Devil's Lake State Park has been transformed into a winter wonderland, with 3-5 inches of…
With a major snowstorm rolling into our area as I type, it’s a good time to talk about the Steinke Basin Trail and its fairly recent change to Multi-Use status and what that means.
Background
The Baraboo area has so much to do in the winter months for outdoor enthusiasts! Of course like you, we know that to really plan and enjoy your day out, it’s best to know both the good and the bad. (Hey, we use TripAdvisor too!) With that in mind, we tend to “blog it like it is”. So…
I’m going to jump right in here and say that Devil’s Lake State Park trail conditions, especially in the Steinke Basin area are well, not great. (3 million visitors, a good dose of apathy combined with budget and staffing issues, can do that!) “Official” communication about the trails is nearly non-existent. So when the Steinke Basin trail was first designated “Multi-Use”, most users didn’t know about it and those who did were left guessing at what that meant. In the 2 years since this has not changed. So the following is “best guess” gleaned from multiple sources and personal experience.
Parking
To access the multi-use area, you will want to park at the Steinke Basin parking lot east of the main north shore park entrance, on county road DL. You do need a Wisconsin State Park Sticker on your vehicle. Plowing at outlying lots has been better in recent years, but early birds and weekend visitors should not count on the parking lot being plowed right after a fresh snowfall.
No Motors!
This came up quite a bit early on, sometimes from folks who genuinely didn’t know what Multi-Use meant in this case, and some who were just being, well, “that guy”. ATVs, UTVs, snowmobiles and other gas-powered engines are not allowed.
What About??
Horses are not allowed. Dogs are allowed but must be on a leash. Dog sleds? Who knows! Birdwatchers? Yes. Vegetarians? Yes. Drones? No. What about Fat Tire E-Bikes? My best guess is that E-bikes are fine. (Where bikes are allowed.)
Fat Tire Bikes
Fat Tire bikes are allowed on the Uplands Trail Loop but, and here’s the tricky bit, only on the sections of the Steinke Basin loop that connect the parking lot to the Uplands Trail. Meaning, the access road running north to south from the parking lot and the trail heading east out of the parking lot. You must jump off the Steinke Basin trail at the Uplands connectors. Make Sense? No? See the map above. (Yes, you’ll see tire tracks in many other places!)
Use Caution: Sections of the Uplands Trail are rocky, often icy and deeply rutted. Be careful around bridges where washouts and broken boards can be an issue.
Cross-County Skiing
Trails are not maintained or groomed, except when they are. Don’t depend on it. They are never tracked. What’s more, the Steinke Basin Loop is generally not well maintained and often has deep (Read, DEEP!) ruts. I know a few folks who stopped skiing Steinke Basin years ago simply because of maintenance issues.
If you want dependably maintained, high-quality ski trails, you’ll want to the Baraboo area’s other state park, Mirror Lake. Mirror Lake State Park is just minutes away, and the ski trails are generally immaculate.
Snowshoeing
Snowshoers are the real winners here. Devil’s Lake is a snowshoeing paradise! You don’t need a groomed or well-maintained trail. Heck, you don’t even need a trail! You are good to go! Remember, most days after January 1st you can borrow free snowshoes at the Devil’s Lake State Park Nature Center.
Hiking & Dog Walkers
Hikers should stay to the sides of the trail and all dogs should be on leashes less than 8 ft. Sadly, the truth is that you will commonly come across dogs off-leash on Steinke Basin. It’s common to have to avoid dog poop on the trails and discover poop bags in surprising places… People commonly post-hole on the trails. This is why it’s so important to educate users about Trail Etiquette!
Trail Etiquette
Be respectful. Here are some detailed trail etiquette tips from REI. Very generally, if the trail is soft, meaning you are leaving tracks more than 1 inch deep, you should stay off the trails. (Hikers can usually walk alongside them.) Fat Tire Bikes should not leave ruts. Try lowering your air pressure. Snowshoers should stay to the side of groomed tracks. Again, Steinke Basin is generally not tracked for skiers.
Bottom Line
The Bottom line is that we want everyone to come out and have fun and to do that you need to know what to expect and respect everyone on the multi-use trails. Have fun and be safe out there!
For nearly 2 decades the Skillet Creek blog has focused on 3 main goals; To inspire you to visit and explore the Devil’s Lake region, to help you get the most your visit by sharing tips, events, and other helpful information. Lastly to advocate for our environment & wildlife and talk about how we can keep our natural areas amazing now and into the future! That last goal can sometimes cause controversy, but it’s the only way we can accomplish the first two. – Derrick Mayoleth, Owner.
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Good post; perhaps make clear that “sink in more than 1”? means mud not snow?
Yes multi use means exist together not use ski tracks to walk or snow shoe in!
For too many it seems irresistible to take the path of least resistance and plod RIGHT DOWN the one foot wide ski track in a 15′ wide trail. It’s not just Devils Lake we were only skiers to have done the (not groomed) Turtleville trail at mirror lake New Years Eve and Day. Even with only shallow snow, we came on a pair of hikers intently plodding exactly on our previous day’s ski track for kilometer after kilometer. Not earth shattering but what are they thinking? Get even with the elitist skiers? Shrug.
Good information. I hear you. I think it’s all about “path of least resistance”. We feel like it’s a personal attack sometimes, but I think people just have no idea what the issue is. I don’t think they realize that walking on the track does any harm. I can’t figure out why we don’t have some basic etiquette signs up at the trailheads. It wouldn’t change the world, but for some new users, it would help.