Along a lonely stretch of Wisconsin highway, you’ll come across a towering rock formation that bears an uncanny resemblance to an oceangoing vessel.
Ship Rock, the lonely rock that looks like a ship
Adams County, Wisconsin is home to 23 different rock formations that are named for things they resemble — Rabbit Rock, Elephant Rock, Keystone Rock, Lighthouse Rock, and many more.
But the most famous of these — maybe because it’s lucky enough to have its own official sign or maybe because it’s one of the few formations that’s not on private property — is Ship Rock.
Ship Rock
Ship Rock, an imposing edifice that rises above the surrounding forest at roughly the midpoint between Arkdale and Coloma along Highway 21, looks only vaguely ship-like when viewed from the road looking north.
But when viewed from a different angle, its resemblance to a ship is uncanny. Just walk eastward and then look back in a northwesterly direction, and you’ll see what looks like an ocean-going vessel cruising along the water.
Adams County is the center of Wisconsin’s sand plain that Aldo Leopold defined in his 1949 seminal work, Sand County Almanac, and in geologic terms, Ship Rock is a series of “castellated mounds” made from of Cambrian sandstone. The entire area was once covered by a glacial lake and formed by glacial erosion during the Pleistocene Epoch.
Highway 21 isn’t a exactly a heavily trafficked road, so if you visit Ship Rock, it’s likely you’ll have the whole place to yourself.
Aside from a few families stopping to snap photos, the biggest visitors to Ship Rock are rock climbing enthusiasts.
Ship Rock, Climbing Destination
The formation is a big draw for local rock climbers who hone their skills on the the formation’s Summit Tunnel Route (ranked at an Easy 5th R climb), which includes a little spelunking as well as scrambling to the narrow summit.
Getting down from the summit is much easier than going up, thanks to the two bolt anchors on the south summit that can be used to rappel off the top. Just be sure to take your rappelling gear on the way up …
If you’re not into rock climbing, Ship Rock doesn’t have much to offer you. Although there is a short nature trail around the back side of the formation, it’s not really a hiking spot. It’s more of a lunch destination with a few picnic tables.
But, and this is important to know, there are no restrooms or outhouses, so it’s not really a traditional Wisconsin-style wayside stop.
It’s also a graffiti magnet for bored teenagers, and the base of the rock has been mostly covered in spray paint for many years.
Oddly enough, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation has mounted a “Closed” sign to one of the signposts at the front of the formation.
It’s not clear how a rock formation can be closed. And no one seemed to pay much attention to the sign anyway.
Header image: Ship Rock, of course. Photo from the author’s collection.
Ship Rock
- 482 WI-21, Friendship, WI
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