Jeanne and I decided to take a road trip last weekend. We didn't have any place special to go to; we just wanted to leave town and spend some quality time together. We decided (based on a recommendation of one of Jeanne's friends) to head for northern Wisconsin and act like tourists.
We left the Twin Cities about 10 am and headed north toward Hayward. On the, way we stopped at anything that looked interesting, including cheese shops, wild life areas and typical tourist places we normally would avoid. We tried to eat at local “ma and pa” restaurants but discovered that they are harder and harder to find.
We did get a chance to see a large group of Sandhill cranes in a harvested corn field and spent time talking to a chainsaw sculptor. He created the moose on this page.
We spent the night in Hayward in a hotel room equipped with a hot tub. We read about a restaurant in a book in the hotel room that looked interesting so off we went. A half hour later we found the place thirty miles from the hotel. By this time it was after eight and we were starving - but the prime rib was worth the trip. The trip back to the hotel was a little harrowing since we saw numerous deer alongside the road and anticipated one of them jumping out just as we passed by. Fall is rutting time and lots of deer were on the move.
The next morning we were off again, heading north toward Cable and Bayfield, again stopping at fun tourist places. We did find some unusual pancake and wild rice soup mixes that we are bringing to Florida for the family reunion. We had lunch in Bayfield overlooking the Apostle Islands and Lake Superior. The fall colors were fantastic - golds and muted rusts. We stopped at an apple orchard between Bayfield and Superior - a lady waited on us, shivering in an old stone barn - the apples we bought were fresh, cold and crisp. Back on state hwy 35, heading south, we stopped and picked up a couple pounds of long-grained wild rice, harvested recently by local Indians. By 9 pm Sunday evening we were home.
We left the Twin Cities about 10 am and headed north toward Hayward. On the, way we stopped at anything that looked interesting, including cheese shops, wild life areas and typical tourist places we normally would avoid. We tried to eat at local “ma and pa” restaurants but discovered that they are harder and harder to find.
We did get a chance to see a large group of Sandhill cranes in a harvested corn field and spent time talking to a chainsaw sculptor. He created the moose on this page.
We spent the night in Hayward in a hotel room equipped with a hot tub. We read about a restaurant in a book in the hotel room that looked interesting so off we went. A half hour later we found the place thirty miles from the hotel. By this time it was after eight and we were starving - but the prime rib was worth the trip. The trip back to the hotel was a little harrowing since we saw numerous deer alongside the road and anticipated one of them jumping out just as we passed by. Fall is rutting time and lots of deer were on the move.
The next morning we were off again, heading north toward Cable and Bayfield, again stopping at fun tourist places. We did find some unusual pancake and wild rice soup mixes that we are bringing to Florida for the family reunion. We had lunch in Bayfield overlooking the Apostle Islands and Lake Superior. The fall colors were fantastic - golds and muted rusts. We stopped at an apple orchard between Bayfield and Superior - a lady waited on us, shivering in an old stone barn - the apples we bought were fresh, cold and crisp. Back on state hwy 35, heading south, we stopped and picked up a couple pounds of long-grained wild rice, harvested recently by local Indians. By 9 pm Sunday evening we were home.
The trip was short and relatively inexpensive but it did give us time to reconnect and talk. We didn't even have the car radio turned on while driving on Saturday, all day, and Jeanne stayed away from reading newspapers, books & magazines! We put on CDs during the last two hours of our trip and sang old love songs as the colors of a fall sunset changed from golds to crimson in the West. After almost 40 years of marriage, we both understand that to keep a marriage healthy takes time and effort, so this weekend was our investment in ourselves and our life together. It was well worth it.
sounds like a great trip! we always turn off the radio and say GASP! you mean you want us to....TALK to each other???? you said you saw sandhill cranes that reminds me, we saw STORKS and stork nests in ukraine! like on top of light poles and water towers. it was crazy! they are HUGE!
ReplyDeleteThat is so kewl.
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