Wisconsin is an Indian word meaning “gathering of the waters”, and much like its neighbor Minnesota, Wisconsin is absolutely overflowing with lakes. Water sports and fishing are clearly reeeeaaaalllllly big in Wisconsin. How else could you account for the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame?
Yep, that’s a gigantic fish that people can actually go inside. Not only did this place offer tremendous photo ops, it also had plenty of interesting and amusing fishing information. Tom, Jim, and Brian — you really need to visit!! But be forewarned — the hotel in the nearby town of Hayward has a serious restriction. Among the hotel rules: “sports equipment, such as hockey sticks, are not permitted in the guest rooms or in any public area of the hotel.” Don’t worry, while you can’t play sports at the hotel, you can take in some nightlife at the nearby Fluffy’s Bar. Great name. Here are more photos of the Hall of Fame:
Our friend Kari hails from Wisconsin, and we were delighted to be able to pass through her hometown of Rice Lake. This was no small task — Wisconsin is a big place — but it was worth the effort. We’re thinking of you, Kari:
Wisconsin leads the nation in milk and cheese production, as any worthy cheesehead will tell you. We visited a cheese factory for some tasty samples, though the process of making cheese can be a bit smelly.
Dairy farms are everywhere in Wisconsin, not surprisingly.
But those dumb cows just wouldn’t pose properly for my camera. So I wasn’t able to capture the real, iconic photo for Wisconsin: a dairy farm with real, live, dairy cows wandering about. You’ll just have to use your imagination.
* * * * *
We must discuss Culver’s, far and away our country’s best fast food establishment. You’ll agree with me simply by reading these five words: butter burger and frozen custard. Let me repeat that. Butter burger. As in, a tasty burger to begin with, that is made delectable by cooking it in butter. OMG. And I don’t even like burgers. On to the frozen custard. Homemade ice cream to the extreme. I haven’t even mentioned the deep-fried cheese curds! I know that sounds disgusting, but cheese curds are nothing more than small bites of cheese found all over the dairy farm states. When you deep fry them, the cheese melts inside the crunchy batter and the result is yum.
By the way, do you think that an inordinate amount of our blog space is devoted to food? I don’t.
And while we’re on the subject, another fast food chain found in 25 of our nation’s states is Taco Johns. We finally visited one, and it was tasty, but not quite as memorable as Culver’s.
* * * * *
Wisconsin produces more paper than any other state, not surprising considering the abundant forests. We stopped at the Paul Bunyan Center near Eau Claire to tour a reconstructed lumber camp. Once again, American enthusiasm and zeal got the best of our country. The lumberyards were bustling from the 1860s through the early 1900s, but no one stopped to think about how quickly the forests were being depleted. By the 1930s, all of the sawmills had closed down and the forests were cleared.
Almost as good as the tale of Paul Bunyan is the tale of Yon Yonson. Can you believe that Bill had never heard the Yon Yonson song before he met me? He led a sheltered life. Nowadays, you can even download the famous song from iTunes.
Near the lumber camp was a minor league baseball stadium with a tribute to Hank Aaron. He began his professional career in Eau Claire, Wisconsin!
We drove along I -94 and 39, and highways 53, 77, and 63 in Wisconsin. We passed through Tilden, which is half way between the North Pole and the equator. Unfortunately, it was raining as we approached the Wisconsin Dells, which is known not only for geographic beauty, but also for the abundance of water parks in the area. Rivers, lakes, water parks, rain and snow. Yep, it’s a gathering of the waters, all right.
14. Wisconsin
A Dairy Farm