R2 Thoughts for You A Web Log Of An (out) Door County Vacation?
A Door County Mansion
Recently I had an “out Door” vacation. What’s an out Door vacation, you ask? Well, Andy and Cyn, my brother-in-law and sister-in-law, have a nice house on twenty acres of land in Door County, Wisconsin. For any of you that are not familiar with Door County, it is a peninsula with Lake Michigan on one side and Green Bay on the other. It is sometimes referred to as the “Cape Cod” of the midwest. Having been to both Cape Cod and Door County, I agree with the comparison, though I think Door County is a little less developed and smaller, without any large sandy beaches. Less beach focus and more of just hanging out door, uh, out in Door County. :-)
Chicago Skyline From the Navy Pier
Before I go any further into this Door County experience, I think our Monday afternoon and evening is worth a few words. We, Kathy, my wife, Bill, her brother and I, drove from St. Louis to Chicago and arrived at the Courtyard on the Magnificent Mile early in the afternoon. After checking in, we walked to the Navy Pier for exercise and people watching. Later that evening, we drove to Greek Town and had a delightful meal at Santorini’s. Not only was the meal great, but we also had an exceptional bottle of Greek Chardonnay. Who would have thought that the Greeks are now making Chardonnay? We were in Greece in 1994 and never saw any Chardonnay (it’s R2’s favorite wine:-). On Tuesday morning, before leaving Chicago, we walked along Michigan Avenue (Magnificent Mile) and saw the mouth of the Chicago River, the Tribune Building and various other “big city” buildings that together form a “building canyon.” After the walk, we were off to Door County by way of Milwaukee, Green Bay and Sturgeon Bay Wisconsin.
Chicago – A Canyon of Buildings
Walking To The Stone Wall
Upon arriving at Cyn and Andy’s house, we immediately went for a walk to “loosen up.” After the walk and a quick clean-up, we had some beer, wine and a good time. Andy and the ladies prepared dinner while Bill and I did little but rest. After all, I did drive all the way from Chicago and must have been tired and Bill did the navigating which I’m sure was stressful. :-)
The next morning was beautiful with a bright sun and temperatures in the sixties. We had a late breakfast and then went for a walk through the property of my in-laws. It was during the walk that Andy announced that he wanted to name his place, “Blackberry Fields Forever – Nothing To Get Hung About.” The inspiration for the name comes from the large number of blackberry plants that grows wild on the property and of course, the Beatles tune, “Strawberry Fields Forever.” On one end of the property there is a long, big and old stone fence. It is made of stones that have been picked up from the surrounding fields. The stones contain fossils that date back to the Siluriam Period, 400 million years ago. Andy has heard that there are trilobite (current walking animals’ long lost relative) fossils. We looked, but couldn’t find any. I found it interesting – looking for evidence of ancestors that lived 400 million years ago. Wow!
The Stone Wall – With Fossil Stones
The Ferry To Washington Island Through “Death’s Door”
We had a gender split where the ladies went shopping and the men went exploring. Our explorations took us to Northport, which is about the northern most point of the peninsula part of Door County. From there we observed the ferry that joins the peninsula of Door County to Washington Island. The six mile span of water between the two is known as “Death’s Door,” so named by the Indians because of the large number of canoes that sank there. Apparently the current and strong winds make it difficult to navigate. The door part of Death’s Door is the origin of the name, Door County. I guess they left the word “death” off for obvious reasons. :-) After Northport, we went to Gills Rock (Charlie’s Smokehouse) for some freshly smoked Atlantic Salmon. Yummy!
The next stop in our “guys day out” was Newport State Park, which gave us a view of Lake Michigan. We walked a hiking trail that provided us with views of moss, trees and the beach along Lake Michigan. We then took a bike ride through the northern tip of Door County that provided us with an up close view of where the local people live. That night, after a white fish chowder made by our host, Cyn, we did some star gazing with Andy’s Celestron Starhopper telescope. We “zeroed” in on the Northern Star and saw the milky way in a “milky way.” In other words, we saw why it’s called the milky way. :-)
Andy’s Celestron Starhopper Telescope
Sunset In Sister Bay
The next morning, Kathy and I were able to walk back to the Stone Wall without a guide. Yea! In the afternoon we went for a ride on Andy’s pontoon boat in Ellison Bay, which is a part of Green Bay which is a part of Lake Michigan. :-) That night Bill took us all out for a nice meal at Kristofer’s in Sister Bay. Our table looked out over Sister Bay; we had a wonderful view of the sunset while we enjoyed a delicious meal, giving us good taste through our eyes and mouth. AND, we had a Door County cherry-apple pie for dessert. Yummy, yummy!
Our last day, Friday, was a day of walking and resting. It was also our coldest day with the nighttime temperature around 50 degrees and daytime of 62 degrees. AND, no humidity. In fact, I wore a t-shirt and long sleeve shirt everyday. Wow! Last, but not least, I bought two pounds of freshly smoked salmon to bring home. It is good to eat for two weeks. Yummy!
View of the Cliffs of Ellison Bay from the boat
Beautifully Clear Green Bay – Lake Michigan
R2 Thoughts for You 
That really looks like a great place incredible pictures .You will be remembering this trip for many moons. I love the out doors . Its looks so untouched still.
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