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| On trail in Lake Kegonsa St. Park. 4/25/26 dwm |
For the third ride of the year, I headed to Stoughton.
It's been one of my favorite routes since the Lower Yahara Trail had a boardwalk built through a marsh in Fish Camp County Park that connected McFarland to the Lake Kegonsa State Park..
Another thing I like about this route is the distance works very well to ride over, get a snack or a meal, then ride home. So far, all of my stops have been at the Koffee Kup Restaurant in downtown Stoughton.
Saturday was beautiful, in the mid 50s when I left home at 8:15, warming to around 70 by the time I got back.
This ride starts the same way many do, going across the southern edges of Madison using the Military Ridge and Capital City trails to the intersection with the Lower Yahara Trail which starts at William G. Lunney Lake Farm County Park.
The Yahara Trail takes me through the park to the first major boardwalk in Madison. It is nearly a mile-long, parallel to working railroad tracks to where it pulls into McDaniel Park.
From there I follow Erling Avenue to Bremer Road, right on Lake Edge Road, then right on Farwell Road. Farwell takes you across U.S. Highway 51 where you'll find a stoplight; continue east on Farwell, it becomes Bashford Street and then Creamery Road which curves into Elvehjem Road until you reach County AB. Turn right to go south on the county road.
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| Mayapples. 4/25/2026 dwm |
In my experience it has usually been fairly quiet in terms of traffic, but cars are going close to highway speeds. Stay with Cty AB to Fish Camp Park, turn left into the park and ride toward the boat launch; before you reach it, you'll see the paved Lower Yahara River Trail join the boardwalk I mentioned at the top of the blog. Stay with the path and follow it when it heads uphill to Lake Kegonsa State Park.
As I rode uphill, I saw hundreds of mayapples, a networking native species in Wisconsin that use their large leaves to shield small flowers. (photo left)
If you want to make that your turn-around, it's a good place to do it. There is no charge to bikes on the path and a nice permanent restroom right off the trail. If you want to reach Stoughton, when you reach the end of the trail, turn right on the park road and an immediate left which takes you to Door Creek Road.
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| Koffee Kup. 4/24/26 dwm |
Go left on Cooper's Causeway, following it to Ridge Street, turn right on Hillsdale Avenue and stay with it to Main Street; to go downtown, turn right on Main Street, go up a hill past the fire department. The city Opera House and Koffee Kup Restaurant is on the left.
I went to the Koffee Kup twice on this trip. The first time was after 10. I found a chair at the counter and ordered a half-bowl of oatmeal with buttered toast and chocolate milk. It was my second breakfast of the morning, but it served me well on the return trip.
It was only a few blocks back to the bridge (photo below left) and the trail. As I crossed the bridge, I reached for my water bottle and came up empty. I left it at the restaurant!
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| I crossed the bridge 4 times. 4/25/2026 dwm photo |
The return trip went a little faster with the wind primarily at my back.
Most of April, I saw signs reminding riders the fourth Saturday of April is Trails Day. The sign didn't say what happened, but I found out while passing through Fitchburg.
There is a bicycle roundabout where the Cannonball Path, Military Ridge, Capital City, and Southwest Commuter Trail meet and that's where I found a few people promoting Bike the Burg.
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| Bike the Burg supporters. 4/25/2026 dwm |
That ride, I was wearing the jersey from the GRABAAWR rides I did in 2003,2004, and 2005; it frequently gets comments from people.
A woman cyclist at the Bike the Burg table introduced herself telling me she was the artist who designed the jersey and the man pictured on the jersey drinking from a water bottle was her husband! Then she pointed the spot on the jersey where she hid her initial.
I didn't take a lot of shots on this trip. There were a few opportunities I missed because I couldn't stop in time. The one I should have attempted was a heron knee-deep while stalking lunch.
Thinking about pictures and last week's second ride it occurred to me it would be nice to capture bicycle/pedestrian bridges over city streets and highways.
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| Bike bridge over Fish Hatchery Rd. 4/25/26 |
Others that come to mind in Madison:
* Autumn Ridge Bridge the bridge (Ride 2)
* Bridge over County Highway PD near intersection with U.S. Highway 151
* Cannonball Path across Madison's Beltline
* Bridge over Belt Line near Warwick Way
* SW Commuter Trail bridge
Then there are the bridges that take the Elroy-Sparta trail over Interstate 94 near Sparta; and the Interurban Trail over Interstate 43 near Port Washington.
For the third ride of the year, I was on the bike 4 hours, 59 minutes, 30 seconds; distance 62 miles; average speed 15.5 miles per hour.
Keep on Riding, and be careful out there!
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