Wisconsin Getaway - Swimming Through Life

Dan and I finally got to get out town for a few days! We didn’t really make any vacation plans this year, so it was a bit of a last-minute trip, but it was so nice to get away and explore a new place.

When I told Dan we should take a long weekend and go somewhere, he did some quick research – thank you ChatGPT lol – and found a bunch of cool places in Wisconsin to explore. We only had a three day weekend, but we packed in as much as we could!

I was in Minneapolis for a work trip last week, and got back to Watertown around 9pm on Thursday night. I was home literally long enough to change my clothes and drop off my work stuff and we hit the road. We drove to the farm, which was roughly halfway to our destination, got a few hours of sleep, and then hit the road again. It was a long night, but we had more time to explore on Friday.

We ended up staying in a VRBO in Westby, and it was BEAUTIFUL. Our little cabin was very remote, and we had no reception outside the Wi-Fi in the house itself. It was in the middle of Amish country, so lots of farms, horse drawn carriages, and cattle were around. It almost felt like we had gone back in time, it was pretty cool to see.

This was the outside of the cabin – sorry, I only got a pic through the car window. I can already see Dan shaking his head at my camera skills lol.

The place was super cozy, and definitely felt homier than a hotel would have. This is the kitchen, and the bedroom is off to the right, and the bathroom is behind the closed door.

And the living room right off the kitchen. I know Dan loves me, because even on vacation he lets me watch The Office while I eat breakfast!

AND our super cute neighbors. They hung out right outside the front door. 🙂

The two parks we explored over the weekend were Wildcat Mountain State Park and the Kickapoo Valley Reserve. Both were great, but I especially liked the Kickapoo Valley Reserve. ChatGPT originally told us to plan on 2-3 hours there, but we spent ALL DAY Saturday there and didn’t even see the whole park. My feet were killing me by the end of the day, but it was so worth it. It was beautiful and very peaceful – the crowds were pretty minimal throughout the day.

The trails were so diverse there too. Lots of wooded trails, paved trails, or even grassy fields to explore.

My plant loving husband was in paradise!

Dan forces me to get over my fear of heights and makes me climb all the big rocks when we go hiking haha

Like I said, I’m not crazy about heights, but this was one of my favorite spots we visited. This view was gorgeous, and so worth the trek up there.

Wildcat Mountain State Park was also a bunch of fun. We hiked there a bit Friday when we arrived – even though it rained the entire time. We powered through though! We weren’t about to waste any precious time. And then we hit a few small trails on Sunday morning before we took off for home.

Luckily, we were pretty protected from the rain with all trees – but we still got plenty wet!

There were a bunch of river views here, and Dan and I both agreed if we make our way back, we’d love to rent some kayaks and check out more from that viewpoint.

One of the trails led to this ice cave and there was a teeny tiny little waterfall there.

My only complaint about the trip was that it went way too fast and we were back to reality pretty quickly. I’m really glad we were able to get away for a few days, and hopefully we can get back someday! I highly recommend if you love being outside and exploring new places. I’m already looking forward to the next adventure.

Until next time! 🙂

Megan Nelson

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