NEW! 4 Day on the IAT Upcoming - Advice Welcome

Hi y'all - thanks for looking in and hopefully bringing some advice. I've been hiking with family and friends along the East Coast / AT since I was a kid, so I'm not a total newbie.

In a few weeks I'll be taking off on my first solo trip in the MidWest (4 days / 3 nights.) I've got a couple questions but here is helpful context :

- Accompanied by large K9
- Hammock w/ rainfly (each day wraps @ shelters though ice)
- Heading NE on the IAT from the Whitewater area / Clover Valley trail head

Alrighty, questions...
1. Likelihood of bear run-ins along this route?
2. Anything to watch for with weather this time of year? I'm still getting used to how fast things shift (precipitation and temp) here.
3. Anything to know with the dog in the Whitewater area? Terrain or wildlife concerns outside of the usual?

Biggest question...
I'm new to the forums. Don't have FB so appreciate help here... anything I should be aware of as far as current happenings / human-related safety concerns in this area?

Thank you in advance for the welcome & help

Never hiked the IAT, yet, but am an hour south of where you’ll be headed. Black bears have been spotted in the region but not a heavy presence. I think the biggest thing is deer hunting season just kicked off so watch for that. Not sure what WI’s gun season is but IL isn’t for a few more weeks. https://iceagetrail.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=5ff8f517b1e34d46bb70ed21b36286c6

What is the IAT?

Per The Free Dictionary--IAT, it may be the International Appalachian Trail? IAT also refers to a number of accounting-related items, with which we retired accountants thankfully no longer need be concerned.

To the OP: Whatever the IAT is, October is hunting season almost everywhere. Please wear a large blaze orange item and put another on your dog! Also, for the safety of your dog (so he doesn't decide to chase a game animal, which renders him legally liable to be shot in many jurisdictions), please keep him on leash!

Per UrbanYeti's post above, evidently it's the Ice Age Trail . Which makes sense since the OP is in Wisconsin. The home page shows suggested wear for the OP and dog at this time of year!

I should have thought of that, because I dayhiked a short stretch of this trail back in 2005 during a trip through the Midwest.

More details about hiking the IAT in Wisconsin's hunting season here.

Evidently parts of the trail on private land may be closed, so some careful research is warranted.

Thanks, Mouse. My first thought was International AT also - but the trailheads were too far west. I'd forgotten about the Ice Age Trail (and, now also being retired, the accounting terms.)

I haven't lived in Wisconsin for 20 years, but last time I was there, deer gun season is the 10 days surrounding the week of Thanksgiving + the weekend before and after. October weather in Wisconsin is usually very mild but you can have some residual summer heat or early cool down. Make sure you can handle temperatures into the 30's. Though rain is not common it can always happen. Make sure to follow the weather as your trip approaches.

Black bears are not much of a problem along the ice age trail as far as I have heard. Bears are actively hunted in the area so tend to be pretty standoffish around humans.

I am not the most knowledgable about hiking with dogs, but if you are athletic and plan to do long miles be aware that dogs are not designed to travel as far as people can. They seem much more athletic than us, but they are made for speed and long naps. Trying to have your dog hiking all day can be dangerous for them.

Everyone has long-since answered this, but Ice Age Trail

Thank you everyone for the responses last year! I decided to wait out the hunting season, and then the winter... we've done some training hikes & overnight camps to get Kova used to things, while waiting for it to warm up & the rainy season here in WI to pass.

Now we are back on track & I'm SO excited!!

Thank you very much! I'm taking all of this into account - while it's not hunting season now, still 'bearing' in mind your other comments.

We've worked out a schedule for hiking in a morning & evening stint, breaking through the heat of the day. It works for me medically as well, since I'm prone to fainting in high-heat... Beyond that I'm thrilled to see he is standing up to his breed expectations and does well hauling for longer distances as long as he's kept cool.

I grabbed extra high-vis gear for Kova! Some glow-gear as well for night, since he's pitch black. After tripping over him in camp several times I 'got smart'.

My daughter has a black Lab, and he's absolutely invisible at night! I I bought him a reflective collar!

Looking forward to your trip report!

Glad to hear you haven't given up on these plans! It is a beautiful area. I remember mountain biking in Kettle Moraine when I was a student at Marquette. It sounds like you are well on your way to becoming a seasoned backpacker.