La Grange sits in a landscape that was made by ice, and the clearest way to read it is to look at the shape of the land. The Kettle Moraine, a long band of hills and hollows running through eastern Wisconsin, was built by the edge of the last ice sheet, which dropped its load of gravel, sand and boulders as it melted. Kettles are the round hollows left when buried blocks of ice melted, and kames and eskers are the mounds and ridges of gravel that the meltwater left behind. Together they give the countryside a rolling, tumbled feel, with no straight lines anywhere.
The southern unit of the Kettle Moraine State Forest covers a large part of the area, with oak, hickory and maple woods, prairie remnants and small lakes, and the Ice Age Trail, a long-distance footpath that follows the glacial edge across the state, passes through it. The town of La Grange itself is small and rural, a patchwork of farms, woods and lakes, and Elkhorn, the county seat, is a short distance away. The countryside is at its most striking in October, when the oaks turn rust-red and the maples blaze orange.
The roads that cross the moraine are superb for riding. They climb and fall over the hills in a chain of easy bends, with good surfaces, quiet traffic and views over woods and farms from the ridges. A marked scenic drive links many of the best stretches, and on a fine weekend it attracts a lot of riders and cyclists, so you may find yourself in good company. The corners are not tight, but they are constant, and the combination of rhythm and scenery makes for a very relaxing ride. Watch for deer at dawn and dusk, and for gravel at the edges of the farm entrances.
Elkhorn, six kilometres away, has fuel and cafes, and East Troy, ten kilometres off, has a lovely old square and a few places to eat. La Grange itself has little in the way of services, so plan your stops. The roads are open year-round, but winter brings ice and snow, and the best time to ride is from May to October. Summer is warm and humid, with thunderstorms in the afternoons, so carry waterproofs and watch the sky.