Wisconsin vacation ideas
May 6, 2011 11:23 AM Subscribe
Family fun in (especially Northern) Wisconsin: ideas for activities, eating and lodging?
We're heading for Wisconsin at the end of June, and hitting the following locations in order: Milwaukee, Park Falls, maybe Madison and Dodgeville. There's plenty of info in the Metafilter wiki and elsewhere about Milwaukee and Madison, but less so about the northern Wisconsin area. We'll be visiting the house my husband lived in as a kid in Park Falls, but other than that are relatively agenda free. What should we do? Where should we stay?
We are: two active thirtysomething parents, mom pregnant; one four year old. We would be up for some low-impact hiking or gentle tubing, possibly camping although it depends on how I'm (pregnant lady) feeling. We are not ardent sportspeople, don't hunt or anything. We also like to eat good food of almost any variety.
We're heading for Wisconsin at the end of June, and hitting the following locations in order: Milwaukee, Park Falls, maybe Madison and Dodgeville. There's plenty of info in the Metafilter wiki and elsewhere about Milwaukee and Madison, but less so about the northern Wisconsin area. We'll be visiting the house my husband lived in as a kid in Park Falls, but other than that are relatively agenda free. What should we do? Where should we stay?
We are: two active thirtysomething parents, mom pregnant; one four year old. We would be up for some low-impact hiking or gentle tubing, possibly camping although it depends on how I'm (pregnant lady) feeling. We are not ardent sportspeople, don't hunt or anything. We also like to eat good food of almost any variety.
If you'll be in Dodgeville, you'll want to go to Governor Dodge State Park. Nice bluffs & lake, and there's trails of varying difficulty depending on what you're feeling up to.
Try to make it to the Norske Nook if you can. They're pretty famous for their pies. The one is Osseo is, I believe, the original one.
posted by echo target at 12:11 PM on May 6, 2011
Try to make it to the Norske Nook if you can. They're pretty famous for their pies. The one is Osseo is, I believe, the original one.
posted by echo target at 12:11 PM on May 6, 2011
Park Falls isn't really what one thinks about when one thinks about Wisconsin tourism. However, I can also get some info on Rusk County (just west of Price County and Park Falls), and I have a friend (coincidentally, the friend who runs tourism for Rusk County as well as Sheboygan, Oneida and Vilas and their many towns!) who grew up in Phillips, just south of Park Falls, so I could probably help on that front.
I'd echo that you might want to try the Minocqua/Rhinelander/St. Germain/Manitowish Waters area up in Vilas and Oneida Counties (to the east of Price County). Some towns are more touristy than others, especially in the summer, but the nice thing is that they're connected by some very nice trails and creeks, so you can easily go from town to town or pick a town that fits your pace better.
There are also some nice family spots in, say, Green Lake County, on (where else) Green Lake, with larger resorts and smaller places.
Madison is absolutely where it's at for food. Plenty of adult food, and most places are quite kid-friendly. And then there's Ella's Deli, which is the scary clown of the Madison food world but is worth experiencing at any age :)
Please drop us a line when you're in the area!
posted by Madamina at 3:03 PM on May 6, 2011
I'd echo that you might want to try the Minocqua/Rhinelander/St. Germain/Manitowish Waters area up in Vilas and Oneida Counties (to the east of Price County). Some towns are more touristy than others, especially in the summer, but the nice thing is that they're connected by some very nice trails and creeks, so you can easily go from town to town or pick a town that fits your pace better.
There are also some nice family spots in, say, Green Lake County, on (where else) Green Lake, with larger resorts and smaller places.
Madison is absolutely where it's at for food. Plenty of adult food, and most places are quite kid-friendly. And then there's Ella's Deli, which is the scary clown of the Madison food world but is worth experiencing at any age :)
Please drop us a line when you're in the area!
posted by Madamina at 3:03 PM on May 6, 2011
On your way to Park Falls, stop in Phillips and check out Fred Smith's Concrete Park. If these sorts of things appeal to you, the Kohler Foundation has done great work preserving other sites around Wisconsin, including Grandview near Dodgeville and the James Tellen Woodland Sculpture Garden near Sheboygan. The Kohler Art Center in Sheboygan is nice too.
Not far from Park Falls is the town of Hayward and the National Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame. I don't fish either, but it's worth the trip for the muskellunge the size of a 757 and other giant fish. You can also check out a lumberjack show and see some creative taxidermy. More importantly, there is a Norske Nook.
posted by hydrophonic at 7:52 AM on May 7, 2011
Not far from Park Falls is the town of Hayward and the National Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame. I don't fish either, but it's worth the trip for the muskellunge the size of a 757 and other giant fish. You can also check out a lumberjack show and see some creative taxidermy. More importantly, there is a Norske Nook.
posted by hydrophonic at 7:52 AM on May 7, 2011
I don't know much about Park Falls, but I've been vacationing in Northern Wisconsin for the past 30 or so years. This year we'll be subjecting our 2.5-year-old to his first vacation up north.
My family's MO is to pick a nice little lake and rent a vacation cottage for a week. You may be able to rent a cottage for just a few nights, especially if you'll be up there mid week. The rentals are usually a little rustic, but much more comfortable than camping (especially if you're a pregnant lady- I'm one too). Cottages usually offer boat (fishing, pontoon, paddle, canoe) rentals. Many lakes have nice, shallow, sandy beaches, great for little kids.
Seek out a supper club to have an old school skonnie dinner. Order the fried cheese curds. And the walleye. I'm sure that there are some hidden gems, but I tend to think of Northern WI as a culinary wasteland (sorry, sorry, sorry). Renting a cottage means that you can prepare some of your own meals.
hydrophonic's Hayward recommendations are good- the fishing musuem is worth it if only for the photo opportunities. "Bigger" towns like Hayward with also have some low-key touristy stuff- mini golf and the like.
Memail me if you have any kid-friendly Madison questions.
posted by rebeccabeagle at 12:50 PM on May 7, 2011
My family's MO is to pick a nice little lake and rent a vacation cottage for a week. You may be able to rent a cottage for just a few nights, especially if you'll be up there mid week. The rentals are usually a little rustic, but much more comfortable than camping (especially if you're a pregnant lady- I'm one too). Cottages usually offer boat (fishing, pontoon, paddle, canoe) rentals. Many lakes have nice, shallow, sandy beaches, great for little kids.
Seek out a supper club to have an old school skonnie dinner. Order the fried cheese curds. And the walleye. I'm sure that there are some hidden gems, but I tend to think of Northern WI as a culinary wasteland (sorry, sorry, sorry). Renting a cottage means that you can prepare some of your own meals.
hydrophonic's Hayward recommendations are good- the fishing musuem is worth it if only for the photo opportunities. "Bigger" towns like Hayward with also have some low-key touristy stuff- mini golf and the like.
Memail me if you have any kid-friendly Madison questions.
posted by rebeccabeagle at 12:50 PM on May 7, 2011
If you like real ice cream, on your way south from Park Falls, go down highway 13 through Abbotsford to Hawkeye Dairy and get your 4yo's picture with the biggest ice cream cone he or she has ever seen. It's right on your way and I'm told pregant ladies sometimes like ice cream.
posted by pmed at 4:50 PM on May 7, 2011
posted by pmed at 4:50 PM on May 7, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by fellion at 12:01 PM on May 6, 2011