Dances with Dirt Devil's Lake Wisconsin is a 100K five person relay, 50-mile and 50-kilometer ultramarathon, marathon, and half marathon held in July near Madison, Wisconsin.
The course goes through Devil's Lake State Park near Baraboo, Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Dells - Devil's Lake is the most popular state park in Wisconsin, and for good reason - it's beautiful. The races all start at the Devil's Head ski resort near Merrimac, Wisconsin, home to the free ferry across the Wisconsin River. The 50 mile and 50K courses start by doing a five mile loop up the ski slope and back to the start/finish, where the marathoners join them on a lollipop loop course to the state park on the Ice Age Trail and then around the lake.
There are great views from the cliffs overlooking the lake, but you have to work to get them. The race ends up climbing up the bluffs on either side of the lake on steep rock steps that don't seem to end.
One of the most interesting things about the race is the Bluff Side aid station, supplied by hiking - the food and drink is perched on a rock overlooking a cliff, so don't get too close to the edge when you grab some cookies!
