Because of its diverse terrain and unending scenery, many consider Parrish Highlands one of the top trail systems in Wisconsin. Fifty-five miles of trail here access a portion of the 127,000-acre Langlade County Forest. In a word, it is blissful riding.
Throw a leg over your quad and listen to it rumble as you glide through the forest. This is terrain made to be experienced from a four-wheeler. Throughout the Parrish Highlands trail system, rolling hills and tall hardwoods greet you. In the summer, the canopy of leaves overhead screens the afternoon sun while framing a picture postcard view of the forest. Around every turn and over every hill, nature awaits.
As you ride these trails, you’ll see a healthy forest ecosystem in which timber production coexists with recreation and wildlife. The trail system here takes advantage of a relatively dry plateau between lowland marsh and lake country to the north and south. Even so, the trails traverse many streams and ponds that sustain life for scores of small mammal and bird species. As you ride, you can’t help but feel part of a larger, natural world.
Many begin their ride at the trailhead on Cty T just west of Summit Lake. There you’ll find plenty of parking, trail maps, and an ATV wash station handy for leaning your quad after a long day of riding. From here you can go in two directions: north to access the twisting loops on the eastern trails, or west down 5 Cent Firelane to the western loops.
