About 25 miles east of Viroqua, Wildcat Mountain State Park sits at one of the most dramatic bends in the Kickapoo River and is the best place to grasp how strange the Driftless landscape really is. The trail to the "Wildcat Mountain" overlook climbs through hardwood forest to a viewpoint over the river valley; the Mount Pisgah and Hemlock trails add more strenuous loops.
The park is small but quiet, with first-rate canoe access to the Kickapoo and decent campgrounds. Best in October when the hardwood colour is in full flame.