8 favorite Wisconsin places and stories from 2017
This summer I spent four months living out of my car, traveling to all of Wisconsin’s 72 counties on 16 road trips.
By the end, I was tired and ready for a break. So I lay on my couch for a couple days, then planned a backpacking trip to Olympic National Park in Washington.
When you’re an outdoors addict, you can only stay inside for so long. There’s something rejuvenating about tree-shrouded trails, ice-cold rivers and vistas without a sign of civilization in sight. Science agrees with me — study after study confirms that walking outside is good for your mind and body.
Hopefully some of my stories over the past year inspired you to get out and do that. If you need an extra burst of motivation (or a single list to plan your 2018 from), here are some of my favorite places and stories from 2017, with updates on a couple of them.
1. The Apostles are more than a kayaking destination
The 21 islands that make up the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore in Lake Superior off the Bayfield peninsula are one of Wisconsin’s greatest natural treasures. Made famous by their red-orange sea caves, the islands are a favorite for kayakers, which was my main goal when I visited in July.
But first I was treated to a private tour of Sand Island from a local historian and the Jenschs, a family that still has a summer home there — a holdover known as a “life lease” from when the land became national park property in the ‘70s. A local group is working to preserve the historic and cultural resources of the islands, so even when the Jenschs’ lease expires, their summer cottage and other historic buildings will hopefully live on.
If you go to the Apostles (and you definitely should), take time to explore some of that cultural history. While properties like the Jenschs’ are not open to the public, you can visit some of the islands’ historic lighthouses, and structures like the Hokenson Fishery on Little Sand Bay.
2. Record-setting Ice Age Trail hikers
Two hikers set out on the Ice Age Trail this year with ambitious goals: one to thru-hike the 1,200-mile trail in the winter, the other to hike it in the fastest known time.
Mike Summers, a 26-year-old who lives in Oregon (the state), finished his winter trek in February, becoming the first person to complete an unsupported thru-hike entirely in the winter. For 58 days he walked through the snow and ice of a Wisconsin winter (thankfully a mild one), sometimes camping alongside the trail, sometimes staying with “trail angels” who offered spare rooms and couches.
Annie Weiss, a 32-year-old from Milwaukee, set out from the Ice Age Trail’s western terminus in Interstate State Park on May 1 with the goal of completing the entire trail in just 19 days. Weiss, an ultrarunner, hoped to run about 60 miles a day and beat the fastest known time record of 22 days, set by Jason Dorgan. The fastest female time was 34 days, set Melanie McManus.
Ten days into her journey, Weiss was sidelined by bruised, swollen ankles and feet that sent her to the hospital. A doctor warned her that without proper rest, the damage could become permanent. So Weiss decided to end her quest. (A doctor back home in Milwaukee discovered she had an infection, likely from open wounds exposed to the muddy, flooded trail segments of northern Wisconsin in spring.)
“Yes, something was not right in my lower legs, but even more, my goal was not to hike the IAT,” she wrote on her blog. “My goal was bring the women’s record close, or even better, than the men’s record. If I were to hike this that would not even be in the sights. I made the decision to end my journey. I cried. A lot.”
It didn’t take long for her to decide she would try again someday.
Sometimes failure can be even more inspiring
than success, and Annie’s story was like that for me. It takes true strength to set aside your pride and call it quits when your body is telling you to, and then commit to going through the torture all over again to accomplish a lofty goal. Good luck, Annie. I’ll be rooting for you whenever you set off again, and I’ll continue my own much slower slog of hiking as much of the trail as I can.
3. The great Great River Road
This is the ultimate road trip in Wisconsin — a trip where the drive is as good as the destination. Plan at least a few days to drive the scenic road along the Mississippi River on Wisconsin’s western border, stopping at the quaint towns (and wineries) along the way.
Two of my favorite campsites I stayed at this summer were on my Great River Road trip, at Nelson Dewey and Wyalusing state parks. At Nelson Dewey, north of Cassville, a handful of walk-in sites offer privacy and unimpeded views of the Mississippi River. At Wyalusing, there’s less privacy between sites, but more of them (and all drive-in) with views of the Wisconsin River at its confluence with the Mississippi. I managed to snag sites at both without reservations — a perk of traveling during the week in the summer.
4. A possible national park in Door County
Door County is home to five state parks — more than any other county in Wisconsin — plus dozens of local parks and preserves. Soon it also could be home to a national park. A group is working to get the Grand Traverse islands off the peninsula’s northern tip, plus some land on the mainland, designated as a national park. If they succeed, it would be one more gem in the Door County crown.
In the meantime, the peninsula’s parks are fun to explore in any season, from the always-busy Peninsula State Park to the quiet Door Bluff Headlands County Park.
5. Sitting still in the beautiful Driftless Region
Go-go-go vacations are usually my style, but a trip to the Kickapoo Valley reminded me how great it can be to just sit still for a bit. My first morning I squashed plans to canoe the Kickapoo River and instead sat with a cup of coffee on the back porch of my private cabin at the Kickapoo Valley Ranch near La Farge. Horses from the ranch grazed in the wildflower-dotted field below, and fog drifted through the hills around me. It’s one of my most vivid memories from this whirlwind summer — an idyllic, peaceful scene of simple beauty.
I loved the Driftless Region for scenery like that as much as what you can do in it — kayak or canoe the winding Kickapoo, hike the hills at Wildcat Mountain State Park or the Kickapoo Valley Reserve, fill up on locally sourced fare at the Driftless Café. Mix and match that with some simple back-porch-sittin’ for a great getaway in west-central Wisconsin.
6. Hiking the ‘scenic route’ to Lost Creek Falls
This little gem of a waterfall outside Cornucopia on the Bayfield peninsula wasn’t easy to get to — especially since I took some overgrown snowmobile trails instead of the newer, easy hiking trail built a few years ago. But that made it all the more fun, topped by having the waterfall all to myself when I finally got there.
7. A diner in the middle of the forest that lived up to the hype
Delta Diner, in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest north of Drummond, was as good as advertised. The food was on par with big-city fare, in a mirage-like 1940s diner off a forest road in northern Wisconsin. If you’re within 60 miles of this place, make a point to visit.
8. A hotel for hipsters (and everyone else)
I have now married The Oxbow Hotel and we are very happy, thank you very much.
It was love at first sight at the chic hotel in Eau Claire, started by a group of locals that includes Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon. Trendy, comfortable rooms are adorned with touches like Wisconsin artwork and snacks from local businesses. Bikes are available to borrow to explore the city’s superb network of offroad trails. The front desk also has a library of albums to borrow and play on the record players in each room.
The attached restaurant and bar, The Lakely, is as great as the hotel, with creative craft cocktails (a stay at the hotel gets you a BOGO chip for the bar) and delicious, locally sourced food. Live music at night completes the package.
MIKE SUMMERS