Growing up in northwest Wisconsin in the 1970s, I had the advantage of being able to spend time exploring the woods and land of my neighbors without fear of being chased off or charged with trespassing. Kris Henriksen owned land next to my parents where he raised sheep. Little Butternut Creek ran through his property. Our pet dogs and I spent a lot of time around the creek. Another feature on Kris’ land was a gravel pit and a small pond that had a very tiny outlet. Rain and run-off from the surrounding land kept water in it. A tiny flow ran into it from Little Butternut Creek.
To get to it, we would walk west from our house along Highway N for a few hundred yards to what was locally called ‘Lover’s Lane’. It was a short-cut dirt road with a tree canopy the entire length. Just as you entered it, there was a tractor entrance to the Henriksen property on the right. A few yards later, on the left, was a hill side that had dirt excavated from it. It was a fun place to play in the sand and look for agates.
Following the tractor path would take you on a gentle downward slope to the pond. This is where water would gather after a rain. My friends and I would build ad-hoc dams along it to trap the water. They were only temporary because they would get washed away eventually.
Killdeer birds would skitter along the wet edge of the pond. Frogs loved the mud. Tall grass grew along the east shore. Most of the rest of the shore was steep and the water got deep really fast. The water was mostly still because it was protected from the wind. My friend Jeff and I would skip rocks and make paper boats to float from one edge to the other. There were some local fish stocked in it; perch, sunfish, and bullhead. Box and snapping turtles lived in the area.
Kris put out a swimming dock for a couple of years. My sister, friends, and I would swim there a few times. The water was not clear so you couldn’t see very far into it. There were a few times when either fish or turtles nibbled on my nipples!
One year the water level was very low. The trunk of a dead tree that used to be underwater was now exposed. I don’t remember if the pond ever froze over in the winter.
Wonderful, innocent memories for a kid.
Map – From Konopacki house to Henriksen’s Pond