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Mother Nature threw more torrential rain at south-central Wisconsin late last week, and there is some flooding again. Nothing as bad as June, but as I plan out a place to hike for today, I take into consideration that low-lying areas by rivers (popular trail and geocache areas) would not be wise to hike in.
Using the Geocaching.com Google map I tried looking for some geocaches up in the hills of southwest Wisconsin. At least all the water is flowing down from there into the rivers. 
An area just outside of Richland Center, Wisconsin was kind of interesting. Two geocaches were along hiking trails up in a bluff overlooking the city. Richland Center is about 70 miles from my home, 60 miles west of Madison along US Highway 14. It is the seat of Richland County. It has been perhaps 15-20 years since I last visited this city.
Along the way I drove through Spring Green (famous for Frank Lloyd Wright's Talesin home and House on the Rock) and there is considerable flooding on either side of US 14 there. I did not stop for photos because of the numbers of cars driving along the highway. Most of it was away from buildings, but getting pretty close to some farm houses and also surrounding a motel.
Onward to my destination. Arrived kind of late at 10:30 am. The road to this "rustic" parking area was only wide enough for 1 car at a time to pass with no outlet. This is actually an access drive to a broadcast tower at the top of the bluff, but the way is gated.
Most of the bluff is public land, and a hiking trail system coexists with the broadcast tower, water reservoir, and the former stone quarry.
The gravel drive makes for easy walking. There are a number of scenic overlooks on the way up. They overlook the city and the surrounding bluffs.
Some flat rocky areas that were quarried out in decades past.
A good view of the downtown.
Some stuff good enough for Google Earth. 
Yes, I brought the zoom lens out for this hike. Some of the historic buildings of downtown.
Continued my ascent to the top where the first geocache is supposed to be. Walking past the 2 broadcast towers here, and the facilities new and old.
OK, back to the hiking trail. No more nice, graded gravel drive.
Another scenic overlook from the very top of the bluff this time.
Had to take a side trail downhill a little to get near ground-zero or #1 cache. The GPS is pointing into a short rocky cliff behind the trees.
Had to climb up about 13-16 feet to reach the hiding spot. Had to sit on an adjacent rock in order to take these photos, nothing there to stand on.
I placed a "travel bug" in here that I grabbed last weekend in Cross Plains, and found another TB to take in exchange. I will check on it's goal later when I log all this at Geocaching.com.
Did I mention I hate heights? I have to climb back down there, but it does not look as impressive in a 2-D photograph. 
Not sure I'm following the right trail now to geocache #2, but the sights are rather nice.
OK, at this point I've navigated a semi-circle around the geocache, and I'm descending when I should be going up according to my topo map on the GPS. I had to back-track all the way past the first geocache and follow the main trail that I left to get to #1. Number 2 was along that trail, but the GPS was saying it was 35 feet away from where it really was. Actually, the GPS went way, way wrong later in this hike, but I wasn't looking at it and did not notice until I reviewed the data when I got home.
This one is hiding in camo-netting.
Traded a toy car for a beer-can cozy inside.
I then decided to walk the entire trail system. Did some segments 2-3 times. I also explored some unofficial side trails. One led to this building by itself in a circular depression. I suspect this was the storage for explosives used in the quarry that was once on this bluff. The topography and the block construction of the shack looks like it would send most of an explosion skyward instead of outward. There is no drive into this.
More rock.
The water reservoir for the city. Looks like as good as a place as any to take a leak.
Yes I was holding the camera level here. The trees are at least straight up-down.
Back to the cozy parking area, about 2pm.
The quick summary, perhaps 4.75 miles walked, but analysis of the data on my PC makes me think it was longer.
The walk overlaid on a topo map. The last leg of my walk took me right past cache #2 and to the broadcast towers again and down the drive I walked up in the beginning. The trail that the GPS recorded has me walking an impossible path, and way off. I must have lost sync with most of the satellites in the woods and hilly terrain on the back side of the bluff. I believe I actually walked at least 5 miles based on that error.
The same path overlaid on USGS aerial photo.
The topo map says I started out at around 850 feet, climbed to 1050 feet (twice) and dipped a little below that 850 foot mark on one segment. That's over 200 feet of altitude change 2-3 times along with the distance. Gave me a good kind of tired.
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