6201. See the World's Largest Potato Masher in Plover

 I told the hubby there were a couple of things I wanted to see on our way to/from Eau Claire. One of them was a giant potato masher in Plover which I've been trying to get to for a few years.

The World's Largest Potato Masher is outside of Plover, just off of Hwy 54. It stands outside of the Food + Farm Exploration Center, which is a children's museum dedicated to food and agriculture. How fitting for WI. There is plenty of parking.

We actually passed it on our to Eau Claire. If we stayed on 54 a smidgen longer, we would have found the road to get us to the Food + Farm Exploration Center which if I put it in the GPS, I would have seen how close we really were. 

We stopped on the way back. The potato masher stands 38 Feet 11 inches. There is a pathway to it. 

There is not sign telling about the potato masher or the significance of it.

I snapped a few pictures while the hubby stayed in the car.

If you plan on going to the Food + Farm Exploration Center or are in the area it's worth the detour. It's not far off of I-39 so it does make for a quick stretch break. I don't know if I would actually drive out of my way to see it though. 

4777. Go to Little Debbie Park in Collegedale

 Several people tagged me or sent me a link about the Little Debbie Park near Chattanooga even before going to Tennessee was even on our radar. I added it to the bucket list. When it was time to plan our trip, I decided to add Little Debbie Park as a stop on the way to Gatlinburg from Chattanooga.

Little Debbie Park is located in Collegedale about 25 minutes from downtown Chattanooga up I-75. It is less than 10 minute from I-75. It is open dawn to dusk. 

There is plenty of parking. We parked on the west side of the park which is only back in angle parking. I am so glad the hubby was driving. I would drove over to the east side of the park where there is a normal parking lot. 

The park is themed around the Little Debbie Snack Cakes and Treats. There are sculptures scattered around the park of their famous treats.. Christmas trees, Oatmeal Cream Pies, Nutty Buddies, and Brownies. You can climb on some of them. The hubby stayed in the car so I couldn't get fun pictures.

At the north end of the park, there is the history of Little Debbie and a statue of Little Debbie.

The park includes a huge playground. If Stacy was with me, we would have had a blast playing. 

The best part there are huge adult size swings with shade scattered around the playground so parents can sit and swing while the kiddos play. 

There are also a walking trail. 

It is a great park to check out for the Little Debbie theme but ever better for the actual playground. If you are ever in the Chattanooga area and need to burn off steam or check out something fun, go check out Little Debbie Park. 

5968. Go to the Ludington Tug Boat in Kewaunee

 When planning our annual Door County Cherry run, I gave the hubby a couple options of things to do that we've not done before. I didn't get past option 1 which was the tugboat in Kewaunee. He thought that was a good idea.

Ludington Tug Boat is located in the Kewaunee Harbor. It is open daily 7-3:30 from April 15 to October 15. There is a donation of $5/person to visit. We just parked on the street but there is a parking lot nearby as well. Tours are self-guided.

Ludington Tug Boat was built in 1943 specifically for World War II. The Germans thought tugs were too small to waste torpedoes. It was part of the D-Day operations towing ammunition barges across the English Channel.  After D-Day it spent the rest of the war in Cherbourg France assisting in Harbor Operations.

Climbing aboard Ludington Tug Boat, I turned right and went into the hull of the tug where I saw the galley, engine room, bathroom, and sleeping quarters. By no means was it big or luxurious. We went allow below deck.  

Back topside, I ventured into the wheelhouse.

I did not venture to the front of the ship. 

I won't lie, I was a little afraid exploring the tug by myself. There were ladders to get to the main part of the tug and I wasn't wearing proper footwear. I was afraid of slipping and falling. I am not a huge fan of ladders to begin with. The hubby stayed on dry ground and read about it instead. 

It was definitely worth the $5. I would have liked to have a volunteer there to show you around or answer questions but then again it properly won't be open so much if they did. If you ever find yourself in Kewaunee check out the Ludington Tug Boat which is almost across the street from the giant clock. 

5992. See the Tiffany Bridge in Shopiere

 I will admit I have a lot of random places on my bucket list. Sure I want to see the big, splashy places but sometimes the random spots will amaze you or they are a piece of forgotten history. When I started planning girls weekend, I looked at everything in Rock County on my bucket list and added anything that was close to Beloit and Janesville on the list. One of them was the Tiffany Bridge.

The Tiffany Bridge was built in 1869 and may be the oldest stone bridge in Wisconsin. It is stone arch bridge that the railroad uses. It is located near Shopiere. It spans the the Turtle Creek.

Turtle Creek Parkway County Park is the perfect spot to view the bridge. The park is grassy spanse that is great for picnics as well. 

Even though we had much on the agenda, we took a quick detour and checked out the Tiffany Bridge. It is definitely worth checking out. I would have liked more to time to get closer and get more pictures but what we saw was definitely pretty neat.

If you find yourself in the Beloit area with time to kill, pick up some sandwiches and wine and have a picnic in front of the Tiffany Bridge. Maybe pose for some crazy pictures too.

Checking out Beattie Park Mound Group Historic Site

When planning girls weekends, I tend to check out websites like Atlas Obsecura and Roadside America to find random places to visit. I will eventually just play around on Google Maps to see if anything interesting pops up. While on Atlas Obsecura, I discovered a park in Rockford that had Indian Mounds. I added it to the list figuring it would be a quick stop.

Beattie Park Mound Group Historic Site is located in Beattie Park in downtown Rockford. It is sandwiched between a couple of buildings. Street parking is the only option. Late afternoon on Saturday is probably not a good time to check it. Parking and traffic was a pain. Stacy actually stayed in the car while I checked them.

There are 3 conical mounds, one turtle Effigy Mound, and a linear mound. One of the conical mounds is located outside of the park. I just checked out the ones in the park.

The mounds are actually very well defined. I was able to spot 2 of them right away. We didn't have much time before having to head to dinner so I didn't want to explore too much. 

I find Effigy Mounds interesting. I like the random ones the best, especially ones that don't get a lot of attention. I have been searching these out the last couple of years. Besides Effigy Mounds National Monument, I have found some in Sheboygan and Baraboo. Heckrodt in Menasha also used to have a couple. I don't think they are signed very well. I know there are more in Wisconsin that I have to check out. I remember going to one down by Milwaukee on a field trip. 

These are definitely worth checking out. They are signed and give you a good history of the mounds. It is a great stretch break or spend some time exploring downtown Rockford. Either way you will get a good history lesson. 

2289. See the Rockmen Guardians in Rockford

 One day I get a random message from Stacy saying "add a stop to our list" with a link to a Facebook Post. She wanted to see the Rockmen Guardians in Rockford. We both like random roadside attractions so this was an easy add that would not take very long.

The Rockman Guardians have kept guard over Rockford since the 1980s. They are located in  Sinnissippi Park. Getting there was a bit of a challenge as the GPS wanted to take us to the golf course across the street. We finally made it. 

Artist Terese Agnew created these stone giants out of boulders and cement. Each guardian is in a super hero pose. There are 4 12-foot guardians along the Rock River that watch over the city and the bike path.

They are quite the sight to see. 

It is nothing more than a stretch break stop unless you want to walk or bike the Rock River Recreational Bike Path or chase geese. They are definitely worth the stop though. It's not every day you get to see 12 foot stone guardians watching over a city. 

5904. Go to the High Ground Veterans Memorial in Neillsville

 We had to go to Eau Claire for a funeral and since our friends were busy, the hubby was like if there is anything you want to do, we can do it. Doesn't he know that could be a very bad statement. I always have things I want to do. I gave him the choice between the Veterans Memorial and Jurustic Park. Since Jurustic Park is in the middle of nowhere and kind of out of the way, he opted for the Veterans Memorial. One day I will learn not to give him options. 

High Ground Veterans Memorial is located just west of Neillsville on Hwy 10. The grounds are open year round 24 hours a day. The gift shop and museum are open set hours. It is the largest manned Veterans Park in the US. The park is free and open to public. 

The park has over a dozen tributes, a museum, gift shop, and over 4 miles of hiking trails. The views are spectacular. They have room for large vehicle parking as well. 

The various tributes are spread out across the park all on paved or accessible paths. Some of the tributes are a single statue others are more involved. They span from WWI all the way to the Persian Gulf Conflicts. There are spots for picnics and spots for mediating and reflection. 

Down the hill from the gift shop is the Wisconsin Persian Gulf Tribute. Since this was really the  conflict I remember, it was moving to see such a well done tribute. I remember the yellow ribbons on trees and on the news growing up. 

The Korean War Tribute was quite impressive. It gave you a timeline of the war as well. 

The High Ground is also home to the only Native American Vietnam War Memorial in the country. 

There is enough a replica Liberty Bell that you can ring so you can "Let Freedom Ring". I did not get to do this.

The museum was under renovation when we were there which I why I would have rather gone to Jurustic Park. We did not go to the gift shop either. 

We only spent about 30 minutes there but it was definitely worth the stop. We pass it enough and I was like we just have to do it. So we did. I highly recommend stopping if you ever find yourself in the Neillsville area. 

3636. See the giant pistachio in Alamogordo

 Last year a former co-worker from my teaching days was stuck in Alamogordo, NM while they got their RV fixed. They visited PistachioLand, home of the World's Largest Pistachio. Of course, I had to add it to the bucket list. When the hubby said he wanted to avoid the mountains on the way to Arizona and take a southern route through Las Cruces and Tucson, I saw that we were LITERALLY driving right by PistachioLand. I added it to the list.

PistachioLand is a working pistachio farm and winery on US 54 outside of Alamogordo. It is open daily from 9-5. The parking lot is not huge but there is plenty of parking in a back field as well. 

The first thing I did was take a picture of the giant pistachio.. another giant statue added to the list. And of course a selfie with it. The hubby wanted nothing to do with the giant pistachio.

We wandered in the gift shop next where you can sample wine and taste pistachios. As much as I wanted to try some pistachio wine, we were on a time crunch so I skipped that. I did try some regular pistachios and decided I am still not a fan of pistachios. 

Due to time constraints, we did not take the farm tour. For $3 a person, you can take a 30 minute tour tram tour of the pistachio orchard and vineyard. Maybe on another visit we can take a tour. The trees were still hibernating so nothing was green yet anyways. You can book the tour ahead of time or walk ups are available as well. 

We also did not have ice cream. Initially I was going to demand we have a mid afternoon snack but then I found out the pizza place we were having dinner at had gelato. Gelato won out. Again I think the time crunch would have made us skip the ice cream anyways. They have homemade pistachio ice cream along the several other flavors.

It may be a typical tourist attraction that still survives but it is definitely worth checking out. Just make sure you leave crabby people in the car and leave plenty of time to do everything. 

5741. Go to the Reed School Historic Site near Neillsville

 I get a text from my brother last month saying they found a neat little one room schoolhouse for me to check out if I was ever in Clark County. I was like in Neillsville? We go by it all time when we go to Eau Claire but it's usually not open when we go by. Well this week it was going to be open and I told the hubby we were stopping.

The Reed School house is on the corner of US 10 and Cardinal Avenue just east of Reedsburg. It is open Saturdays and Sundays from Memorial Day Weekend to the last weekend in October 10-4. Admission is free. It is a Wisconsin Historical Society Site as well.

The Reed School was used from 1915 to 1951. One Room Schoolhouses were built about every four miles because it was thought children could walk 2 miles to school. After it closed it was many things including a storage shed until Gordon Smith bought it. Gordon Smith attended the Reed School for 6 weeks in 1939 and it had a impact on his life. Mr. Smith bought it, had it restored, and gifted it to the Wisconsin Historical Society. 

The Reed School is the original floor, ceiling and windows. The ceiling is impressive. 

The desks are period specific and from other one room school houses. 

The bookcase is original. A public school teacher had it in her classroom and donated it back to the school.

The Reed School is unique as it has a basement. In the basement is the history of the Reed School along with county ledgers explaining the expenses of the school. Fascinating stuff.. 

The volunteer guide was amazing. She was a retired teacher for Loyal and gave us the history of the school, Mr. Smith, and some of the artifacts. 

We even got to ring the bell. The was more difficult than it looked.

I would highly suggest if you passing through Clark County to stop at the Reed School. It is an amazing time capsule of days gone by. Then stop and see the Chatty Cow down the road.