Tag Archives: hiking

Mad About Madison,Wisconsin!

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Once you learn a thing or two about Madison, you can relax and enjoy your time there:

  • Anywhere else in the world, a badger is a mammal that’s a member of the weasel family, but in Madison, the Wisconsin Badgers are the beloved University of Wisconsin–Madison football team. 
  • Yes, that’s a golden badger on the head of the statue of the woman that graces the top of the elegant Wisconsin Capitol Building. 
  • Should you accept a taste of a cheese curd, a favorite chewy snack, be prepared for the squeak it imparts when bitten into; a good sign that it’s fresh. 
  • Not to be confused with the cheese-shaped foam hat of the same name, a Cheesehead is also the name given to fans of the Green Bay Packers football team. 
  • Yes, that’s a giant hot dog car driving down the street! Oscar Meyer is headquartered in Madison and sometimes there are sightings of its famous Weinermobile.
  • How many cities can boast that they sit between two lakes? Lakes Monona and Mendota are like two beautiful sisters, fishing for compliments, as they try to outsparkle each other.

STAY             
As our Lyft stops in front of our destination, I immediately forget that the surrounding neighborhood is a bit old and made up of student housing- after all, over 50,000 students do call Madison their home! 

The Dylin is a modern, stylish “aparthotel” with 55 apartments – check out their other city locations at Locale. There is a general manager on site, but no front desk. Even though we’ve received the codes to the front door and to our apartment, we still feel welcomed as we enter the chic lobby and outdoor area.

A little bit apartment and a little bit boutique hotel, it is the best of both. The Tuft and Needle mattress and the Bokser bedding immediately elevate our apartment to swanky status. The washer – with available soap pods – and dryer are a nice touch. We swoon over the Fellow tea kettle and Haden toaster and coffeepot, which look like pieces of art.

PLAY
The Dylin is within walking distance to almost everything and we take advantage of the many free things to do: 

With its majestic facade and impressive rotunda, the Wisconsin State Capitol is worth a stop for a complimentary tour and the view from its observation deck. 

The University of Wisconsin–Madison is also a popular tourist attraction. Set on 930 acres of gardens and a nature preserve, the Historic Terrace at Memorial Union sits on Lake Mendota. You can relax in colorful, student-designed chairs while enjoying the view. Before you visit the Chazen Museum of Art – free and on the grounds, grab lunch from one of the many restaurants and ice cream from Babcock Hall Dairy – made on campus.

Stroll the State Street Pedestrian Mall and stop into the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art – free every day. 

Unfortunately, rain curtailed our free visits to the Henry Villas Zoo, the Dane County Farmers Market, the largest producer-only farmers market in the country, made famous on the 2024 season of Top Chef filmed in Wisconsin, and a chamber orchestra concert at Capitol Square.

HIGH LEVEL HAPPY HOUR
Yes, we are at it again, christening every city with our presence at one of their rooftop bars. Our choice, in Madison, is the AC Hotel. A warm breeze, a chilled glass of Chardonnay, and a feeling that you could reach out and touch the Capitol building; it doesn’t get any better than that. 

DINE LIKE A MADISONIAN
Enjoy a Lake View
You say “Monona” and I say “Mendota,” but either lake offers an enhanced dining experience:

It’s been a while since we’ve had French cuisine, so our mouths are watering as we head to Sardine. Our front table allows us a ringside view of Lake Monona as we settle in for a culinary feast of warm duck confit & frisée, steak frites, and seared salmon, accompanied by lentils, spinach and portobello mushrooms. 

Since 1948, the lovely Edgewater Hotel has managed to retain its elegance, having been named “Best of Madison” by Madison Magazine. We can also see why The Boat House Bar & Grill was also voted “Best restaurant with a lake view,” as we lunch on fish and chips on its dock, surrounded by blue skies and the sparkling Lake Mendota. The classy Statehouse restaurant awaits us for dinner. It’s restful evening lake view is the perfect setting for us to enjoy roast chicken with truffle mashed potatoes and salmon with a bourbon honey glaze. 

The Nostalgic Supper Club Experience
Born in the 1950s, supper clubs embraced Wisconsin and never let go. Known for their hand-muddled Brandy Old Fashioneds and a menu serving up traditional American fare – which includes their famous Friday fish fry – you can see why locals can’t get enough of their friendly social atmosphere. 

We don’t mind the 15-minute Lyft ride to Toby’s Supper Club; their 55-year-old reputation makes the trip worthwhile. Supper clubs are not known for their architectural artistry, so the old building and metal door come as no surprise. 

We take a deep breath, open the door, and are transported back in time. The bar is jam packed, and everyone is talking and laughing, including the bartenders, who don’t seem phased at all by the crowd. Oh, if those worn wooden floors could talk! The old dining room is a sea of red plastic tablecloths covering tables full of food and happy diners. We are welcomed and told how to proceed: 

  • Order a drink
  • Peruse the menu
  • Call over a server and order
  • When your dinner is ready, you will be seated. 

It doesn’t take long for us to strike up a conversation with our new standing-room-only friends, but our hunger reminds us that it’s time to order. We stop a server, who is cheery and surprisingly able to hear us over the roar of the crowd.  When she finally leads us to our table, we are struck to find the table already full, with a complimentary relish tray, rolls, butter and even cinnamon rolls – are they in case we’re still there for breakfast?! 

We order the wild caught walleye and can’t resist the pan-fried chicken, since according to the menu “If the Colonel’s chicken was this good, he would have been a General!” Included is soup or salad and a guarantee that we will not be hungry tomorrow. 

It’s been a pleasure getting to know you, Madison. We leave, reminded, once again, that every city has something to celebrate. 

Author’s Note:
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Tell Your Worries to Take a Hike (Literally)

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Photo Take a Hike

Mud; that’s all I remember about my first hiking experience. It was not a pleasant one (read “Coming Clean on a Dirty Little Secret: My First Hike Fiasco”). That’s the beauty of being a late bloomer; being just a tad behind the curve allows me the opportunity to watch and learn from others.

Years later, when Mr. Wiz* invited me to join him on the Camino, I had a decision to make. Do I stay behind, afraid to try something out of my comfort zone? Or, do I join him on this adventure and walk 500 miles through Spain? After some research, I decided that if pilgrims had been walking the Way of Saint James to the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela (where tradition has it that his remains are buried) since medieval times, this was something not to miss.

I still remember the day the REI salesperson tied me into my first pair of hiking boots. As I stood at the top of that mountain, I felt positively giddy; no matter that it was the four-foot plastic mountain in the middle of the shoe department.

Walking for 33 days changes you; with nothing to be concerned about except your immediate surroundings, life slows down. It’s amazing what can go on while your feet are moving. Spending hours watching them maneuver rocky paths cleans out all those cobwebs in your brain. Sharing stories and feelings with someone you’ve just met exhilarates you. Walking in silence is meditation in motion.

The sounds of rustling leaves, rushing water or a bird singing, the feeling that comes from taking a big deep breath on a cool day and that wonderful ache you feel from pushing your body just a little bit more; this is Mother Nature’s way of putting her arms around you.

Too much wild life can take its toll. Let’s try to balance the party animal in us all with some tranquility. Being down to earth rewards us with the mental, spiritual and physical aspects of life that we might have missed out on, had we not stopped to smell the roses.

So, when all else fails, get out there and walk! Worries and stress are no match for flora and fauna. Uncomplicate those complications, hop over those hurdles, break down those barriers; it’s amazing how solutions can miraculously appear if you just let your feet lead the way and take one step at a time.

 

*Who’s who? See “Cast of Characters” on the “About” page.

 

Coming Clean on a Dirty Little Secret: My First Hike Fiasco

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Photo Mud 2Mud; that’s what I remember most about my first hike. Now that I’ve walked The Camino, I can finally admit that my first experience was not a pleasant one.

Many years ago, Mr. Wiz* and I had befriended a lovely older couple that we had met through business. Pat and Bruce were a bit eccentric and lots of fun. Bruce was tall, lanky and reserved. Pat was short, spunky and chatty and they both carried themselves with the air of their wealthy upbringing. Bruce had hiked the White Mountains in New Hampshire all through his childhood and once they had married, Pat had eagerly joined him.

If you were going to make this trip with someone, Bruce was your man. He was an experienced hiker and knew every inch of every trail. So, when they suggested a trip, we knew we were in good hands. They chose one of their favorite trails and booked the huts we would be staying in along the route. We drove up in their van, along with a few hiking friends they had adopted over the years.

When we arrived, Bruce passed out these crazy looking hats that he had designed; netting that hung down to your shoulders was hand sewn around the brim of a canvas hat. I had already decided that it didn’t match my carefully coordinated outfit, until Pat mentioned that it was the end of black fly season and might come in handy. I remember eating my lunch, one Triscuit at a time, bringing it up along the side of my body, then carefully up under the netting to ward off any hungry flying visitors.

The sun was shining, the views were beautiful, the path was easy and the first day was a pleasure. We made it to the huts early and signed in. I stopped short at the door to the sleeping area and was transfixed. I knew we would be sleeping in bunk beds, but no one mentioned that they would each hold four people, with the top bunk almost reaching the ceiling! I couldn’t think fast enough; Top? Bottom? Middle? I was persuaded to take the bottom, but as I watched a heavy-set man akwardly shimmy his way to the very top, I already knew that, with each creak of the bed, my sleep would be at a minimum. On the up side, all the fresh air made us appreciate the dinner prepared by the hut staff and the stimulating conversation that followed. It was exciting to meet such interesting people from all over the U.S. and the world and to be a part of this exclusive club.

When the morning wake-up bell rang, I was relieved to still be alive. The bed had stayed intact and I hadn’t been crushed in my sleep, but I was having trouble opening my eyes. When I said “…Good morning…” to Mr. Wiz, from what I could see, he had a slight look of panic on his face. With the whole camp in attendance, Bruce surveyed the damage: my eyes were almost swollen shut, my ears were larger than normal and sticking out a bit and my nose looked exactly like Karl Mauldin’s, the character actor whose nose could double for a big potato (Bruce ’s way of softening the diagnosis with a little black fly humor). Since there was no ice available at the huts, I had to make do with the droplets of ice cold water from the sink to soothe my eyes, get dressed and get going.

This next day was totally different from the day before. We were now headed up past the tree line. The sun and the flowers were gone. The weather was colder. The ground was covered with jagged rocks and boulders and in order to see where I was going, I had to walk, bent over at the waist, frantically moving my head from side to side. I had told Mr. Wiz to go on ahead and I would walk with the slower group. He had been so attentive to me all day and I wanted to give him some time on his own to enjoy his adventure.

He had already settled in at the hut, hiking boots off and feet up when he heard that a young woman had fallen into mud, but was not injured. “…That’s got to be my Lindita!..” he said, as he jumped up and scrambled to put his boots on again (in Spanish, adding “ita” to a word denotes affection). He ran all the way and was ready to scoop me up and carry me back to the hut, but stepped back when he saw the look of determination on my face. All he could do was quietly walk next to me as I limped back, still bent in half, but now covered in mud. I don’t remember much about the dinner that night and slept through all the snoring and the creaking.

The final day would be the pinnacle of the trip. We would be doing a bit of climbing to get to Mount Washington, the highest point east of the Mississippi. I didn’t remember the word “climbing” in the original trip discussion and still bent over, panicked when Bruce yelled “…Photo Op!..” as I stood sandwiched between two other hikers on a narrow crevice, trying to smile for the photo and not look down.

It was amazing to be on “top of the world” and as I stood next to Mr. Wiz, sharing this exhilarating experience, I realized that this was the end of the road for me. I had had enough and knew that he would enjoy the rest of the day much more without me. Thinking quickly, he managed to get me a ride down on a van filled with senior citizens touring the area.

Little did I realize that my giving up would result in some glory, as each member of the tour insisted on having their photo taken with the “mountain girl.” With a bandanna tied around my forehead, hiking sticks in hand and just enough mud still on my clothes to look the part, I regaled them with my adventures on the ride down.

As I walked to the planned meeting place, I spotted Pat and Bruce. Already down the mountain for hours, they had showered and taken a day hike. I remember feeling jealous, thinking that I would never be able to be like them.

Our dear friends have since died, but thoughts of them were with us every day as we hiked through Spain. When I look back now, I realize that Pat and Bruce were just about the same age back then, as Mr. Wiz and I were when we walked the Camino.

With every birthday, I seem to get a bit bolder, a bit more daring. I’m still growing into the person that I hoped I would be and I can’t wait to see what’s around the next corner (or boulder).

*Who’s who? See “Cast of Characters” on the “About” page.