High Cliff State Park 2025 02

This week my wife and I visited High Cliff State Park. This State Park is a quick 20 drive from our home, which makes it a place we visit often. With lots of wild life even though its minutes away from residential areas, its a great place for a chance to see Eagles during the summer.

Key Features

• Lake Winnebago Views: The park provides stunning panoramic views of Lake Winnebago, Wisconsin’s largest inland lake.
• Limestone Cliffs: It’s situated on dramatic limestone cliffs, a prominent geological feature.
• Effigy Mounds: The park contains significant Native American effigy mounds, offering historical and archaeological interest.
• Hiking Trails: Numerous trails cater to hikers of varying skill levels, providing opportunities to explore the park’s diverse landscapes.
• Camping: High Cliff State Park offers a range of camping options, including campsites with electrical hookups.
• Boating and Water Activities: Access to Lake Winnebago allows for boating, fishing, and other water-based recreation.
• Historical Sites: The park features historical sites, such as the remains of a lime kiln, providing insights into the area’s past.
• Wildlife Viewing: The park is home to a variety of wildlife, offering opportunities for nature observation.
• Winter Activities: During winter, the park transforms into a destination for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and snowmobiling.
• Accessibility: The park offers accessible features, including accessible campsites, fishing platforms, and trails.

Review

Arriving at the park we drove through the ranger station proudly displaying our new State Park Sticker. See the Point Beach State Park post if you are looking for that story. We took a left at the first intersection. To the right is the State Parks Marina and boat ramp, I could see the sail boats stored for the winter.

We passed the general store and approached the Lime Kiln trail parking lot. My wife looked over and saw a deer standing over by one of the trees. In this area park visitors can picnic in a wide open grassy field. Now covered in a half foot of snow the deer would have to dig down to get the grass. Something looked off with the deer.

Another pair of hikers walked down a snowmobile path near the deer and it did not run away. We stopped to take a picture of the animal. At that point I noticed that the right front leg of the deer looked injured.

Immediately we returned to the ranger station to report the injured animal. It was most likely hit by a car and the DNR should probably help the animal. After notifying the disinterested personnel at the Ranger station we decided to continue back into the park.

Our plan for the day was to walk the trails on the top of the cliffs. Specifically we wanted to walk the Red Bird Trail. The Red Bird Trail follows the top edge of the cliff. Driving to the picnicking area at the top of the cliff we parked near the beginning of the Red Bird Trail and near the tower.

My wife reminded me that taking a picture from the top of the tower could produce a good image. So much to my distaste we ascended the tower. The snow packed steps were treacherous but we got to the top safely. Taking a few pictures of the frozen Lake Winnebago we quickly decided to descend as the wind was brisk.

We then started walking down the Red Bird Trail. A trail named after Chief Red Bird of the Winnibago a statue was erected to him at the overlook we swiftly approached. The statue looks out over the north end of lake Winnebago. Stopping here briefly I took a few pictures of the statue.

We let a few hikers, more interested in speed walking and their conversation than the nature that surrounds them, pass us. And after they were ahead of us we continued to follow the trail. The trail follows the top of the ridge until it drops into a small canyon.

The road up to the top of this cliff runs through part of this canyon. Here there are large open areas eroded down into the top of the cliffs. So for a quarter of a mile we walked the trail in this canyon.

Just before the road we found some feathers that looked as if they came from the breast of a Red Tailed Hawk. Maybe the evidence of a territorial fight between hawks or even an attack from an eagle. Bald Eagles are not above stealing prey from other animals rather than hunting for themselves.

Not seeing these animals I took some pictures and we continued on. We crossed the road and found the stream that ran through the canyon. Still open water and cascading small water falls, I took some more pictures then we continued on.

After the stream the trail started to rise back up to the top of the ridge line. We then approached another overlook of the lake through the trees. Also we got to one of the first turn off of the trail.

While the Red Bird Trail continued on for another quarter of a mile we decided to turn off and start heading back on another trail. The Red Bird Trail ends on the opposite side of the campgrounds but becomes another trail that follows the cliff edge to the southern end of the park. We have walked the length of the park before but today was too cold to continue.

The turn off we took brought us back to a different parking lot. Here trails to see the burial mounds start as well. High Cliff State Park is known for several different burial mounds from Native Americans that predate Wisconsin being a state. From this parking lot you can take the burial mound trails to view them.

We intended on taking a trail that connects this parking lot to the picnicking area. However we did not know this trail is reserved for cross country skiers during the winter. Once we saw the signs indicating this we decided to instead take the road back to the Red Bird Trail in the cliff top canyon.

We followed the trail back to our vehicle and ended our walk. Chilled but happy with our hike we left High Cliff State Park with lots of pictures of our day.

With multiple trails stretching for miles High Cliff is well developed for hiking in summer and winter. The rangers keep the skiing trails well groomed and the roads where plowed for easy access to the parking lots. While we intend to return this summer I would suggest you visit for a hike soon.

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