Gibraltar Rock

Part of the reason I started this blog was to have somewhere to post my photography.  Well it's been like 2 years and this is my 1st post on the topic, opps. Better late than never to test out the fancy photo galleries I integrated into this blog's theme.

Surprise!  There are bugs in the gallery module.  Guess I know what I'm doing after I make this post. Intrepid readers may find this post before my work is complete; something something testing in production.

Gibraltar Rock (no relation to the Rock of Gibraltar) is part of Wisconsin's Ice Age Trail and provides panoramic views of the surrounding Wisconsin River valley (and a glimpse of Lake Wisconsin).

It's a tiny, insignificant hike: a 1.4 mile loop with only a couple hundred feet of elevation but it's one of only a few options close to home with a vista that isn't the chronically over-done Devil's Lake and Blue Mounds (which every local has visited at least 9129 times in their life).

Nevertheless, it's a pleasant stroll on a well-maintained trail. Early hikers will have the place to themselves, but after 8AM traffic will start to pick up, including families, dogs, and larger groups.

I know nothing about plants (or macro photography), so I definitely do not know what any of these things are, but nature is pretty neat. Maybe I'll start researching the plants I run across in my excursions? Sounds like a lot of work.

Approaching the top it becomes much more obvious that you are, in fact, on a large rock as the name "Gibraltar Rock" implies (a butte, but I digress). Through the tree cover you can glimpse distant farms and homesteads. It's a soybean year in the never ending Corn-Soybean rotation that dominates the midwest.

Looking North, you got a fantastic view of an exposed rock face and a glimpse of Lake Wisconsin in the distance. This is the "big payoff" for the hike, but the shot was spoiled by an unsteady hand: I set a 1s exposure to try and get a slightly misty, glassy surface on the water but was also too lazy to get out my tripod. Extensive editing later and the photo is salvageable at low resolution, but I'm not going back just to retry 1 shot.

My entire photography excursion lasted all of 90 minutes and was the perfect way to start the day. Gibraltar Rock is a visual treat in the often unremarkable plains and farmland of south central WI (I grew up here, I'm allowed to say that).