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.

Oh look.. A Four Faced Clock

 As we were driving to the Turtle Bridge, we pass this four faced clock literally in someone's yard. Stacy decided we need to go back and check it out.

The Clock is located at the corner of County Rd J and County Rd S in the town of Shopiere. If you put Shopiere Tap in your GPS, it is across the street. 

The clock is actually a veteran's memorial. It honors veterans of the Spanish American War, World War I, and the Civil War along with Lester F. Butler who was a solder in the World War I.

The home on the property is (or was) the home of Governor Harvey. Governor Harvey lived there from 1851 to 1859. He died when he fell off boarding a steamboat after the Battle of Shiloh during the Civil War. It was very interesting. 

I'm not sure the current residents appreciate people randomly stopping and taking pictures of the clock and their home but they didn't come out and chase me away.

It is definitely an interesting impromptu stop on girls' weekend but definitely worth the detour back to check it out. 

Ooh Look... Kites!

 Andrea and I had another croffle date. On the way back from Eb Flo, I noticed several brightly colored kites flying high in the sky. I said we need to check it out. Andrea is used to my random Ooh look moments and directed me to where the kite flyers were.

There was a strip of land near the lake just off the evil roundabout. Here there were several kites set up. I say set up there were multiple kites on one string that one person fly or was staked to the ground.

One string had 1 big kite and like 6 smaller kites attached to the small string. With such a blue sky and bright it was definitely eye catching.

There were about 5 or 6 kites in the air at a time -- all on long strings. It was just nice and relaxing seeing bright colored kites flying on a gorgeous fall day.

We were not the only people that stopped to watch the kites. I'm sure the kites are they often but for me it was my first time seeing multiple kites flying on a bright blue sky. 

If you ever get the chance to stop and watch brightly colored kites against a bright blue sky, do it. It is the perfect self care activity that does not cost anything and will make you fill a kid again. 

Checking out the Northwoods Wildlife Museum

 Since the tulips were not that exciting, Stacy and I wanted to do something else before we both headed home. It was not very nice out so that ruled out most outdoor activities especially since I was not dressed for the weather. We decided to kill time at Cabela's in Richfield. Who doesn't love Cabela's??

As we were wandering through Cabela's we discovered the Northwoods Wildlife Museum. This was a museum dedicated to the wildlife in the Northwoods, not necessary from Wisconsin. It was free to check out so we decided to wander through it.

The first thing that greets you is this realistic looking black bear. Do not do this in the wild. Bear generally not happy to hug you and pose for pictures. 

There were a lot of different kinds of deer and other members of the deer family. I am not a wildlife expert so they all look alike. I can't tell you if that is a moose or an elk. 

This old guy at the camp even talked.

It is small "museum". It probably takes 5-10 minutes to walk through but the stuffed animals are a sight to be seen. It's worth checking out just for the bear.

If stuffed animals are not your thing, then you can check out the fish instead. There are several fish tanks with freshwater fish them from around the Great Lakes. Again they are fish but I couldn't tell you much more than that. That's why there are signs.

The fish aren't really part of the museum but still definitely worth checking out when in Cabela's. Each Cabela's has some sort of museum or animal exhibit. Maybe I will make it a bucket list goal to check out all the Cabela's museums... or maybe not. That's a lot of stuffed animals to view. 

I do suggest checking out a Cabela's if you are near one and need an indoor activity to waste time or just need a stretch break. 

Random Roadside Attraction -- The Hula Hoop Tree

 On our way to SoLu Winery, Stacy and I passed this tree. It had hoops hanging from the branches. I told Stacy I needed to go back and get a picture of that tree. It was too random not to. 

After we enjoyed the winery, Stacy drove back down County Road F towards Hwy 28. I spotted the tree and Stacy turned around so I could get out and get a picture of the tree. Since I'm directionally challenged, the tree is on the right hand side of Hwy F as you head towards the winery from Hwy 28.

There is no parking or anything. We just pulled off to the side of the road. I hopped out of the car and snapped a few pictures. 

I personally liked the random hula hoop crossing sign. I didn't think of trying to hula hoop. The road was busy and I didn't want Stacy waiting too long on the side of the road. Besides who would take a picture of me.

This Hula Hoop Tree doesn't even make the list of Roadside Attractions in Wisconsin on Roadside America otherwise it would probably have been on the bucket list.

I love finding random roadside attractions. This has to be a new favorite. Who knows what I will find on my next adventure.

An Snail Shopping Adventure

I'm always up for an adventure. Some of the adventures may seem like every day ordinary things but what fun is ordinary. Always try to have some fun in your life and make some adventures. So when Heather asked if I wanted to go snail shopping with her, I decided it sounded like fun.

What I know about snails can probably fit in a thimble. They are slow moving gastropods that some cultures find delicious. I have never really seen a real snail, looked for snails, or eaten snails. I did make snail book art once though. Yet I was going snail shopping.

Why were we going snail shopping in the first place? Heather wanted a snail for her fish tank at school. Since her bearded dragon died over summer, she opted to get fish as her new class pet. Now she decided the tank needed an algae eating snail to help keep the tank clean and the fish alive.

Did you know you can buy snails at Petco? Neither did I but that's where we went on our snail shopping adventure. Prior to googling, Heather found a rabbit snail that sounded really cool and that is what we were looking for.

After wandering around the fish tanks for a bit, we finally found the snail tank. There weren't many snails in it and there weren't very active. It turns out the rabbit snail is too big for her little tank. It can get up to 4 inches. 

We tracked down someone to help us get a snail out of the tank. He was new but quite helpful. Together with another employee, we were able to determine which snail was alive and back him (her?) up. Heather ended up getting an Inca Gold snail. 

I named him Sir Slime a Lot. Heather wanted to call him Speedy. The class actually named him Turbo. He is doing well in school and moves around quite a bit from what Heather told me.

I learned there are many different types of snails for your fish tank.. some bigger than others. I don't plan on getting any fish or snails in the future but if you need me to tag along when you get one, I'll be more than happy to. It could be an adventure.

A Small Random Piece of History -- The Hiker Monument

 We had some time to kill before the Oshkosh Public Museum opened and we could go see the Titanic Exhibit. Since it was warm out, we opted to kill time sitting in the shade. 

I noticed a random statue and wandered over to check it out. It turns out the random statue was actually a war memorial. I see war memorials all the time. I've even visited a few random ones myself. However, this one struck me as very random and a bit out of the ordinary. It was for the Spanish-American War. 

I am used to seeing Memorials for the World Wars, Vietnam, Korea and even the Civil War. Occasionally if I'm in the right part of the country, I'll see one for the Revolutionary War. I don't ever recall seeing one for the Spanish-American War.

For those that a quick history lesson, the Spanish-American War was fought between the US and Spain (duh) in 1898. It lasted about 8 months and was fought in the Philippines and Cuba. It was a conflict that ended Spanish colonial rule in the Americas and resulted in U.S. acquisition of territories in the western Pacific and Latin America, according to Wikipedia. 

The monument is called the Hiker and is located in Hiker Park. I honestly didn't even know it was in a park. I thought it was part of the Paine Art Center Property. There are several Hiker Monuments scattered across the country honoring those that served in the Spanish American War. 

While I am grateful for the Hiker, I am still shocked that there is a monument in Oshkosh marking those that fought. You never know where you are going to find a piece of history. Who knows how times I passed it and assumed the man was a person of significance to Oshkosh History. 

After finding the Hiker, I think I am going to stop and check out more random statues and monuments because you never know what you will find and learn. I'm just glad I was able to learn about this small piece of history. 

4945. See the World’s Largest Hex Nut at Packer Fastener in Green Bay

On Pinterest, I saw a list of things to do in Green Bay and one of them was to see world's largest Hex Nut. Who comes up with these things? Why do we need a large Hex Nut on display? Since it is there, I might as well go see it. Build it and they will come. 

The good news is you will literally almost run right into the Hex Nut if you take Lombardi Avenue east from Lambeau Field. We were headed back from Prismatica and I was like I have to see that thought as we were in the wrong lane trying to turn right. The nice brother that he is, my brother circled the block and went back so I could see the World's Largest Hex Nut.

Because it's a hex nut, it has metal ridges which are not very comfortable to sit on. So I stood instead.

It is not something I would go out of my way to see but since we literally drove right past it, I figured it was worth the stop for I could get my picture in a giant nut. 

The list of giant objects continues to grow: round barn, corkscrew, fish, penny, hex nut. Maybe I will add wooden nickel and frying pan later this year. Stay tuned to find out if I did.

827. Carve my initials in a tree

 I always though it would be cool to carve my initials in a tree so it went on the bucket list. Little did I know it was going to hurt the tree. For this reason alone I never did it.. not even to the giant half dead tree in my parent's backyard.

While walking the trails of Cave Point, an opportunity presented itself to carve my initials in a tree. The dead had fallen over and was already dead. No killing of trees for me.

However, I was expecting to carve my initials in a tree today so I didn't bring anything with to carve my initials in a tree.. pen knife, pocket knife, nail, etc. 

Luckily this tree trunk was quite soft and I was able to carve my initials into the trunk using my finger nail. I had to rush since Rick and Shannon started back without me. The "A" was easy. The "L" was a little more different. You can see the "A" really well in the picture.

The bigger question is will the tree still be there the next time I go to Cave Point? Will I be able to find my initials amongst the hundreds of other initials? Time will only tell. Maybe next trip I will come prepared to leave a more permanent mark.

Off Roading in a Ford Escape

We are frugal when we travel. I will be the first one to admit it. We tend to avoid spending money when we don't have to and will skip certain tourist attractions because we refused to pay the outlandish admission price. So when I found an alternative route to the see the Hoover Dam without having to pay parking on the Nevada side or be subject to a vehicle inspection I was stoked.

However, I may wanted to look into it a bit more. I knew we needed to park at the Kingman-Wash Parking Lot on the Arizona Side. From Googlemaps, I saw that there was an exit that took us to the parking lot without crossing the dam. Heck they even suggested a route. What they didn't tell it was the road was closed.

We got off the highway and took the exit I assumed we needed. Very shortly the pavement ended and we were on a dirt road. I was pretty sure this was not the right way but the hubby was like "We will be fine. It's nothing like the Apache Trail." Oookaayy... He also figured we had some time to find out where the road took us.

Yes, it wasn't like the Apache Trail which is actually kind of maintained even if it was 22 miles of dirt roads. This was a not maintained and full of pot holes. The good news according to google maps it was only a couple of miles long and then we would have to turn around (WHAT?!?!).

This road did not take us to a parking lot. After a windy, bumpy ride that included going down a semi-steep pot hole ridden hill, we ended up in a parking lot for an inlet of Lake Mead and a camping area.

It was actually very pretty. However, we didn't stick around long (especially since we didn't have pay any kind of entrance fee) and headed back out and back to civilization.

The ride back wasn't too bad unless you count going back up the hill.  The hill probably had about 30-45 degree slope and was dirt. After several attempts and only making it about a quarter of the way up, the hubby re-evaluated the situation. Deciding the rock on the right side was blocking our path, I climbed out and moved the rock. After getting a good enough "running" start, the hubby gunned it and we made it up the hill. It was definitely dicey on those initial attempts. We didn't get stuck, didn't flip the vehicle, and didn't need a tow. I call that success. I probably should have taken pictures of the hill but I was too busy worrying that we weren't going to make it.

Lesson learned.. double check that all roads are open. Check out the dirt roads and where they lead prior to leaving home. It was an adventure and made a good story when we got to our friends' house later.

1235. Go to the Town of Nothing

When looking at the map of our route from Phoenix to the Hoover Dam, Google said we'd go right through the town of Nothing. The hubby said we have to check it out and I knew it was on the bucket list.

Nothing is a ghost town on US 93 about 24 miles south of Wikieup or 2 hours northwest of Phoenix. If you blink, you will miss it.

It was founded by Richard "Buddy" Kenworthy in 1977 for his family. The town motto was "The staunch citizens of Nothing are full of Hope, Faith, and Believe in the work ethic. Thru-the-years-these dedicated people had faith in Nothing, hoped for Nothing, worked at Nothing, for Nothing." (Wikipedia). It had a population of 4.

Now it is a sign and an abandoned mini mart with lots of graffiti. There is a grave turnout if you want to pull off and snap a few pictures. Just watch out for snakes.

It is totally worth it if you are heading up to the Hoover Dam to take the scenic route to see this roadside attraction. I just wouldn't go in the middle of summer since you are literally in the middle of nowhere, in the desert.

A Creepy Random Pyramid

When Googling "Random Things in Madison," I stumbled upon a mini pyramid hidden in the city. I told Stacy we needed to find the random pyramid.

Since we had a bit of time before we had to go see Beauty and the Beast, we decided to go find the random pyramid.

All I have to say is I'm glad I made note of the actual directions to get to the pyramid. Because once we reached the address for the pyramid, we would have never found it.

The directions were as follows, per Roadside America

Behind the Madison School and Community Recreation building, which is on the north side of Regent St. at its intersection with Glenway St. Park in the lot, then walk east along Regent St., past the building, then turn left (north) and follow the overgrown driveway to the rear parking lot. Walk to the very back, to the fence, and turn left. Follow the trail into the trees. You'll quickly see a small path on the left that leads to the pyramid.

Yup, never would have found it without the directions.

We found the pyramid. It was a bit creepy.. almost something used to worship Pagen Gods or something. I am glad it was relatively light out yet when we hiked to the pyramid because I don't think I would want to visit it in the dark.

Up and Close with a Big Boy

The hubby loves trains and train history. When I saw that the Big Boy Steam Engine was going to be in Adams as part of the Union Pacific's The Great Race Across the Midwest, I knew the hubby would want to see it. Adams was the closest stop and it is about 2 hours away.

The initial plan was for me to get out of work early, drive to Adams, see the train, and drive back to Appleton. However our plans changed and we stopped in Adams on our way to Eau Claire. It was slightly out of the way but it was worth it.

We rolled into town and found parking at by McDonald's. There was a lot of people... way more than I expected. It was a bit crazy because there was a flea market going on as well. 

The Big Boy Steam Engine was sitting on the track idling. We could get as close as 25 feet. They had it roped off so we couldn't get any closer. You kind of hard to force your way to the front or wait your turn. 

It was awe-inspiring to see the enormity of this train engine. It looked like it was backwards to me because the "nose" of the engine was so long. The engineer actually sat the rear of the engine. 

The Big Boy Steam Engine is the only remaining working big boy steam engine in the country. It does require a lot of maintenance. They were train personnel working on the axles while we were there.

I am glad the Union Pacific decided to have the Big Boy Tour the Midwest this summer. I am also glad there was a stop close enough for the hubby and I could go see it and one that actually worked in our schedule.