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Snapshots: Wisconsin's State Capitol

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Snapshots: Wisconsin's State Capitol

For those of you who have been following me for a while, you know I have a particular affinity for capital cities. Being from Washington D.C. there is a certain familiarity to a capital city and how it looks and operates. Madison is even closer to my heart since both of my parents attended the University of Wisconsin at Madison and I grew up hearing stories of their time there. The Capitol Building in Madison is actually the forth Capitol of the Badger State. The first Capitol was a hastily built wooden structure in Belmont, Wisconsin which was used for a mere 42 days, during which time a new site was chosen in Madison. The second Capitol was built in Madison in 1837 and the third Capitol was begun in 1857, nine years after the Wisconsin Territory became the state of Wisconsin. That building tragically burned to the ground in 1904 and construction of the current Capitol began soon thereafter under the watchful eye of famed architect George B. Post of New York. The statue of Wisconsin on the Capitol dome was sculpted by Daniel Chester French who also sculpted the statue at the Lincoln Memorial. I loved how many badgers were to be found in the building - in the murals, overlooking the four corners and even on the statue on the dome. Wisconsin is definitely fond of its badgers. I found it interesting that the mural in the state senate chamber commemorates the opening of the Panama Canal - big news when the Capitol was built but it seems odd a hundred years later. I think my favorite story from the Wisconsin State Capitol was that of Old Abe, a bald eagle who once served as the mascot for a Wisconsin Civil War unit and accompanied them into battle. Old Abe was shot during the war but survived and went on to tour the country after the war ended. He went to live in the Capitol building for many years but accidentally died of smoke inhalation when a fire started near his cage. Old Abe was stuffed and sat overlooking the House chamber for many years until he burned in the fire of 1904. A replacement eagle was placed in the rebuilt Capitol to commemorate Old Abe’s legacy. I really enjoyed my guided tour of the Wisconsin State Capitol and hope you enjoy these photos from my visit.

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This Week on the Road - August 18th-25th

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This Week on the Road - August 18th-25th

Hello Everyone! Gosh, it’s hard to believe that we’re in the last week of August. I know that summer will last for several more weeks, but those fall colors are right around the corner. I’m going to soak up what’s left of the summertime with everything I have, but will also welcome fall with open arms when it arrives. I’m the kind of person who always runs hot, so cooler days are always a comforting thought. That being said, I want to be out of the region before the first big snows come so that means I need to put a little hustle in my step. I’ve been feeling really good lately though, have been getting to the gym every day and have tried to just enjoy the little gifts that each day brings my way. I’ve found the people of Wisconsin to be just as warm and welcoming as I remember them to be and have enjoyed being surrounded by people who try to enjoy life and see the best in things. That being said, they are also being cautious regarding Covid and masks are far more prevalent here than they were in Michigan. It’s been a good week and I’ve definitely started my time in Wisconsin on a good foot.

Before I get into what I’ve been up to this week though, I got an interesting email from my friend Matt, who used to be the General Manager of the tour company I worked for. With the closing of our company, he has changed roles to manage a different tour company which still fell under the umbrella of companies in the Travelopia brand. He has asked if I would be interested in joining a tour out west for a week or so to take some photos for their upcoming brochures. I don’t know if it’s going to work out, but it is certainly an interesting proposition and a solid week of paid work would be very welcome right now. I’ll let you know what comes of it, but don’t be surprised to get this newsletter in the coming weeks from Arizona! It’s flattering to be considered if nothing else. Now on with my travels:

I headed north from Kenosha last Thursday morning and stopped in Racine to buy a kringle. Racine has a huge Danish-American population and this is one of the dishes they are known for. The kringle is actually Wisconsin’s State Pastry, so of course I had to try it out. I think in most of the country, we would probably refer to it simply as a “Danish”, but the ones in Racine are on a whole different level. A proper kringle takes three days to make and comes out in a ring that’s about a foot long. I chose to get mine at Bendtsens which is just one of the kringle bakeries in Racine. I got a blueberry kringle and it was really delicious and took me three days to finish. My belly full of kringle, I headed on back to Milwaukee and straight to the Harley-Davidson museum. Harley-Davidson is definitely one of Milwaukee’s legendary products and I was eager to learn more about the history of this iconic brand. The museum’s exhibit began at the turn of the 20th century with a look at the founders, William Harley and his childhood buddy Arthur Davidson, as they tinkered in their tiny garage to build a small motor for their bicycle. They weren’t the first to do this, but their motor-bicycles would soon be considered some of the best in the world. In 1906, Harley and Davidson produced 50 motorcycles and ten years later they were building 15,000 a year. The U.S. Army put in an order for 20,000 Harley-Davidson motorcycles during World War I and the childhood friends were off and running. I really enjoyed this museum as it traced the history of the brand, not holding back when discussing their near-bankruptcy in the 1980s and the workers who banded together to bring them back from the brink. When I finished with the museum, there was some live music at their outdoor bar and plenty of Harley riders in the parking lot to enjoy it. I stuck around for a while and then headed a little bit further downtown for a wander around the Historic Third Ward and Deer Town. I got a brat and some beer-cheese soup at the Milwaukee Brat House and even found the statue to one of Milwaukee’s most memorable TV characters, The Fonz.

On Friday, I headed out to the old Pabst Brewery for a tour and a healthy dose of nostalgia. When I was a kid I toured the Pabst brewery often, as the tours were free and so was the beer afterwards (cokes for me back then). Since then, Pabst has closed down their breweries and now produces their beer through contracts with Coors and Miller. The main brewery has been converted into a hotel and apartments, but the old accounting offices in the historic “castle” have been purchased and turned into an event space, bar and gift shop celebrating all things Pabst.

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Snapshots: Wisconsin State Fair

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Snapshots: Wisconsin State Fair

I love a good carnival, but all of the fairs and festivals in my life have been compared to the Wisconsin State Fair, the fair of my childhood. My dad is from Milwaukee and every year when I was a kid he would take my brother and I home to see our grandparents and every year he would make sure we went when the State Fair was in full swing. I was very happy to find that over 30 years later it was pretty much still how I remembered it. I used to say “one of these days I’ll make it back to the Wisconsin State Fair”, and finally “one of those days” was realized. I had a great time and hope you enjoy these just-for-fun photos of the Wisconsin State Fair.

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This Week on the Road - August 12th-18th

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This Week on the Road - August 12th-18th

Hello Everyone! I hope you’ve all had a great week since last I wrote. I can’t believe we’re already halfway through August, but it’s sure been a beautiful week here in Wisconsin. For me, it’s been a week of catching up – catching up on work and catching up with my family in the Greater Milwaukee area. Since my dad is from Milwaukee and I spent a lot of time here as a kid, there is a lot of familiarity to it even though it’s been many years since I last spent time in the area. It’s been great though, and I’m really enjoying it.

When I finished this post last week, I headed over to the Neville Public Museum in Green Bay. Right as I parked and got out of my van, the tornado sirens started going off downtown. The museum was clearly a better option than my van in a tornado, so I headed inside. The staff was great and moved us all into the theater to wait it out. Thankfully the tornados passed us by and I could go ahead and get a look at the museum. There were some interesting artifacts there, but I really wanted to learn more about the history of Green Bay and it didn’t quite deliver on that for me. I did enjoy the museum but I would have loved a better organized permanent collection. The top highlight was a very cool model of Lambeau Field built entirely out of Legos which was definitely worth seeing. When I left the museum, I went to a delicious little spot called PhoComa downtown. Green Bay (and Southern Wisconsin) has a huge Hmong population who settled there after escaping from Southeast Asia at the end of the Vietnam War. I have definitely been craving some good Southeast Asian food for a while, and this place was amazing. After dinner I went to see the Green Bay Booyah baseball team play. They play in the Northwoods League with the Traverse City Pitspitters, and that night they were playing against Racine. The storms had cleared out and it turned into a beautiful night for baseball, but the Booyah couldn’t pull one out for the home town crowd.

Thursday I headed out of Green Bay and drove through downtown Appleton to see where Harry Houdini spent much of his adult life. It seemed like a nice enough place but there was nothing to keep me there. I moved on to Fond Du Lac at the bottom of Lake Winnebago and visited the Lighthouse Park for great views out over the lake. Lake Winnebago is a massive lake but can’t really compare to the nearby Great Lakes. The Fox River passes through Lake Winnebago and connects the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River. It’s also one of the few northern flowing rivers in the country and was a major route for early traders. I really enjoyed learning about the area at the local Visitors Center but had to keep moving so I headed on towards Milwaukee where I met my cousin Emma at her office for an evening event. I got there a little early so we could catch up as it’s been 8 years since I saw her last. We had a great chat and then moved into the music venue at her office which does a monthly livestream of a local band. That night we got to see the wonderful duo of Andreas Transo and Charlene Adzima on guitar and fiddle, playing Irish tinged folk music with some definite Wisconsin flare. They were amazing and I really enjoyed the show and especially seeing it with my cousin.

The next day was State Fair Day for me and I was so excited to go. When I was growing up, the Wisconsin State Fair was a definite highlight of the summer for me every year I went. I’ve often said that one of these days I would make it back and on Friday “one of these days” became “today”.

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Snapshots: The Keweenaw - Michigan's Copper Country

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Snapshots: The Keweenaw - Michigan's Copper Country

The Keweenaw Peninsula juts north from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula far out into Lake Superior. The word “Keweenaw” comes from an old Ojibwa word meaning “a place where portage is made”. This area is home to one of the richest copper deposits in the world and has been mined for thousands of years. After Michigan became a state in 1837, prospectors started making their way into the Keweenaw and copper claims and mines were quickly established. These mines were often in operation until World War II. Around these mines, communities grew which were often settled by immigrants eager to build a life in the new world. Mining was dangerous work, but the promise of a decent wage was enough to lure people to this isolated northern region. When the price of copper dropped and the mining process was no longer profitable, whole communities packed up and moved elsewhere and once-bustling towns were quickly reclaimed by the forest. Some towns remain today, but many are struggling and reliant on tourism. I loved this region and spent a little over a week exploring its history and towns. I toured the Quincy Mine and enjoyed wandering around Houghton, Hancock, Calumet, Eagle River and Copper Harbor. I included a few photos from nearby Marquette as well since it traces its roots to the same time period. The whole region is now a part of Keweenaw National Historical Park and Keweenaw National Heritage Area and you can find the Visitors Center in downtown Calumet. I hope you enjoy these photos from the beautiful Keweenaw Peninsula, Michigan’s Copper Country.

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In Focus: Isle Royale National Park

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In Focus: Isle Royale National Park

The Ojibwa Indians called Isle Royale “Minong” meaning “a good place to be” and they certainly hit the nail on the head with that one. Isle Royale National Park consists of Isle Royale itself and over 400 smaller islands making up an archipelago in the middle of Lake Superior. Isle Royale is the largest natural island on Lake Superior and the second largest in the Great Lakes at 45 miles long and 9 miles wide. Some of Michigan’s earliest copper mines were established on Isle Royale in the 1840s, continuing the Ojibwa copper-mining tradition which stretched back hundreds of years. Commercial fishing operations also ran off of Isle Royale for many years, but it was the island’s beauty and ability to attract tourism which would create its lasting industry. Isle Royale National Park was established in 1940 and it was made a part of the UNESCO International Biosphere Reserve in 1980.

I had a wonderful 4 day/3 night visit to Isle Royale in the beginning of August. The island is only accessible by boat or plane, with ferries originating out of Houghton and Copper Harbor in Michigan and Grand Portage in Minnesota. I chose the Isle Royale Queen IV out of Copper Harbor which dropped me off in Rock Harbor on the island’s northeast side in about three and a half hours. After getting my backcountry permit from the ranger there, I headed off into the wilderness for the next three nights, staying at Daisy Farm, Lynn Cove and Three Mile campgrounds. I hiked about 25 miles during my time on Isle Royale and really found the island to be a beautiful place to be. After hiking all day, an afternoon dip in Lake Superior always felt great. I saw 9 moose during my visit and also a handful of beavers along with plenty of birds and toads. I really cherished my time on Isle Royale and hope you enjoy these photos from America’s least visited National Park.

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This Week on the Road - August 4th-11th

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This Week on the Road - August 4th-11th

Hello Everyone and greetings from Green Bay, Wisconsin! I have completed my two month journey through Michigan and have moved on to the Badger State. I spent the first half of the week out in beautiful Isle Royale National Park, a destination I was really looking forward to and which definitely lived up to my expectations. Returning from the park on Saturday, it was time for me to make tracks and get myself into Wisconsin. Summer is passing quickly and I still hope to get through both Wisconsin and Minnesota before winter sets in. It’s been a good week, and I’m excited to tell you what I’ve been up to.

I headed out to Isle Royale on the Isle Royale Queen IV out of Copper Harbor bright and early on Wednesday morning. There are three boats that make the trip to the island, and this one just worked better with my schedule. It was fast and made the 55 mile crossing in about 3.5 hours and I enjoyed chatting with a mother and daughter who I sat with on the way out. The mother owned the rock shop in Copper Harbor and had a grandfather who once lived and worked as a fisherman on Isle Royale. Her daughter was in Copper Harbor for the summer and working at one of the restaurants in town. I was surprised by how many people I met who had family connections back to Isle Royale before it became a National Park.

When we arrived on the island, the rangers gave us their briefing, issued backcountry permits and we were off and running. Most of the park is designated wilderness, so unless you are staying at the lodge near the ferry dock you are on your own for the duration of your stay. I shouldered my pack and made my way a little over 7 miles to Daisy Farm Campground on the east side of the island. It’s been years since I’ve carried a full pack that distance, but I have been doing a lot of walking and hiking and it really wasn’t too bad. I even saw my first of nine moose I would see during my visit on this hike. Because I was there alone, it was easy to hear footsteps which weren’t my own and an adult moose has some pretty heavy footsteps. I was able to see the moose through the dense forest and enjoyed spending some time with her before heading on to camp where I took up residence in one of the shelters they had there. I had my tent with me, but since the shelters were available it seemed like an easier option even though it only takes 5 minutes to set up my tent. I had my first dehydrated meal in many years, something which has improved dramatically since the last time I ate one. It was a beautiful campground right on the lake and even though it was pretty busy, people were spread out and it didn’t seem crowded. I met some really nice people in camp and found it easy to talk to people as we obviously had shared interests in hiking, camping and/or National Parks and had gone to some length to get to this remote island.

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In Focus: Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

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In Focus: Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Stretched between the towns of Munising and Grand Marais along the shores of Lake Superior in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is a magical place filled with breathtaking scenery. From historical lighthouses to picture-perfect waterfalls, this small and often overlooked unit of the National Park Service is sure to have something for everyone. I enjoyed hiking many miles of trails along beaches and through the woods, past the waterfalls and overlooks that have captured peoples’ attention for hundreds of years. During the lumbering era, the area was clear cut, but the forest has regenerated in the last hundred years and is healthy again. It’s no wonder that Pictured Rocks was America’s first National Lakeshore, gaining this new designation in 1966. Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is a must-see while visiting Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and a definite highlight of my time in the state. To truly see the rocks themselves, you do need to get on a boat and see them from the water. I chose the Sunset Spray Falls tour with Pictured Rocks Cruises and while I think the boat could have been better suited to sightseeing, it was a wonderful cruise nonetheless. If you’re ever traveling across northern Michigan, definitely plan on spending a day or two in beautiful Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. You’ll be glad you did. I hope you enjoy these photos from my visit.

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Snapshots: Cheboygan - Gateway to the North

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Snapshots: Cheboygan - Gateway to the North

Cheboygan was incorporated in 1871 and grew up around the timber industry, supplying wood for the westward expansion of the country. Located at the confluence of the Cheboygan River and Lake Huron, the town became known as the “Gateway to the North”, although now it goes by “Historic Rivertown” as well. Because of its location and proximity to the Mackinac Bridge and Mackinac Island, Cheboygan certainly sees its fair share of tourism, yet it maintains its small-town feel and felt more like a real, lived in town than many of the places I visited in the state. With two beautiful lighthouses and as the home port of the Coast Guard Icebreaker Mackinaw, Cheboygan maintains its maritime history as well. I had a wonderful time in Cheboygan and only captured some of the beautiful places the town has to offer, but it’s definitely a town worth seeing - ether as a less touristy gateway to the region or in its own right. I hope you enjoy these photos from my time in beautiful Cheboygan.

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This Week on the Road - July 30th-August 3rd

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This Week on the Road - July 30th-August 3rd

Hello Everyone and greetings from Copper Country. I’m coming to you this week from the Keweenaw Peninsula – the northern peninsula of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. This area is known historically for its incredibly rich copper loads which were mined from the 1840s right up until World War II. The towns up here certainly have traces of their former glory, though when the copper industry left, so did most of their economy. Today they depend more heavily on tourism as people come here for mining history and beautiful Lake Superior beaches in the summer and hunting in the fall. It’s a fascinating region and one that I’ve really been enjoying. I actually came up here once or twice as a kid with my dad, so there is some vague familiarity to it, but it’s definitely all new ground for me as an adult. When most of y’all are reading this, I’ll be out on Isle Royale where I’ll be spending three nights in America’s least visited National Park. I’ve been looking forward to going to Isle Royale for a very long time, and I hope to come back with some great photos and stories to tell. Since I’ll be catching the ferry bright and early Wednesday morning, I’m going to finish up with this week’s This Week post a little earlier than usual. That being said, even with a short week, I’ve certainly seen and done a lot so let me tell you what I’ve been up to.

When I left you all last week I was on my way out of Munising after two wonderful days in Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. I headed south from there to Manistique, a pretty little town on the northern shores of Lake Michigan. I got there just before it started to rain and it rained through the night. I spent the night at the casino just outside of town and won about $50 playing quarter keno.

Thursday morning was gloomy so I was in no big rush to get up and moving. When I did I went down to the beach to eat my breakfast and then wandered out on the breakwater to see the Manistique Lighthouse, which is still active. Dark red in color, the lighthouse really stood out against the grey background of the sky. I took a quick dip in the lake which woke me up more than my coffee did and then headed out of town. I ventured up to Palms Book State Park, home of Kitch-iti-kipi Spring, the largest of Michigan’s freshwater springs. Big Spring, as it is also called, pumps out 10,000 gallons of water every minute at a constant 45 degrees Fahrenheit and is about 40’ deep in the center. The water is a beautiful greenish turquoise and was really quite something to see. The park loads passengers onto a huge raft with a glass floor in the middle so people can look down into the spring, but there were so many people there in line that I decided to pass. I enjoyed the view from the shore and will wait for the raft adventure for another time.

From there I headed out onto the Garden Peninsula which juts out into Lake Michigan and protects Big Bay de Noc on its western side. About 20 miles down on the bay side is Fayette State Historic Park which I thought was really cool. During the second half of the 19th century, Fayette was an iron smelting town, turning raw iron ore into pig iron in its giant furnace. The town attracted immigrants to work at the furnace and in its heyday had a population of around 500. When the furnace shut down in the 1890s, the town was all but abandoned except for the hotel which operated until World War II and the post office which served the area until the 1950s. The town was eventually acquired by the state of Michigan and now serves as an historic site interpreting life in a 19th century company town. Some of the old buildings are still standing, some have been restored or rebuilt altogether while some are nothing but ruins. By the time I reached Fayette, the weather had cleared and it turned into a beautiful day – perfect to explore this old town site. I thought it was a really interesting place and definitely worth a visit.

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Snapshots: Charlevoix the Beautiful

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Snapshots: Charlevoix the Beautiful

Tiny Charlevoix, Michigan, is named for the Jesuit priest and missionary Father Pierre François Xavier de Charlevoix. It’s certainly one of the more beautiful town names in the state and the town lives up to it well. Situated between Lake Michigan to the west and Lake Charlevoix to the east, it definitely has a maritime feel to it, but more yacht than fishing boat if you know what I mean. In 1918, self-taught architect Paul Young began building fairy-tale houses in the town, some shaped like mushrooms and some more like Hobbit houses. Young’s houses are mostly grouped into two neighborhoods and are really something to see. Other houses and businesses in town have drawn from his style and I also enjoyed seeing them. Charlevoix is also the jumping-off point for ferries to Beaver Island, which is why I was in town. The downtown area is compact but pleasant with some wonderful little bars and restaurants, but the real beauty lays along the lakeshores. Charlevoix also hosts the Venetian Boat Festival every year which looks like an amazing event I’d love to see for myself. The mural on the side of the Rexall downtown is one of the most beautiful I’ve seen anywhere. I hope you enjoy these few photos from my time in the aptly nicknamed Charlevoix the Beautiful.

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This Week on the Road - July 22nd-29th

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This Week on the Road - July 22nd-29th

Hello Everyone! How are y’all doing out there? I hope everyone’s summer is going well and you’re getting out and having adventures of your own out there. I can’t believe it’s almost August and I know it’s going to be cooling down here in the north in just a few more weeks so I’m trying to soak up the sun and enjoy the summer while it lasts. Even Lake Superior is pleasant to swim in this time of year up here, so I’m swimming every day I can. It’s been a busy week here in Michigan as I’ve finally crossed over into the Upper Peninsula. It’s definitely different here from what I was finding “down south” – the towns are smaller and less polished, but the people are friendly and very passionate about their region. These “Yoopers”, as they call themselves, weren’t connected to the rest of Michigan until the completion of the Mackinac Bridge in 1959, so they’ve developed independently of the rest of the state. It’s interesting to see. I’ve had a great week of lighthouses (surprise!), history and some really beautiful sights and I can’t wait to share with you what I’ve been up to this week, so here we go:

When I finished writing last week I headed out of Petoskey and hopped on Michigan 119, the Tunnel of Trees Scenic Byway. It was a beautiful road, barely two lanes wide, which bobbed and weaved up the coast through some cute little towns and beautiful scenery. I imagine it would be quite spectacular in the fall when all those deciduous trees have changed colors. The Scenic Byway ended in tiny Cross Village which is home to the Legs Inn, one of the more well-known off-the-beaten-path restaurants in the state. The Legs Inn was built by Polish immigrant Stan Smolak almost a hundred years ago and it’s still owned and run by his family today. It gets its name from the old stove legs which run the length of the building’s roof. The rest of the place is a work of art in its own right having been carved out of whatever wood or other materials Stan and his mostly Odawa Indian friends could come up with at the time. A lot of the tables are two tree stumps with a plank between them (cleaned, sanded, stained, varnished and looking really good, though). The food is from his native Poland and in a regular summer they would bring Polish students over to work at the inn. My server was from Poland, here on a student visa since before the pandemic. I had a taste plate which included a cabbage roll, hunter’s stew and pierogis, and I washed it down with a refreshing Polish beer. My lunch was very good and the atmosphere was great and it was definitely well worth the stop.

From Cross Village, I headed clear across the state to Cheboygan on the banks of Lake Huron. I went out to the State Park for a quick swim and then came back to town in the late afternoon. I visited the old Crib Lighthouse, which was very cool and made for some good black and white photos, and then just wandered around downtown for a while. Although there is definitely tourism there thanks to nearby Mackinac Island and the lake itself, Cheboygan felt more like just a regular town than most I have been in on my way up the Lake Michigan coast. To be honest, I found it quite refreshing. In my time in the Deep South and Appalachia I felt like regular towns were the norm and touristy places were the exception. Here in Michigan I’ve felt quite the opposite. That being said, there was some great public art on display including a wonderful mural of the town’s history. I stopped in the Cheboygan Brewing Company for a quick beer and they had a great fire pit outside which made conversation with strangers quite easy. From there, I had to make a quick stop into Pub 27 up the road because they had a great neon sign outside and it looked like a regular people’s bar in a regular people’s town. I was sure glad that I stopped in. The bartender, Taryn, is a 3rd generation Cheboyganer and the bar is owned by her parents who own several other business ventures in town as well. Her boyfriend, Alex, was very friendly as well and they were interested to hear about my travels and what I thought of Michigan. I enjoyed chatting with them, but I had an early start the next morning, so I called it an early night.

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