Our Last Day in Wisconsin

Day 12 and 13

This would be our last full day in Wisconsin for this trip. Neither of us had ever been to LaCrosse WI but there seemed to be a lot of sights and activities. But first, we stopped at Sparta WI for coffee.

This is Ben Bikin, a 32 foot fiberglass ‘sculpture’. He greets you just as you enter Sparta. He now claims the world record for tallest bike statue in the country. It sits in a nice little park that intersects the Elroy-Sparta Trail.

*We’d just visited Sparta yesterday but we decided to get some coffee at Franklin Coffee. We liked the coffee so it was a good choice to help us get drive the 30 minutes to LaCrosse*

A couple of to-go cups and we were back on the interstate. Once we got into LaCrosse, we decided breakfast would be a good idea before our full day. We drove into downtown to Jules Coffee House.

*We both had breakfast sandwiches that were tasty. And the coffee was very good*

Fueled up, we drove to a highly recommended site: The LaCrosse Bluffs.

Grandad Bluff seemed like a good choice for hiking and a great view.

*Looking north west. You can see the Mississippi River near the top of the photo.*

Grandad Bluff was initially used for small scale limestone quarries but when it was about to be sold to large operation in 1912, the community fought it and the Hixon Family bought the land and eventually deeded it to the city for use as a park.

*Ellen Hixon donated the land and helped raise money to build roads for the park*

With all the park trails, we had to explore.

*Not very far from the parking area, we ran into these two residents. They must have been used to hikers. They stopped and studied us for a minute then walked away uninterested.*

*A beautiful view from the lower part of the trail*

*The trails were easy to follow but very hilly. Then we came upon this structure.*

We’ve found campsites and lean-to structures on other hikes. But this one was a substantial and a more permanent build.

A quick Google Lens search didn’t really tell me much. There was no sign of camping or fire. No evidence of witches or gnomes. Anyone got a guess?

All of the trails were connected in some way and most were just a few miles long. That allowed us to choose which trails to enjoy and still end up close to the parking.

The trails that allowed bikes were clearly marked. I was feeling especially *adventurous*
so I put my helmet on, got the bike off the van and chose a short two mile single-track trail.
I started at #59 on the map, and headed west downhill. Mary would meet me at lot #63. It was a fast ten minute sprint but it was fun.

*Clearly, our tag gave the sign some class*

Trane Park was next on our agenda. The pickleball courts there were fairly new and well maintained. There were specific hours for club play but we were there during open time.

The City of La Crosse acquired the Trane All Abilities Park land in 1907. Originally called the 21st Ward Playfield, it was renamed Trane Park by the La Crosse City Council in 1952. Rueben and Helen Trane gave a generous gift to refurbish the park, which is located near Trane Company’s Plant #1. From: cityoflacrosse.org

Just a 5 minute drive from the courts was JavaVino.

*It was a very warm day so hot coffee didn’t sound good but an iced coffee did. Mary had the Riesling.*

We’re seeing more and more of this type of business model as we travel. You’re not drinking wine before 8:00 AM and avoiding caffeine after 3:00 PM. These places fill that market niche and can get you in the door twice a day.

No sooner were we heading out of town when we realized the road we were on led directly to Linda’s Bakery in West Salem. Since there’s no law in Wisconsin about visiting a bakery twice in two days, we had to stop in again. I had a cinnamon roll and Mary had whatever this was.

We returned home to clean-up and start packing to head back to our Illinois home. But we still had to figure out supper. We’d repeated our visit to the coffee shop and bakery, why not repeat our dinner restaurant. We drove 20 minutes to Almost Home Bar and Grill in Clifton.

*One-half of a chicken is almost too much for one person. We split the meal with an extra order of french fries. It takes a little time to get your order but it’s well worth it!*

It was Saturday morning and after our final pack, we were headed home to Illinois. The fastest way home from Elroy WI is east to I-90 then south through the Dells. We needed some coffee and breakfast so we chose Bella Goose Coffee in Wisconsin Dells.

*The coffee was good and the sandwiches on ciabatta buns were very tasty*

Back on the road we were an hour from home when we thought a snack would set us up for the rest of the trip. We located Fourth Street Cafe and Bakery in Peru, IL.