This whole thing began when there was no FKT listed for the crossing of Wisconsin. I know people have traversed the state previously. Multiple have attempted it this year. Most of those go a shorter route from Prairie Du Chien to Milwaukee. That route is close to 200 miles. I wanted to do something more challenging. I ran a route from Prescott, WI and ended at Kewaunee, WI. My total distance was 311.18 miles using my Coros Pace 2 data.
Understandably, Fastest Known Times for running across states are not route specific. So due to an injury 3 weeks before my start date of July 6, and early chafing issues it became clear that my original plan to run 80 miles on day 5 was not happening. While I still would like to do the longer route I did not this time. The original route plan was also to be self-supported. Instead I ran this supported by the most amazing human I have ever met, my wife, Katie. She crewed me the entire time. Over the course of 5 days she helped me trim distances by finding alternate routes that stayed closer to the trail and avoided wandering off for aid. This is why my total is so much shorter than I anticipated. To be honest I thought I had a 50% success rate before my knee injury and likely 25% odds of finishing when I actually started. My medical team and my wife convinced me to write a list of red-lines to know when to quit. Fortunately, I was able to finish.
Day 1 began at 4:56 am on the Drawbridge crossing into Prescott, WI from Minnesota. The weather was astoundingly good every day. July 6 saw a high temp around 84 degrees , lots of sunshine, and relatively low humidity. This was the theme most days. I followed Hwy 10 from Prescott to Durand. I followed the Chippewa River State Trail from Durand into Eau Claire. There was a trail closure half-way between Durand and Eau Claire that made me add a mile to the route. Due to darkness and tiredness I left the trail for a shorter route via road the last few miles. I finished my day at the hotel for the night. I was very low after day 1 and it was then that I began to consider shortening Day 5 to Kewaunee instead of Northport.
Day 2 I continued from the Best Western on the trail as it was very nearby. I followed the Chippewa State Trail to the Old Abe State Trail into Chippewa Falls and then followed Hwy X most of the day to Abbotsford, WI. Day 2 nearly saw me quit. I had significant chaffing in the lower regions due to a stupid mistake of wearing a new pair of liners that I had never tried before. I won’t get into details, but it was very raw and painful. A quick internet check told me that I needed to utilize more anti-chafe measures if I had any shot to continue. Also, after a quick discussion with Kate it was certain that if I made it to Day 5 it would be a run to Kewaunee for certain to keep it shorter. Just east of Chippewa Falls I ran into another detour as 50th Avenue was under construction. Again this added at least a mile to the route. I did stop for the night at our motel in Abbotsford.
Day 3 started really well from the Abbotsford motel. I used copious amounts of Trail Toes and Squirrels Nut Butter to deal with the chaffing. It felt much better by the end of the day. Unfortunately, the heat got to me. I was exposed to the sun and got behind on hydration. I also was getting too much sodium. This caused some significant swelling. I ended Day 3 about 10 miles short of Abbotsford in Hatley, WI. Another detour popped up as we tried a route change staying south of Wausau by staying closer to Rib Mountain. A road closure meant 2 extra unanticipated miles that made the new route for the day longer than it should have been. The rain in the forecast never got to me. I think I was chasing it across the state. I did utilize the Mountain Bay State Trail beginning in Weston into day 4.
Day 4 required Katie to drop me off at the trail in Hatley as the hotel was not there and car camping was out due to the need to treat my chaffing with care to prevent infection. While I did a better job staying hydrated and cut the electrolytes I was taking in, I was still swollen. The heat and sun exposure over multiple days really was slowing me down. Once 11am rolled around each day it became clear I was just going to hike and use a lot of ice. Unfortunately, nearly every single store and gas station was sold out of ice. I enjoyed my mid-day walk through Shawano and particularly the splash pad. I spent a lengthy amount of time at McDonalds on the east side of Shawano hydrating and cooling down. Katie and I planned to end short of my goal of Pulaski at this point as it was clear the heat was a real issue for me. Please note that there was no humidity issue. The high temp was only 84 or so. I just had been exposed on wide open highways and exerting myself for multiple days. Day 4 ended about half-way between Bonduel and Pulaski. We drove to a hotel in Pulaski for the night. My spirits were high. I had pushed really hard the last couple hours of the day on the Mountain Bay State Trail and knew that I had less than 60 miles left to get to Lake Michigan.
Day 5 began with deer. There are so many deer in Wisconsin! Every day I saw deer multiple times. Driving from the hotel back to my starting point for the day we narrowly avoided deer two more times in a 15 minute drive. I am a morning person. I was having trouble thermoregulating. I was cold as Day 5 began. To warm up I began running. I was able to make it 9 miles in two hours back to the hotel in Pulaski where I met Katie for the first time on the day. It was only about 6:30 am and I continued moving to bank time. I was able to complete the first 20 miles well before 11:00 am when things started getting really warm. I took a lot of time making many stops to get fountain soda through Howard and Green Bay. Katie took a break from crewing during that time and I ran self-supported for a few hours. From Green Bay I followed Humboldt Rd and Luxemburg Rd East toward the Lake. From Ryans Corner I followed Hwy C to Kewaunee. This section from Green Bay to Kewaunee was entirely unplanned and unresearched. Without Katie crewing it is not possible for me to follow that route as there are so few resources along the route. It is exposed rural country roads. I did enjoy my final stop at the Ryan Country Park and Sports Complex. The last 20 miles was grueling. I knew I could get to the end, but I was experiencing pain in hips, knees, ankles, feet, and toes. Every joint in the lower half of my body was swollen, sore, and inflamed. These miles continued to be mostly hiking and all with grimace. My phone battery was failing and my phone would not charge. So I had to live in my own mind and body at a time when I wanted more than anything to escape. The only option was to crawl into my own personal pain cave. The pain never went away until the end. However, I was able to pick up the pace the final 5 miles and run most of it quickly. I ran straight into the Lake and enjoyed life as the cool water calmed my feet and knees for the first time in days.
None of this was possible without my wife Katie crewing me. She helped me shave off wasted miles in my proposed course by bringing water, ice, and snacks to me. Never in my life have I worked so closely and intensely with one person for so many days and hours without stop. It was an astounding success. She literally bought and brought me over one hundred pounds of ice over 5 days!
My favorite food was A&W french fries in Abottsford. My favorite moment was hearing Katie laugh as I spilled my ice pack all over my shorts when I tried to adjust it while laying on the floor with my feet up the third night. There are no words for the emotions right now 24 hours after finishing a run that has been the focus of so much planning for 6 months. I fueled on a ridiculous amount of Liquid IV, Coca-Cola and UCan gels. Next time I do this I would like to do one of two things: 1. Have Katie bike with me. 2. Go completely Self-Supported.
I understand there are others who have done an East West crossing of Wisconsin. I could find no one who documented crossing from the Iowa/Minnesota border to Lake Michigan in less than 5 days. I have had others reach out to me who did not document or complete the full crossing. Please let me know or add a comment it you know someone who did it more quickly.
Last things worth noting. I had to call 911 for a dumpster fire at Pizza Hut in Green Bay (see picture). It was hot and I think this is where my phone got water in the charging port. I got even more overheated and needed to camp out at a Burger King to cool off and drink copious amounts of ice cold soda. In all the fire cost me more than an hour. Also, deer fly patches are wickedly effective. However, you have to live with the buzzing from the flies trying to carry your hat away. I replaced the patches every hour or two. Each time the tape was totally covered in flies. Either run fast or have a plan to deal with those buggers.