Pumpkin Farm

A few weeks ago a small group of us went to the Homestead Pumpkin Farm, which is located near North Lake.  Leah and Nick, Heather and Scott, my sister Judi, her daughter Amy and 2 sons, Lawson and Weston, Amy Pizur and her niece Julia, Suzie and her friend Stacy and son Evan and myself. 

 

Upon arriving we went directly to the barn to pay for what we wanted to do.  We all paid to pet the animals, go on a hay ride and go into the corn maze. 

First, on to the animals.  There were quite a few goats, a calf and some donkeys that were standing picture perfectly, chickens, geese (Goose Stay Away!) and turkeys. 

The donkeys seems very sedentary, they did not    
     move much but with so many very young kids running around them, their disposition was great.   

After we all had our fill of the animals, it was time to go for a hay ride.

We all climbed in (except Amy and Julia decided to sat this one out).   The hay ride chugged along, with pictures of things posted for passengers to find along the way. 

After the hay ride,

we went into the corn maze.  For some reason we split into two groups.  There were questions at checkpoints along the way with two answers (one being the correct one), each answer had a letter and all the letters spelled out words.  I believe there were 12 checkpoints, but with the unseasonably warm weather, and the two year olds that wanted to be carried, neither group finished all the checkpoints.  But it was fun to just walk and really have no idea where you are.  We all made it out and then it was time to pick out pumpkins and have a group picture of all the kids (and Amy).

A Successful Outting!

Aztalan State Park

Aztalan State Park is located in Aztalan, off highway Q, south of Johnson Creek shopping area.  It is listed as a National Historic Landmark.  It contains Wisconsin's most important archaeological site, an ancient Middle Mississippian village that thrived between 1000 and 1300 AD.  It is along the Crawfish river and some ancient mounds and stockade walls have been restored.

It was a wonderfully warm day that Jackie, Kathy and myself decided to go check out Aztalan State Park.  When we got there we found we were the only people in the whole area.  There is a daily fee (self serve) to pay to park in the State Park.  We drove to the end of the road which was closest to the river.  We saw a rustic walking path that lead us to the water, and then alongside it. 



Jackie climbing a tree along the Crawfish River



We basically walked around the whole park, up the three mounds that are there, all the while reading the historic signs that are placed throughout the park.  I thought that the mounds were burial mounds but when archaeologists dug in these mounds in the 1920s, they didnt find burial remains but found a large post set in a pit in the center, surrounded by gravel and soil. Corn was found in the pits. The larger of the two mounds may have been the storage facility for the entire village; or storage for food just for the top village officials; or it may have been used for ceremonies and rituals.  In the northern mound, ash was found.  This mound may have been used for a death ritual.  A small building was constructed.  The floor was covered with a mat of cattails, on which ten people were placed side by side, with their heads towards the doorway, and the bones of another person were bundled together with cord. Once this construction was complete, and the bodies were inside, the building was burned.

The stockade have been restored in various areas.  The stockade is a wall of logs set into the ground vertically. The stockade was then finished by weaving flexible willow branches through the posts, and plastering the whole with a mixture of clay and grass to fill in the gaps.  It is believed the stockade surrounded the whole village.





Kathy, our big game hunter, now known as snakelady, found a grass snake and picked it up.  This was pretty much the only wildlife we saw this day along with a few chipmunks.

hssss

Hope you all feel smarter now that you know a little more about ancient Wisconsin history.  Though Aztalan State Park is not listed as a hiking trail, but we really enjoyed the area and the paths around the Park worked for us!







Glacial Lake Cranberries

Slight change, this escape involved my husband and myself.  We traveled to Nekoosa, WI, where the Glacier Lake Cranberries, Inc. is located. Glacial Lake disappeared thousands of years ago and left behind this 6100 acres of property used to grow cranberries.   It is just south of Wisconsin Rapids in the center of the state.  Great Tour!!!  If you ever wanted to know all there is to know about cranberries, this is the place to go.  First, before you go you need to sign up for a tour time.  I had called a week earlier, and the 11am tours were already booked so we signed up for the 10am tour.  At 9:45 am we arrived and went into the Visitor Center, where we were greeted by a women who's great grandfather started working in these cranberries bogs when he was 12 years old.  Her husband drives the "Berry Bus" which is what we all boarded after each one of us sampled a cranberry dipped in carmel.  It tasted just like a tart carmel apple, very good!  Her son currently works in the bogs and it was mentioned that many of the cranberry marshes are run by 5, 6, even 7 generation families, basically cranberry growing stays in the family. 

We drove in the bus between the "bogs" or "marshes" for a close view of the harvesting operation.  The "bogs" (which are filled with sand, peat, gravel and clay) are flooded.  A machine resembling a large lawn mower is driven up and down rows in each bog, pulling the cranberries off their vines and then floating onto the surface.  Cranberries float because there are air chambers inside each berry.

 

Then the cranberries are corralled, using the same floating devise that contains oil spills.  They are then racked towards a conveyer belt that separates the berries from any leaves, one truck gets the berries the other truck gets the debree.  Once harvested, they move onto a processing facility. 
We got out of the bus to watch the guys racking the berries  Anyone who has seen an Ocean Spray commercial would truely enjoy these guys, wearing their waiters in the thigh high water.

 

We then drove to a cranberry bed that hadn't been flooded yet and we got out to pick our own cranberries. We also saw some Trumpeter Swans, since this area provides a ideal stopover for migrating species.

The whole tour was very well run, lots of information and hands on fun.  We went back to the Visitor Center where we purchased some wine, jam, and chocolate covered cranberries. 

Tidbit: A daily portion of cranberries can promote good health, as they contain a anti-adhesion effect the remains in the body for up to 10 hours.  Cranberry Bogs can be seen from Hwy 39, around Wisconsin Rapids as well.  Not all cranberry farms have tours, Glacial Lake does it right.

Loved it!





Prairieville Park

A warm, sunny fall day, time to escape outside.  An escape does not always mean we have to travel far.  We can find fun in our own backyard.  This past Wednesday, Jackie, Kathy and myself went to Prairieville Park in Waukesha, to play some mini golf.  The course is well maintained, and has enough bumps and curves to make it a challenge for anyone.  We had some almosts, and a few opps, some balls that decided to leave the course, and a few that didn't quite make it over the hill on the first try.  No one broke the course record (if there is one) but we did have fun putting our purple, blue and red golf balls.  And Hurray!!!  Kathy had a hole in one on number 13.  Then after we returned our putters, we went to the batting cages.  No, we are not too old!  They had all different options, Slow Baseball, Medium Baseball, Fast baseball, Very Fast Baseball, Slow Softball, Fast Softball.  We thought long and hard and decided to try the......slower softball.  IT WAS SO MUCH FUN!!...12 balls for $1.00.   The park is open for the fall until October 24th.  Monday through Thursday 11:30 am - 9pm; Fridays 11am - 10pm;  Saturdays 10am-10pm and Sundays 10:30 am - 9pm.
A stop after at MacDonalds for two smoothies and one shake and to laugh about the missed putts and the over the hut homeruns.

Riveredge Nature Center

Last week Monday we (Jackie, Kathy and myself) visited the Riveredge Nature Center in Newburg, Wisconsin.  Near West Bend, it's a 370 acre natural sanctuary that includes 10 miles of trails around ponds and through woodlands and prairies. 

We hiked around the pond first, disturbing numerous frogs as they jumped backed into the pond from sunning themselves.  We saw many "eyes" breaking the water surface as well.  Then we proceeded to hike the paths, which were very easy to walk on.  We did pretty good following the map given to us from the Visitors Center.  We walked up and down trails, found a teepee, some observation platforms, another pond, a boggy area and a building used as a classroom.  We walked the "Prairie Trail" and we weren't sure of the difference between a meadow and a prairie..could we envision Laura Ingalls little house here?  It was an enjoyable hike, even though we didn't see much wildlife, just a few birds and a lot of orange bugs on the milkweed pods. 

Quirky Tidbit:  Found a pile of animal bones, not sure if they were staged there, like for a savanger hunt or educational find, or if they were leftovers??

Cost $4.00, I believe there's a discount if you are a member and they have multiple family and children programs.  They also have a website: http://www.riveredgenaturecenter.org/
We all enjoyed, 3 thumbs up.

Let's Go!

Over two years ago three friends, Kathy and Jackie, and myself decided there is a lot to see in Wisconsin if you can take the time to check it out.  We decided to "Make Time to Escape" and have some fun.  Many people talk about going here or going there, but then something comes up and they cancel.  We do not cancel.  We set a date, and each week or two, one of us picks the spot and away we go.  We don't really have any rules.  Most escapes are about 3 hours long, but we have done all day excursions.  Most take place in Wisconsin but we have gone into Illinois and talked about traveling even farther.  We have enjoyed every place we have gone, there is always lots to talk about, and a lot of laughter.
We have done the obvious shopping excursions: in downtown Chicago, at the Schaumberg Mall, and at Ikea.  We have gone to the Harley Museum, the Milwaukee Public Museum, and the Milwaukee Art Museum.  We have gone wine tasting in Cedarburg and taken the Miller Brewery tour.  We have hiked at the Audubon Society, Lapham Peak, Grant Park, Mitchell Park in Brookfield, and all around Devils Lake.  We have gotten lost in a corn maze and watched butterflies on the Monarch Trail.  We have visited the zoo and Mitchell Park Conservatory.  We have watched numerous movies, had a Wii Golf tournament, and played mini golf at Fun World.  And there is so much more to do!
So, I thought why not share all our small adventures and create a blog.  So here it is!
Let's meet the Escapees:
Sandy, (me) mother of 4 and 1 grandchild;  Jackie mother of 2;  Kathy mother of 4, one still in HS. 
We aren't youngsters but you are only as old as you feel, and we feel great as we enjoy our escapes!

Two weeks ago we went to Arlington Park in Illinois to bet on the horses.  I had gone to Arlington many times but not in over twenty years.  A few years ago there was a fire at Arlington Park, and it was closed for a while as they repaired and rebuilt it.  Now, it looks fabulous.  It has a really classy feel to it and extremely clean.  We ate at the food court and then made our picks.  This was the first time Jackie and Kathy had been to Arlington, but it didn't take them long to figure out what to do.  We even had a Green Sheet, additional information so we would be sure winners..like everyone there.  There were 9 races that day, and we bet on every one.  The last race was the best for me as the horses I bet on came in first, second and third.  Overall, we all won multiple times, none of us MADE money on the day, but what we netted out was worth it for the entertainment.   It was so much fun, watching both the horses and the people. 
Great value, no parking fees and when you buy tickets online its only $6.00 on a Saturday. 
We stopped at a Panera on the way home to eat dinner.    Great Escape..three thumbs up from all of us. 
Quirky Tidbit: they do not accept nickels when placing bets.  That sounds funny, but they do not give out nickels when you get paid out from a race since amounts you win are in even amounts like $2.10 or $3.40.  Placing bets and receiving your payouts is quick business and they don't have a coin compartment for nickels.

Sandy, Jackie and Kathy at Arlington Park Racetrack