"It's Gotta Be In Ya To Do It."

Three hours of research, two courthouses, a WEIRD lunch in Ladysmith, and over 4 hours of driving along USH 8 across northern Wisconsin. Where am I now? Oh yeah, Tomahawk. It's pissing rain. Because of that, along with the humidity and those bastard aggressive mosquitoes, my trek up the rickety fire tower at Wisconsin's Highest Peak, Timm's Hill, didn't happen. Next time, northern Wisco, it's not like I won't be back!

Perhaps even better than Timm's Hill was a visit to the Wisconsin Concrete Park. If you've read Weird Wisconsin, you know what I'm talking about -- absolutely FANTASTIC folk art, off Hwy 13 in Phillips. It rivals the Prairie Moon Sculpture Garden by Herman Rusch in Cochrane, WI. Both are from the same era, were created by a single individual during his retirement, and were restored by the Kohler Foundation. I was able to visit Prairie Moon last field season, and loved the variety of creatures in the garden. Fred Smith's creation in Phillips featured mostly people - miners, cowboys, soldiers, Native Americans, as well as deer (with real antlers!) and horses. Much of the glass in the concrete was from beer bottles from the neighboring tavern that Fred Smith ran in his retirement. Old beer bottles are soooo cool. The gift shop in Fred Smith's former home was also open. It contained a lot of handmade item like knitwear, braided rugs, quilts, antique silverware wind chimes, and jewelry. They also had a small selection of antiques that were SO under priced! Man, if only I had ROOM, I would've walked away with a turn of the century wood and leather trunk for $40. As a concession, I got a pretty sweet amber glass barrel beer mug that advertised Wisconsin with a big burly lumberjack. That is something to smile about.

Fred Smith lived by his motto, "It's gotta be in ya to do it." I can't help but wonder if, because he tended bar in northern Wisconsin, men sipping their Schlitz elbow-up at the bar thought, "That's what she said!"

Tuesdays (Mostly) Suck in St. Croix Falls

Today begins a 4-day loop around Wisconsin for research in Polk County, Price County, Washington County, and Rock County. I don't have a visual, but yeah, that's a lot of driving. I-94 and I are like old friends that both love and annoy the hell out of each other. Southwest Wisconsin will have to wait, because the Northwest really isn't ready to let me go!

I've never been to St. Croix Falls , but always wanted to explore it because I love both Mississippi and St. Croix River towns. St. Croix Falls was pretty much what I expected - picturesque, quaint, historic, and artsy. But when are picturesque, quaint, historic, and artsy river towns going to learn that people WANT to explore them after 5pm on weekdays? Seriously. Is EVERYTHING closed on Tuesdays? That answer to that - almost.

This place looked cool, but guess what - not open.


At least the view to the river was open.


Need a sign? Look up!


St. Croix's historic downtown provided no relief from the blazing hot early evening humidity. None of the ice cream or coffee shops were open. No art galleries, no yarn shops, no antiques. Not even the "Monkey Pit"... come on now. If there's something called the Monkey Pit in town, shouldn't it always be open?


Our one savior was the Winery & Grille, which served amazing food (delicious homemade pasta sauces and vinaigrettes) and local wine from a family establishment, the Indian Creek Orchard. I'm not a fan of sweet fruity wine, but the heat and St. Croix's ubiquitous banners touting their "Buy Local" campaign prompted me to try a glass of the Indian Summer Blush. It was a thirst quencher. Definitely tasty, but sweet. I like a wine with more cajones, so I followed up with the Tempra Tantrum Tempranillo. Paired with the mocha espresso cheesecake = nom nom nom!

Dining while perusing wine labels = likeable.


My nicely chilled Blush.

It's All About Nature... and the Road.

My time in the far northwoods of western Wisconsin is finally wrapping up (for now), with an afternoon spent at Shell Lake's beautiful sandy beach and an evening of birthday pizza with the crew. This is my second consecutive birthday in Wisconsin Indianhead Country. It's been a good run! I've hiked miles on the roads up here, digging those little holes that pay the bills. The gorgeous scenery, animals, and quirky roadside attractions will never fail to amaze and amuse me, but absence makes the heart grow fonder -- so bring on the next adventure!!

Getting Crafty in the Up Nort'.

It wouldn't have been a proper stay in Shell Lake without painting pottery at The Potter's Shed. I'm glad we did, it was nice to get out and do something CREATIVE and artsy, which is something hotel life seldom allows. Now, I have a lovely water pitcher to box up at home for a time when I no longer live in hotels. Sigh...

The Potter's Shed looks like a fun place for weekend vacationers too. The back garden is pretty amazing, it'd be so fun to play on that stage. Or sit there with a beer and enjoy the show.

I've Been Working on the Railroad... and Then It Closed Down, So Now There's Just a Museum of Memories

Rain days allow for more exploration of the towns we're sent to for survey projects. The most common rain day activity for archaeology and history enthusiasts (second to sleeping in) -- museums! Unlike the Museum of Woodcarving, the Railroad Memories Museum is much more of a museum and less of a shrine. It's run by retired railroad employees, and our tour guide, Bob, was a hoot. He sure knew his stuff and enjoyed filling us in on many of the commonly overlooked details of the museum, as well as telling us stories from his post-WWII stint with the railroad. The museum was filled to the brim in 12 rooms worth of stuff, ranging from tools and machinery to stoves to tickets and memorabilia, to old telegraph equipment and a video room with Thomas the Train video cassettes to watch. Most of my photos are of the rail yard since taking photos inside wasn't allowed. I snuck one though, but I only feel a little bit bad.

 

 

 

Downtown Spooner is full of other little gems, including a Northwind Book & Fiber, Spooner Outlet (an outdoor surplus/outlet store full of any and all Spooner-embroidered gear you can think of), and a fabulously tasty and cheap bakery. I bought a 6-pack of rosettes for $2.20 and threw in a molasses cookie and macaroon for a grand total of $2.87.

Now go away rain, I want to ride my bike.

I Like the (Spooner) Night Life, Baby!

Foxxy's Bar and Grill

A trip to the Northwoods is not complete without dinner at a supper club. It's Wisconsin tradition! Trying to explain what a supper club is to non-Wisconsinites, I've come up with the following criteria: Friday night fish fry, broasted chicken, and prime rib specials; a salad bar (usually); a lounge just off the restaurant; a rural county road location; a pre-meal packaged bread stick and cracker basket with cheese spread; retro interior; and a tradition of serving food for at least 30 years. Foxxy's had all of the criteria, minus a salad bar on Thursday nights, but they made up for it with a $15.95 steak and shrimp dinner. The view over the lake was outstanding. The waitress said a black bear cub had been eating out of the bird feeders that week, and we waited patiently for it to appear, but no luck. Next time, bear cub, next time...


Big Dick's Buckhorn Inn

Northwoods bars sure love their taxidermy, and Big Dick's is no exception! Check out the freaky two-headed calf! Besides taxidermy, they have all sorts of odds in ends in little shadow boxes along the wall. A lizard knife holder, antiques, military paraphernalia, you name it. Of course, lots of t-shirts, etc., are for sale (Hot Chicks Like Big Dick's! and Good to the Last Swallow!). As if that's not enough entertainment, they have a punching bag bar game, where you feed it dollars so you can prove your manliness by punching the bag and racking up points. One man must have put over $10 in. He was close to the record, but no cigar!


The Stone Pony

Formally the home of the Corral Bar, the Stone Pony is supposedly haunted. We saw the skulls and newspaper article outside and had to have a drink. It wasn't really what we expected on the inside, but it still had a dark energy! The place is now a metal bar, owned by a local tattoo artist. The bartenders were super friendly and entertaining. We honed in on a masking tape penis tucked behind the bar, and the bartender relayed the hilarious story behind it's creation. After the bar was purchased by the new owners, the masking tape penis appeared hanging by fishing line from the sign outside of the bar. Locals got offended and called in the Spooner police. The owner was called in, and the police seemed pissed that he didn't know anything about it. A crowd gathered around the ruckus. Someone went up to cut down the penis. It fell to the pavement and a surprise filling of Barbasol spurted out of the tip, onto a cop's shoes. This was hilarious to everyone except said cop. The owner later found out that it was a friend who pulled the prank on the sly. Why? To prove that they were bigger than Big Dick!