Wiouwash Trail 2026 09

This weekend we went back to do another section of the Wiouwash Trail. If you havent read the other posts you can read them here:

• Wiouwash Trail 2026 04
• Wiouwash Trail 2025 11
• Heritage Trail Oshkosh 2025 07
• Wiouwash Trail Part 1 2025 04

Its been a little bit since we revisited a trail. Certain people tell me its boring to review the same trail. However this is part of an effort to walk the entire length of the Wiouwash Trail.

This segment of the trail is north of Oshkosh and runs from Hwy 41 to Ryf Rd. The segment offers views of Lake Butte des Morte, marshes, a lagoon, trees lining the trail and agricultural fields.

On Saturday as we arrived things started to happen. A turkey vulture landed on a near by power pole and we rushed to get ready so that I could try to get a picture. The vulture cooperated and I was able to snap a few pictures. Unfortunately the grey clouds did not help in getting the best picture.

Meanwhile my wife spotted a large bird on a nesting pole near a power station by the Hwy. We thought at first it might be an eagle. However we would later find out that it was an osprey.

After admiring these sites we started our hike. Our car was parked at a roundabout near Hwy 41. We needed to cross the highway as we started our hike. However as we crossed we found that there was a more official trail head parking on the opposite side of the highway.

We continued on the trail. As I have described in previous posts, it is built on an old railway. The crushed gravel path crunched under our feet as we hiked. Trees ran along the side of the trail separating us from a residential area built on high areas along the lake’s shore.

The houses and tree line were on the southwest side of the trail. On the northeast side, a marshy ditch filled with cattails. We stopped several times to catch the sounds of crickets and other insects.

Eventually though the houses to the southeast gave way to the lake itself. A small bay, of which I could find no label, was filled with water lilies. We stopped and captured some more video at a couple of openings in the tree line.

On the northeast side of the trail the ditch eventually opened up to a larger marshy area and a lagoon created by the old rail line. The lagoon is now connected to the larger lake by a gap in the dike with a wooden bridge.

On the trail other hikers and bicyclists passed us as we filmed. One man on a bicycle stopped to get off his bike and walk across the wooden bridge with his bike.

We cross the bridge ourselves and continue northwest. The lily pad filled bay to our southwest was dotted by ducks large as mallards and small as teal. However something different was flushed out of the lily pads as we walked.

My wife and I debated what we saw and captured on my camera. Eventually I was able to identify it as a Green Heron however we debated whether it could be a night heron or a lesser bittern. I was able to get a few pictures of it and continued flushing it further along the trail as we walked.

Eventually though the lake gave way to residential areas on the southwest and farm fields to the northeast. At this point the stopping for pictures and videos were less frequent.

Trees returned on our southwest and song birds sat in them chirping as we past. The grey cloudy skies made it hard to identify the birds, though we thought one may be a young cardinal.

Eventually though we reached Ryf Rd. A head of us the trail continued on past Ryf Rd northwest, but we would have to return to the trail a different day to follow the rest of the trail. So we rested for a moment and turned around to return to our car.

Our return trip was fairly eventful as well. We saw an osprey flying over our head with a recent catch. My wife found a hole in the side of the trail with evidence of hatching turtles. And we could hear sand hill cranes in the fields.

Over all the hike was good. At 1.6 miles one way it was not one of our longest hikes. The water features provide a great backdrop for local wild life. Like the Heritage Loop we did through Oshkosh we saw a great variety of wild life. A variety of ducks, green heron, several white egrets in the distance, the osprey, and the turkey vulture. If you’re a birder anywhere in the Fox Valley can provide a wide variety of birds to see.

Once again thank you for reading and viewing my media. Please feel free to comment below. And hopefully you’ll read next week.