It was worth the drive

After my visit with my new friend Tom and his girls Maya & Leah, I decided I might as well try to find this flowage that he raved about.  It sounded pretty easy to find and by this time, I was kind of into the mode of 'why not'.  So, I took off, on what would be a very long drive.

The drive was pretty much country roads, Red Lake Road was nice.

The only landmark I was looking for was an old school at Chittamo.

It would have been hard to miss.

Nearby there was a marker with the history.

Sad to see an old building like this going to rack & ruin.

Next to the school marker, at the edge of an open area that had been mowed, was another marker.

This marker talks this being a burial ground for pioneer settlers and Indians.

Somehow, I didn't realize the road I wanted was right at this intersection, eventually, after several tries, I came back to this spot and found the road to Colton Flowage.

The road said Dead End, it was gravel, but off I went, hoping for the best.

I was beginning to doubt whether this drive was worth the trouble, then around one corner, I came upon a county forest.

Only 24 more years until this will be cut, and then what?  Replant?

It was a pretty sight, to be in the shadow of these giant pines.

Straight and tall and impressive.

Finally, I came upon a still and very pretty lake.

There were signs of life here, the first I had seen on this road.

A few houses, a couple of boats on the water and there was a loud rushing sound as I got closer to the one lane bridge.

The flowage was, as promised by Tom Mitchell, very spectacular.

My photos can't really show how loud, and fast the water was moving down this rocky bed.

I'm not sure what to do with photography of rushing water, I took many shots, none of which wowed me once I was home in the peace and quiet of my living room.

But standing on the little one lane bridge, hearing and feeling the power of the water, 

that was a thrill.

There was a little parking area on the far side of the dam, the road continued on to some houses/cabins, but it was remote and it was a dead end road.

You don't see this flowage unless you are driving on this road to see this flowage.

I was glad I took the time to see this place.

Since I knew I had to backtrack down the same road, I had to move.

My road home to Rice Lake was getting longer as I explored Wisconsin.

Leaving Colton Flowage, I thought I was headed straight back to Rice Lake,

but that isn't exactly how it went.