trail and the Ice Age National Scientific Reserve Units in Wisconsin highlight the most impressive examples of continental glaciation in North America. The trail landscape exhibits the marks of the glaciers’ farthest advance and is a showplace of features such as moraines, kames, drumlins, erratics, kettle lakes, potholes, eskers, marshes, meltwater channels, gorges, ice-walled lake plains, outwash plains, and glacial lake beds.

The Trail Experience

The Ice Age National Scenic Trail provides outstanding opportunities for recreation, education, inspiration, scenic views, solitude, and enjoyment. As intended by the National Trails System Act, the Ice Age National Scenic Trail also connects communities along its route across the state to allow access for youth and urban populations to the great outdoors.

Glacial Science

The Cross Plains Complex and other areas along the trail offer an unparalleled opportunity to compare and contrast the parts of Wisconsin that were glaciated and those that were never glaciated (the driftless area). The two landscapes provide outstanding opportunities to observe, monitor, and understand the impacts of large-scale, long-term environmental changes dating back to the Pleistocene epoch. The state of Wisconsin and the features protected by the trail were home to some of the earliest research on glaciation, research that continues today.

Partnerships

The Ice Age National Scenic Trail exists through the dedicated efforts of partners and volunteers. The National Park Service cooperates with federal, state, and local units of government as well as organizations, landowners, and businesses to develop, manage, and maintain the trail.

 

Ray Zillmer

Ice Age Trail Alliance

History of the Ice Age Trail

Inspiration: Ray Zillmer and the Kettle Moraine

In the 1920s, local conservationists purchased key lands and helped establish the Kettle Moraine State Forest. Among its strongest advocates was Raymond Zillmer, an avid walker, mountaineer, and Wisconsin lawyer who championed its protection and inspired a broader vision for a linear park along Wisconsin’s glacial features.

Toward a National Glacial Park

In 1958, Zillmer founded the Ice Age Park & Trail Foundation, now the Ice Age Trail Alliance, to pursue federal designation of a park following the Wisconsin glacial moraine. Although Zillmer passed away before the idea could be realized, his advocacy elevated national interest in Wisconsin’s glacial landscapes.

Scientific Reserves and Renewed Vision

By 1961, the National Park Service determined that a long and narrow traditional park spanning the state would be difficult to manage. Instead, in 1964, the United States Congress authorized the creation of nine Ice Age National Scientific Reserves units across Wisconsin, thanks in part to Congressman Henry Reuss. This kept Zillmer’s concept alive while shifting toward a multi‑unit structure.

National Recognition: Birth of the Trail

In the 1970s, advocacy for a continuous hiking trail, linking older routes and building new segments continued. Under the sponsorship of Congressman Reuss, the Ice Age Trail was officially added to the National Trails System when President Carter signed the establishing law on October 3, 1980.

 

Official trail marker logo for the Ice Age National Scenic Trail.

NPS

Trail Signs and Blazes

Trail Marker

The Ice Age National Scenic Trail is identified by its official emblem, a stylized woolly mammoth. This symbol reflects the Trail’s glacial heritage and appears on signs, maps, and other official materials to help visitors recognize the designated route.

Blazes

Blazes are simple painted markings placed on trees, posts, or other features to help hikers follow the Trail with confidence.

Here’s what each blaze means:

• Yellow Blazes: These indicate the main Ice Age Trail route. Follow yellow blazes to stay on the official, primary footpath.

• Blue Blazes: These mark spur trails or short side trails that connect to parking areas, campsites, scenic features, or other points of interest.

• White Blazes: Indicate a loop trail that leaves the Ice Age NST and later returns to it.

 

Blue Blazes mark spur trails or short side trails that connect to parking areas, campsites, scenic features, or other points of interest.

NPS Photo / Billy Flynn