Stone, Forest, and Sky
A hike at Holy Hill
Perched high above the Kettle Moraine, Holy Hill is part basilica, part pilgrimage site, part hiking destination. Visitors come to climb the tower overlooking the surrounding forest, to walk the winding Stations of the Cross tucked into the hillsides, or simply to wander the grounds beneath the enormous twin spires that rise from the trees.
What makes the place especially unique, though, is that the Ice Age Trail passes directly through the property. Within the span of a single hike, you can move from quiet woodland trail to towering cathedral architecture, from birdsong and pine needles underfoot to stone staircases and prayer grottos hidden among the hills.
It is an unexpectedly beautiful combination. The basilica towers over the area but doesn’t feel imposed upon the landscape. It feels tucked in, as though the forest grew around it over time. Even if you are not religious, there is something undeniably contemplative about the experience. The trails invite the same kind of quiet reflection as the shrine itself: slow walking and upward gazes, a reminder that not every place is designed for speed.
The Holy Hill Segment of the Ice Age Trail is roughly seven miles of moderate single-track trail connecting the Pike Lake and Loew Lake segments of the Trail.
The iconic yellow blaze of the Ice Age Trail.
Climbing the Kame View Trail, a blue-blazed spur of the Ice Age Trail. Photos never do justice to how steep a hill feels when you are climbing it.
Beyond the Ice Age Trail, a series of grottos featuring the Stations of the Cross dot the basilica grounds. The nearly life-sized figures inside each grotto were finished in 1928 by sculptor Joseph Aszklar of Milwaukee.
One of the building’s two towers is open to the public during the warmer months, inviting those who are up to the challenge to climb the narrow stairs to the top.
Holy Hill is a special place to many, for many reasons. It is a destination as much as it is an invitation to pause and take in a beautiful convergence of nature, history, and faith.
This is very cool!
Love this! Hiking is sooooooo under-rated for runners. Varying terrain, and slower pace does much for your body as soul. I have done the Holy Hill segment, but it's been years and it was in the dark. Your description of it makes me want to go back to it, and soon.
A friend of mine used to hold a fat ass called "Holy Funk" which included Holy Hill and Funk Road. It was a 100K, and it started at midnight. I always opted for about 50K, so I finished in the dark... never having seen all your wonderful site descriptions.
(Side story, Funk Rd doesn't exist anymore, and legend had it that the road sign was getting stolen all the time. I mean, who wouldn't want a sign in your basement bar, "Funk Rd?"Since the Road was named after Bob Funk, a long time Ice Age chapter leader, I asked him about it at one of the meetings. He confirmed. They had to change the name, and since no one lived on the road, it was easy to do. Still, to have a Road named after you, as an honor to your work on the Ice Age was probably pretty special. It's such a shame, because the name was so iconic).