I have often mentioned that I am the fourth generation to hike the banks of the Wisconsin River here in the villages of Sauk City and Prairie du Sac, which are smooshed together and often (falsely) called “Sauk-Prairie”.  My daughter is, of course, the fifth generation of Therkelsson-Malone-Andersons to be a child of this river and proudly claims that title. 

To those of us who have nearly a century of lineage here, Sauk-Prairie is an adjective… not a noun.  For instance, this is the Sauk-Prairie area.  These people who have relocated here over past decades, and who are even involved in the future development of the villages, use the noun form of the word and it makes me want to shake them.  (While we share a police department, school district and hospital, each village maintains its own library, utilities, fire department, and government.  By the way, Sauk City has the oldest organized volunteer fire department in the state of Wisconsin.) 

All that aside, back to the river… Long before there were paved trails near the river, I trekked the foot trails with Grandpa Anderson.  Even then, 35 years in my past, the path often fell away as it neared the river banks and new stepping spots were slowly etched to the west, inch by inch.  I have taken this route hundreds of times, and I would like to think that I have some part in keeping the foot trails alive. 

The photos in this post were snapped near August Derleth park in Sauk City.  Many people outside of Wisconsin are not familiar with this talented local author, who passed away in the 1970s, but if you are familiar with H.P. Lovecraft… you can thank Mr. Derleth for that. 

I would like to share a foggy June morning with you as I spend time with my river, myself, and the memory of Grandpa Anderson.  (Since this is a photo-heavy post, you can see the rest of the pictures after the jump from your reader or the main page.) 

Have a merry weekend, friends.

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