By Ruth Glover
Last year, I requested Door County as a destination for travel. When I asked for information from Door County, I received brochures and a 182-page booklet of enticing insight.
When I returned from Door County, people asked, “Did you enjoy your trip to Wisconsin? As the residents say, “You betcha!” I’m a Texan by relocation, but I lived in Oshkosh, where I learned about Door County, but never visited it. It became an item on my “Bucket List.”
We flew into Milwaukee and picked up the rental car for the two hour drive trip to Door County. The drive along Lake Michigan took us through small towns, along winding roads and fields of corn and wheat. Made me homesick for Oshkosh.
On the east coast of Door County on that Friday, we stopped for coffee on a patio overlooking Lake Michigan (which looks like an ocean). A soft, chilly wind blew off the waters, a marvelous escape from the 100-degree heat in Texas in August. The waitress said, “You guys need to come back tonight for the fish boil.” Her Midwest twang hovered over the table.
We crossed the Door County peninsula in the middle to discover the Bay on the other side. The startling splendor of the shimmering blue water with sailboats tied near the beaches in the many, small towns along the path made us wonder why we had never vacationed here.
We checked into Eagle Harbor Inn, which offered us a comfortable bedroom full of antiques and the best continental breakfasts ever. I can still taste the warmed croissant with cherry jelly. I chose this Ephraim hotel as it’s walkable to Peninsula State Park and the beach, where we watched sunsets. Each morning I sauntered through the nearby woods with the sweet smell of pines at the top on a giant hill that overlooks the bay.
I fell in love with Wilson’s Ice Cream Parlor, established 1906, in Ephraim. It’s of tintypes and juke boxes. At lunch a giant hamburger filled me too full for ice cream. We returned that evening, a short walk from our hotel, for a dinner consisting of ice cream. Hey! We were on vacation. Wilson’s is an icon worth visiting.
Sunsets from Peninsula Park and on the beach are required of all visitors. We took photos, but the vivid colors never look as brilliant as the fushia, tangerine, peach, and turquoise with streaks of dark blue in the sky.
We rode the ferry to Washington Island, which takes twenty minutes in the summer, depending on the weather. Although we visited in August, the boat was uncrowded. I overheard someone say it takes at least twice that time in the winter. The year-round population hovers around 700 with access by water, helicopter, or small plane.
The retail stores, art galleries, and restaurants in the little towns on the peninsula offer something for everyone. The abundant number of tours is mind-boggling: Segway, canoes, lighthouses, ship wrecks, the ferry to Washington Island, and more.
After a quick lunch on the island, an experienced guide drove twenty of us around the island, stopping many times, regaling information. I enjoyed each stop, full of tales of the history, snow, and loneliness.
My favorite stop was the Lavender Farm with its reflections of France. Lavender candy, tea towels, oils, fresh croissants and other clever specialties: the smells made the tour well worth it. The boat trip to the island kept us cool and comfortable.
We said goodbye to Door County to visit friends in Manitowoc and to travel to the Bergstrom-Mahler Glass Museum in Neenah before returning to Milwaukee for the flight to Dallas.
Door County is a little-known gem unless you’ve lived in the Midwest or had a summer home in the area. Next time someone says, “Where should we go?” think about Door county, any time of the year. Fun in the snow, cherries in the spring, boating in the summer, and leaf peeping in the fall.