Here are a few examples of maps and cue sheets I’ve made for the many routes I have taken from the various towns in the Wisconsin Hills. I build cue sheets based on the RideWithGPS application, though I usually have to edit to correct mis-labled or even missing turns. I build the maps using other means, in order to provide a rider with enough detail to make up for a missed turn or road repair requiring a detour. I have many routes at my RideWithGPS page, and most riders I know download routes to their Garmin, but of course the Garmin data doesn’t account for that intermittent road work, etc.
Thus, it does pay to have some sort of detailed map. The maps I start with are now out of print. Other sources of detailed maps include the Wisconsin DOT county maps.
And it does pay to have a sense of adventure, do some exploring, and take advantage of riding with others (check that TCBC Calendar–TCBC Wisconsin rides usually reference a downloadable Garmin file).
In time I may add to and/or correct the maps and cues sheets on this page. The map images are designed to be viewed online, and allow for enlargement. The downloadable files are in JPG and MS Word format. Routes on my RideWithGPS page may also fluctuate, get corrected, replaced, and so on. Wisconsin roads are constantly undergoing change, primarily in terms of road repaving. Nevertheless, they remain to be some of the best riding in the U.S.
Download the River Falls East Variation Map
Download the River Falls East Variation Cue Sheet
Download the Diamond Bluff Classic 5.0 Map
Download the Diamond Bluff Classic 5.0 Cue Sheet
Maiden Rock
Rides from Maiden Rock start at the park on the river in Maiden Rock, WI. Directions: From the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, cross into Wisconsin at Prescott or Red Wing and take WI 35 south to the town of Maiden Rock on Lake Pepin, then turn towards the river on Chestnut Street. (There is also an alternate parking lot at 35 and County Road A, just before one enters Maiden Rock.)
Riding from Maiden Rock..
Riding from Maiden Rock is the best way to experience County Road A, with its “Scenic Road” designation, going north at the start of the route, and often returning south at the end, with the alternative to return part way on 385th Street–this is shown in Maiden Rock Northeast below.
A word about rest stops..
But Maiden Rock Northeast also is an example of a route designed when there were two obvious rest stops available on rides from Maiden Rock, Elmwood and Eau Galle. “Obvious” rest stops include Elmwood, where there is a gas station/convenience store, which has the sort of food and drink one needs to stop for every 25 miles or so. Eau Galle no longer has the little grocery we relied on for so many years. As such, there are no obvious rest stops between Elmwood and Maiden Rock–looking at the route from Elmwood on Maiden Rock Northeast, Eau Galle and Arkansaw do have bars, whereas hamlets such as Porcupine and Lund are more or less just names on the map.
Alternatives to riding from Maiden Rock..
Maiden Rock North by Southwest is an example of a route that includes a climb off of County Road A, of which there are several (including 420th St/Sleepy Hollow Road as shown at mile 2.1, 210th Avenue at mile 65.0, 270th Avenue just north, and formidable 370th Avenue just short of Highway 10.) It is also an example of a route that includes the Rush River Valley roads, centered north of the “35.2/58.5” mileage marker on the Maiden Rock North by Southwest map. Alternatives to riding from Maiden Rock may include these same roads, the climbs off of County Road A, and even Maiden Rock itself, as a rest stop.
Download the MAP for for Maiden Rock Northeast
Download the CUE SHEET for Maiden Rock Northeast
Download the MAP for for Maiden Rock North by Southwest
Download the CUE SHEET for Maiden Rock North by Southwest