by DALC Staff | Apr 22, 2025 | Connect with Nature, Driftless Trail, Preserves
Shinrin-yoku, the practice translated as Forest Bathing, is an activity that invites us to slow down and really connect with nature, the experience that connects us all. It became popular in Japan in the 1980’s during the technology boom. With people working in buildings and cities, the Japanese noticed that people were not healthy and becoming sicker. They started creating places in nature and paid for workers to go out and reconnect with nature. There is plenty of research now that shows that being in nature helps regulate our mind and body connection, boosting our immune systems, and is an integral part of lifestyle medicine.
“Humans instinctively know that when we’re in nature, and we can slow down enough to use our sensory systems, we feel healthier and happier,” Martha says.
Forest bathing is not hiking but the intentional act of slowing down in nature. It starts with the breath, closing your eyes, listening to the sounds around you, acknowledging those who have been on the land before you, and honoring the wildlife, plants, and organisms that call the forest home.
It invites you to notice the smaller natural details like the fungus calling a decaying log home and other parts of the natural world often passed over without a second thought. Walking through the forest like a camera and taking “snapshots” with your eyes to refocus your sight. Continuing, one could consider opening to a possible “treasure” just for you:. Being present and allowing what that word “treasure” means to you on your journey through the forest.
“For me, as I age and move into Elder work, it’s nature and the interwoven experience of being in the awesomeness of this relationship. What is our relationship with the natural world? How can we be kinder, more generous, and have a creative connection? How can we translate that into human connection as well as care for the Land?” Martha shares. “It’s sort of like breathing or eating. The need to return to the chemistry and energy of the forest and the trees. We miss so much when we are hiking and talking. Forest bathing invites us to be present and momentarily step away from the busyness of our lives. It allows us to open our hearts and minds which is truly healing.”
As DALC celebrates Earth Month and the incredible work our community is doing to protect the land, we invite you to explore some of these practices and enjoy an intentional connection at any of our nature preserves or Driftless Trail segments.
You don’t need to go with a guide to experience the benefits of forest bathing, however, if you are interested in connecting with Martha you can learn more at marthayork12@gmail.com.
Martha York, DALC supporter, trained in the lineage of Shinrin-yoku, a form of Japanese Forest Therapy.
by DALC Staff | Oct 1, 2023 | Driftless Trail
After opening the re-routed Weaver Road Segment of the Driftless Trail last year, just north of Governor Dodge State Park, we are excited to announce great progress on two additional pieces of the Driftless Trail. The Knobs Road Segment, north of Ridgeway, is now in the “trial run” phase, open to a limited group who will provide feedback. In October, the Phoebe Point Trail on the Taliesin property, near Spring Green, will open to the general public.
The 2.7-mile Knobs Road Segment can stretch to a four-mile loop by walking Knobs Road in between the trail ends. This trail crosses a property where Dave and Ann Zimrin raise grass-fed beef, sold under the Butler Family Farm label. Hikers will pass through an old orchard, woods, prairies, a wide valley where cows are rotationally grazed, and a mile-long ridge with impressive views and perennial crops. The relatively short hike offers a lot of variety. Stay tuned for the official opening date.
Last year, Driftless Area Land Conservancy and the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation agreed to co-brand the Phoebe Point and Welsh Hills trails on the Taliesin property as part of the Driftless Trail. Natural landscapes were integral to Mr. Wright’s designs, and from both of these trails, you get sweeping views of the landscape that, in his words, “picks you up in its arms and so gently, almost lovingly, cradles you.”
The 1.1-mile Phoebe Point Trail will be opened in October. It will traverse a slope where prairie and savanna restoration is in progress, then follow a ridge with views up and down the Wisconsin River and across much of the Lowery Creek watershed, including the Welsh Hills. This fall, we will also begin to construct an extension of the Welsh Hills Trail, which has been open to the public for several years.
By the end of 2025, we hope to complete the Driftless Trail from Tower Hill State Park through the Taliesin property. From there, we will route the trail south through the Lowery Creek watershed and begin trail construction on the Blue Mound State Park end of the project area.
As this project evolves, its value for educating people about nature and land management, protecting and stewarding a long conservation corridor, building community, and simply connecting people to this amazing landscape is becoming abundantly clear. We are immensely grateful to landowners who are making this possible by hosting the trail on their property and to volunteers who help on multiple fronts.
Enjoy hiking the Weaver Road Segment and (soon) Phoebe Point Trail by finding trail guides at driftlessconservancy.org/driftless-trail.
Written by Barb Barzen, Community Conservation Specialist
by DALC Staff | Jun 1, 2019 | Driftless Trail
A drive through northeastern Iowa County serves up incredible vistas, bucolic farm scenes, roller coaster topography, historic treasures, and a taste of rural life. We all love what we see out the window. Now stop and think what a hike through this same landscape would give you. Not only could you soak in all of the above up close and at your own pace, you could learn more, get exercise, enjoy quality time alone or with friends and family, and even take it all in on snowshoes or cross country skis.
What started as our executive director’s daydream about a looped hike from Tower Hill to Governor Dodge to Blue Mound state park through the amazing hills and valleys in between has, over the past three years, become a full-fledged proposal and community conservation strategy that DALC is now rolling out.
When completed some 15-20 years from now, the Driftless Trail will be a trail network that connect the three state parks, Trout Creek and Love-Strutt Creek Fishery Areas, Ridgeway Pine Relict State Natural Area, and many beautiful private conservation lands in between. A couple of campsites will allow people to do overnight hikes of 50 miles or more, and multiple small loops will allow for the 1-2 hour hikes many people prefer.
Indeed, wherever the trail wanders, DALC will ensure those areas are managed well. The long-term impact will be an extensive corridor of good-quality woodland, savanna, prairie, and wetland habitat that will allow for movement of wildlife, improve resiliency to climate change, and model land management techniques that trail users can learn from and apply elsewhere.
In addition to involving landowners, the Driftless Trail will engage and energize educators, businesses, youth organizations, health organizations, natural resource managers, and community leaders in the seven towns surrounding the project area: Dodgeville, Spring Green, Arena, Ridgeway, Barneveld, Blue Mounds, and Mount Horeb.
After developing a Concept Plan with assistance from the National Park Service and expertise of our planning and advisory teams, DALC is now incorporating input from landowners and the public into plans for moving forward. As momentum continues to build, more voices are adding their support for the trail:
“The Driftless Trail is exactly what visitors are looking for right now. They are looking for opportunities to get out in nature, to observe wildlife, but also at the end of the day be close to other amenities and attractions. The Driftless Trail makes all of that possible,” notes Anne Sayers, Deputy Secretary for the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.
If you’d like to support or learn more about the project, contact Barb Barzen at barb@driftlessconservancy.org
