Travel Diary: Michigan, Part 3
Brakayla enjoying the beach area in Washburn, WI
There’s a point in every trip we make that makes us think about going home. At that point, we get desperate to do anything and everything we can to prolong our journey. Hence… a beach day in Wisconsin. We found a teeny tiny little beach area in Washburn, WI that provided us with a lake view, sun, sand and seclusion.
No game on this day…Hopefully, one day, we will get to experience gameday at Lambeau Field
Becky hanging with the great Vince Lombardi
Our next stop is near and dear to my heart. In the early 1900’s, my family immigrated from Germany to Wisconsin. Because of that, we have all been Green Bay Packers fans for as long as they’ve been around. A trip to Lambeau Field was definitely on our agenda. Being the sports fans we are, Andrew and I tend to tour stadiums when we are able to. A trip to Green Bay was extremely high on my list of stadiums. Sports bring a sense of nostalgia for me. To be able to see the uniforms, trophies, the Green Bay Packers owners wall (my dad holds a share and we saw him listed), to walk out on the field… it was a surreal experience. If you are a football fan, I recommend taking a guided tour of Lambeau Field. It’s educational and very informative. You don’t have to like the Packers to enjoy the football history that’s provided there.
A history of the Green Bay Packers uniforms
We grabbed some food at the restaurant in the stadium and headed across the street to Titletown. Titletown is a fairly new area that was built to house activities and restaurants. I’m sure in the winter it’s fully open and is a blast for families. They have a grassy hill that looks awesome for tubing when it’s covered with snow. Since it was about 85 degrees when we were there, we just walked around the grounds, played some of the games, and took in the neighborhood.
From there, we traveled into Milwaukee. We drove around until we found a huge park on the lake. Since it was 4th of July Weekend, there were many people out having family cookouts and picnics. We walked through the park noticing all colors, shapes, sizes and types of people gathered together and generally having a great time. The vibe there was completely chill and fantastic. It was a refreshing sight, but we had to get back on the road. Our drive south took us through the southside of Chicago, where we experienced some of the best 4th of July Fireworks we have ever seen. Most people had blocked off their streets to have block parties. From the looks of it, everyone gets together to set off their own little firework shows. At one point while driving, we saw at least 50 (not an exaggeration) different firework displays going off all at once. I don’t normally care about fireworks, but this was pretty special.
Since we were traveling in well-populated urban areas, our camping options were very limited. We ended up in a “very glamorous” casino parking lot in Michigan City, Indiana for the evening. It’s not exactly an ideal situation, but you do what you can on a holiday weekend.
The next morning we realized we were only about 5 hours from home. We decided to take in one of the newest National Parks, Indiana Dunes. I have to admit, The Dunes are a strange area. The Dunes, for many years, have been categorized as a US National Lakeshore. Recently, the people of the area, along with some congressmen, lobbied for it to be a National Park (I won’t go over the details, but reading how this became a National Park is pretty interesting…. and eye-opening). The entire area is surrounded by industrial sites. It’s an odd site to be on a sandy, pristine beach and look over to see a giant smokestack pouring black smoke into the air. Nevertheless, The Dunes is a popular site for locals. It offers beaches by Lake Michigan, hiking, and five historic homes from the 1933 World’s Fair. A note on the homes: They are now private residences and not available for touring. We chose to walk up Mount Baldy, which is a dune that is 126 feet above Lake Michigan. If you plan on visiting, know that the parking lot is very small. Parking along any beach in the area seems to be quite a challenge. At the time of our visiting (and this post), Mount Baldy is not available to walk on. You can walk over a nearby dune down to the beach. Trust me when I say you do not want to be carrying a ton of stuff. We watched many a family try to pull wagons full of toys/food/stuff up and down a giant dune. Let’s just say I wouldn’t want to be in their position. The dunes are steep and deep.
What a “lovely” view of nature at Indiana Dunes National Park!
We also visited the Chellburg Farm and Bailly Homestead while driving around the dunes areas. These are historic areas that include homes and farms. They were closed up when we were there, but tours are available on certain days.
And with that, we were on our way home. I can fully recommend Michigan to anyone that wants to chill, have a beer and enjoy some seclusion. The Upper Peninsula is a great getaway with friendly people. We only scratched the surface of what the state has to offer and cannot wait to get back. We’d love to hear any recommendations you may have for Michigan travel since this will not be our last time visiting.
-Bink