Cathedral Drive

Trail Overview

Cathedral Drive begins at its intersection with Archibald Lake Road and navigates to its intersection with Presbyterian Rd. This trail is well-maintained but is narrow for the first mile heading northwest. There are small turn-offs every several hundred feet to allow vehicles to pass. Located roughly 1/2 mile from the trail's southern start point is the Cathedral Pines. Several walking trails pass through the heart of a virgin forest that has been preserved since the early 1900's. This trail is a hot spot for locals as well as tourists, as people travel to see the Cathedral Pines. Expect heavy vehicle and pedestrian traffic in the peak summer months. The scenery around it is made up of sharp rolling hills and valleys. This area is notorious for the deep bowls dug into the landscape, and there are several that can be seen passing by on the trail. The trail surface is mostly gravel; however, some large holes can fill with water and mud after a recent rainfall.

Photos of Cathedral Drive

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Difficulty

This road is traversed daily by modern passenger cars, as people come to see the Cathedral Pines. The most challenging part of this trail is how narrow it is for the first mile headed north. Expect frequent delays, as well as needing to reverse to a nearby pull-off in order to allow vehicles to pass. The trail is dug into the landscape, in most areas, making it even harder to pass. While the trail is maintained due to its tight nature, expect tree limbs and branches to be lying on the trail after strong storms.

History

Cathedral Pines is a 40-acre grove of white pine, hemlock, and red pine that escaped cutting by lumberjacks in the 1900s. Located in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest's Lakewood-Laona Ranger District, this dynamic and exceptionally scenic old-growth forest is one of the few remaining stands of towering pine and hemlock in Wisconsin. The conifers and intermingled hardwood trees make this area a beautiful place to hike and explore, watch wildlife, or just imagine what the early forest was like. In the early 1900s, Lucy Rumsey Holt brought her children to this site. The sounds of breezes through these tall pines reminded her of a cathedral, and she persuaded her husband, William, president of Holt Lumber Company, to preserve these trees. Because of her efforts, this stand of virgin timber was never logged. When Lucy died in 1939, William dedicated this property for preservation and named it "Cathedral Woods" in her memory. In 1968, their son, Donald, and the rest of the Holt family wanted the public to experience the beauty of these woods, so they sold the 40-acre tract to the U. S. Forest Service. Additional lands were purchased and added to the site through the Trust for Public Land and The Nature Conservancy. Forest Service arborists determined these massive conifers began growing in 1735 to 1740 - they're older than our country! Sourced From: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r09/chequamegon-nicolet/recreation/cathedral-pines

Technical Rating

Cathedral Drive can be accessed by the following ride types:

• High-Clearance 4x4
• SUV