5280. Go to Cold Country Winery in Kewaunee

 When meeting up with the girls, I wanted to make sure we hit at least two wineries before we had to go our separate ways. I gave them the choice of Duck Creek Winery in Denmark, Trout Springs in Greenleaf (which was really out of the way), or Cold Country Vines and Wines in Kewaunee. Surprisingly they picked Cold Country Winery. It was a winery I didn't know about until I was playing on Googlemaps.

Cold Country Vines and Wines is located about 13 miles southwest of downtown Kewaunee almost in Tisch Mills. It is almost in the middle of nowhere.  It is open daily 10-5 except Sundays which is 12-5. 

Their tastings are a little different. You can taste as many wines as you would like. It's $1 per 1 oz pour except for ice wines which s $4 for a 1 oz pour. They give you your first pour and then filled the rest of your pours on a tasting flight. We opted to sit outside and enjoy our wine. There was some seating at the wine bar or in a separate room.

I'll be honest not many of the wines caught my eye. There were a lot of red wines (11 reds plus 2 ports) which I am not a huge fan of. This is compared to 6 white wines and 2 rose wines.  There were also 4 ice wines.

I sampled: 

Briauna -- a semi-sweet white with hints of peach and pineapple. It was not overly sweet. It was a nice summer wine but did not wow me. 

Pink Snowflake -- a semi-sweet rose that said it was sweet yet tart. I was not a fan. The fruit flavors of strawberry and pineapple was not a combination that I found pleasing. 

Northern Lights -- Again I picked a wine based on the name. This time it was a sweet red. It was just okay. Nothing special and I probably should have tried the Red Sunset that had more hints of fruit to it.

Frontenac Gris -- a fruity, sweet ice wine. This was probably my favorite of the four and it was one of the better ice wines I had. It was not overly sweet and had the right hint of fruit.

My cousin also let me try Itasca, a semi-dry fruity white, and Petite Pearl, a medium dry rose. I did enjoy the Itasca which was surprising since it was a semi-dry. I tend to stick to sweeter wines. Maybe my palate is evolving.

We enjoyed each other's company and the nice weather but none of the wowed us enough to buy. I liked to be able sit outside and talk while we tasted wine but I'm not sure I'd visit again. 

I would still check it out if you are looking for a winery while in the area. It is cute and there is a vineyard you can check out. Maybe we just picked the wrong wines or our burgers from lunch at Millie's distorted our taste buds. It is definitely a cute winery off the beaten path.

5274. Go to Von Stiehl winery in Algoma

 When my cousins initially said they were coming to Door County, I realized the only day that worked to meet up would be on their way back to Missouri. I suggested we meet in Algoma at Von Stiehl and go wine tasting. When my vacation plans changed, they still wanted to meet in Algoma and go wine tasting.

Von Stiehl Winery is located just off of downtown in Algoma. They are open daily from 10-5. There is a small parking lot or you can park on the street. I choose the street afraid I would hit something trying to back out. It is not a very wide parking lot either. 

I had an advantage over the girls as Menasha Library had a wine tasting earlier this year and the general manager from Von Stiehl was the presenter which meant of course we had Von Stiehl wines to try. It let me know that I did not like their Cabernet Sauvignon. It was too dry for me.

Von Stiehl's tasting menu has 3 price points. The Favorite menu is 6 samples for $6 but contains only 8 wines to pick from. The Select menu is the most expansive with about 30 wines to choose 6 from. That one is $9. The Premier menu is $12 and includes a dozen wines to choose from. You can include mix and match from other menus but your pricing will the most expensive menu with at least one wine. I split my 6 between the Select and Favorites menu so I paid $9. 

Oktoberfest -- A semi-sweet white that was a perfect fall wine. The bottle was gorgeous too. I picked up a bottle of this for our wine tasting next month.

Cherry Moscato -- Moscatos are very hit or miss in my book. This one was definitely a hit. It was a sweet but not too sweet cherry wine. This one also came home with me.

Apple Icing -- An apple ice wine. It was definitely on the sweet side. almost sickly sweet like ice wine can get. I was not a huge fan.

Riesling -- I sampled this one at the library and wanted to try it again. It was still good. With hints of apple. 

Naughty Girl -- This one I picked based on the name. I should have known better. It smelled like feet. It wasn't too bad but it was drier than I liked.

Moscato -- Like the cherry Moscato this one was also very tasty. Von Stiehl can definitely do Moscato well. Again it was sweet but not overly sweet with the right hints of citrus and apricots. 

The girls tended to go with more drier reds which I am not a fan of so we did not do a lot of swapping of samples. They each bought a couple of bottles to bring back.

I would love to have tried the cider bar but I knew after 6 samples and no food that would not have been a wise move. The cider bar will just have to go on the bucket list for another day.

It was definitely a good stop first thing in the morning. We still had lunch and another winery to go for the day. Good thing Von Stiehl wines are available in some stores around here otherwise Algoma is just about an hour away so it wouldn't be too difficult to make another wine run if need be. It is definitely worth making the detour to on the way to (or home from) Door County.

5277. Go to Christmas Tree Ship Point in Algoma

One of the ways I find interesting places to visit is playing on Google Maps by zooming in and out along my route or in a specific city I am planning on visiting. This is how I discovered Christmas Tree Ship Point in Algoma. I find the stories of ships on Lake Michigan fascinating so I decided before meeting the girls for wine tasting, I would stop and check out Christmas Tree Point.

Christmas Tree Point is located off the boat launch in Algoma. There is a parking lot. 

I was disappointed in Christmas Tree Ship Point. I was expecting, and I don't know why, to be able to see a Christmas tree ship wreck. The wreck is actually between the bridges up river. 

Algona was home to many Christmas tree captains and crew. One ship, Lady Ellen, was built in Algoma. Her final resting place is up river between the bridges.

Christmas Tree Ship Point does have a few signs telling about the history of Christmas Tree Ship Point as well as the Wisconsin Maritime Trail. 

Even though there is not much to look at in regards to Christmas Tree Ships, the view of the lighthouse and lake is worth the stop. It is a quick stop before or after checking out the winery especially if the weather is nice. 

4988. Go to the Octagon House in Neenah

 I always wanted to check out the Octogen House in Neenah. I find Octogen Houses fascinating especially after visiting the Milton House. With Neenah's 150 Anniversary this year, the Neenah Historical Society, which is housed in the Octagon House, was hosting Family Days at the Octagon House the second Sunday of June, July, and August. Since it worked out in our schedule, the hubby and I decided to check out the Octagon House during Family Days.

The Hiram Smith Octagon House is the home to the Neenah Historical Society. It is located just off of downtown Neenah on Smith St. It is normally open Monday-Friday 10-2 with special hours and days during events and exhibits. 

The Historical Society features artifacts and stories from Neenah and surprisingly Menasha as well. With the 150 Anniversary, the history of various businesses and historical events was showcased. Only the first floor has exhibits. They have a lot of more in storage than what they can display.

Some of the more fascinating pieces included a display on Menasha Woodenwares, The Bergstorm Stoves, and Amelia Earhart's visit. 

The hubby was found the sports display of not only Neenah High School but Menasha High School and St. Mary's Catholic High School as well.

If you were a native or local, you could cast your "vote" in the election to determine if Neenah-Menasha would become one or stay separate cities. Like the real election, the Nos won.

In an adjacent building they had old household items on display for the kids to see and play with. It was fascinating to see things I remember having at home or playing with. 

I am glad I finally got to check out the Octagon House in Neenah. Hopefully they will have more events like this, and continue with the library programs. Local history is always so fascinating and worth learning about.

7229. Go to the Cal Ripken World Series

 The hubby decided two years ago that he has done his last Babe Ruth World Series in Iowa. He decided to give up travel umpire and stick close to home. We planned a vacation to Texas and even bought tickets for the Rangers game in hopes of seeing Otani pitch. Then he gets a text asking if he would do the Cal Ripken World Series in Crown Point, IN for one last hurrah. Of course, Babe Ruth would ruin my vacation plans again. No I'm not bitter or anything... it's 110 in Texas...

Cal Ripken League is the baseball for agents 6-12 where as Babe Ruth League is for 13-18 under the same organization. There is also a softball diversion. Unlike Little League that only showcases the 12 year old World Series, Cal Ripken/Babe Ruth has World Series for ages 8 up to 16-18. The hubby has only done Babe Ruth World Series (along with many regionals) mostly 14 year olds. While Little League World Series is always in Williamsport, PA, Cal Ripken/Babe Ruth World Series are in various cities across the US with the exception of the 12 Majors (50/70) being in Branson. 

The World Series is a week long tournament featuring pool play and then bracket play. Bracket play depends on how many teams and if all teams advance. Traditionally it is 10 teams and the top 3 in each pool advance. Crown Point had 24 teams and 16 teams advancing to bracket play -- 8 in the World Series bracket (winners bracket) and 8 in the Iron Man bracket. 

Like usual, I arrived for the last two days of the tournament. Usually I fly out and we road trip back. Since the hubby was so close, he just came home and picked me up. No road trip for us either this year. 

The complex was perfect for a tournament. There were two diamonds going all week except for the championship day. There was plenty of seating and a great concession stand. Except for the championship game, I sat in the outfield when the hubby was on the field or hung out with the umpires when he was not. Climbing over seats to avoid making people move is not advised and could lead to injury and interesting bruises.

The baseball was typical 10U baseball. Some really good baseball and some not so good baseball. The championship game was Alabama versus Arkansas. Alabama ended up winning. The hubby had the dish for the championship game which was fitting for his last World Series. 

Like any other World Series, it is a great tournament to showcase your community and teams. Even Babe Ruth has been known to put a kink in my travel plans, the World Series have been fun events and I really didn't mind going to them. It was fun to see teams from all around the country. You never know what star of today will make it to the majors and then you can say you saw them in when they were 10 or 14. 

I would recommend if a World Series comes to a town near you and you are a baseball fan, pay the daily admission fee, support your local community, and watch some good baseball. The hubby and I always say the semi-finals are always better than the finals. 

Fairyfolk Festival Fun

 Before our plans changed, Stacy and I looked at going to World of Faeries in Elgin, IL. Since that wasn't happening, I saw that Bookworm Gardens in Sheboygan was a having a fairy festival that same weekend. Since I had plans to meet up with Andrea, I suggested we go.

Fairyfolk Festival is Bookworm Gardens longest running festival. This is year 13. It runs 6 days at the beginning of August. Tickets are $8/advanced $10/door for adults. 

In addition to the usual fun bookish displays through the gardens, there were several fairy themed activities as well. 

There was wand making. Yes, anyone could make their very own fairy wand. They supplied all the materials. Warning: There is a reason the adults got to use the hot glue gun. I had a nice blister on my finger.

You could have made a fairy house to display. This was my favorite and realized I could totally make a fairy garden that the hubby would approve of. Project for winter?

Hidden in a small patio was a bubble dance party. Yup, I took part in a bubble dance party with my fairy wand. I'm not sure what a bubble dance party has to do with fairies but I was more than happy to dance like a fool. 

As you toured the gardens, you also could partake in a scavenger hunt. They hid 30 or so gnomes in the gardens. Your job was to find as may as you could for a small prize. I think we found about 15. There were various colors and sizes so it made it difficult.

Besides looking for gnomes, we just had fun exploring the gardens. I've been to Bookworm Gardens before but it's always fun to take fun pictures with all the bookish displays.

Fairyfolk Festival was very well done. There were other activities we did not partake in such as story time. I can see where it's been going on for 13 years. It's popular and fun. Check it out next summer.

5341. Go to the Lion’s Den Gorge Nature Preserve in Grafton

 Everyone always talked about what a nice place Lion's Den Gorge Nature Preserve was. I have always wanted to check it out. Lil' Bro and I tried to check it out a number of years ago and could find parking. We ended up at Lime Kiln Park instead. 

Since Lion's Den has been on my short list every year for the last couple of years, I decided to add to my adventure when the hubby was away. I was initially going to go on my way down to Stacy's but just couldn't get moving. Then I asked Lil' Bro if he wanted to join me on Sunday morning before going to see Andrea. He agreed.

Lion's Den Gorge Nature Preserve is in the town of Grafton on the shores of Lake Michigan. It is open daily from 6 AM to 9 PM (or dawn to dusk). There is no cost to visit. Parking seemed to be better than last time we tried to visit. We both found spots to park.

There are several trails you can take. Some of them are boardwalks. Some are a paved road. Others are wood chips. 

We started out on the Lion's Den Trail which gave us views of Lake Michigan. You can walked down to the beach using a set of steep stairs. We did not not venture down to the beach.

Because the trail is on the edge of a bluff, you have to be careful not to get to close. They have been many rescue calls for people falling over the ledge.

We really just wandered a few trails. Eventually we turned around and headed back to our cars. If it was just me, I would have explored more. But with little legs of my niece, we had to go at her pace. I never made it to the gorge or the bridge over the gorge. There's always next trip

It was definitely a perfect morning for a hike. There were people but it was not overly crowded. Sunday mornings must be the time to go.

If you are in the Milwaukee area, this is definitely a place you want to check out. Just be careful.