This week we moved on to Sturgeon Bay, WI where we met up with fellow loopers on Betty Gail and War Eagle. We enjoyed “docktails” in the marina’s boaters lounge, which had two large seating areas, a large screen TV, kitchen, and fireplace. I felt as if I was in someone’s nicely decorated house and was in heaven! It’s been so long since we sat in a real living area, I didn’t want to leave the comfy couch. While in Sturgeon Bay, Dave and I biked to a Walgreens and Walmart (of course they were in opposite directions) and boy were there some hills in Sturgeon Bay. Jon and DeeDee (War Eagle) warned us about them — they weren’t kidding. It was great fun just to get out and cycle.
Next, we stopped in Algoma, WI which claims to be home of the state’s largest charter fishing fleet. Algoma is also home to the Von Stiehl winery, opened in 1868, is the oldest licensed winery in Wisconsin. The winery is only able to grow three types of grapes being so far north, so they truck in grapes from California to produce a variety of wines. We loved the wines we tasted and ended up buying two bottles of wine (a Bordello and a Port) and two of ciders (cherry and tequila). And, of course, Algoma had an awesome bakery indulging in “Death by Chocolate” cheesecake. Probably the highlight of Algoma was meeting “Big Dave”, an owner of two fishing charter boats. After chatting for a bit, he gave Dave and I hoodies with the name of one of his boats. We need more cold weather clothes, so these are perfect! A big shout out to the hospitality of the Wisconsinites we have met.
We planned to stay in Algoma for two days, to also enjoy in a local Friday Fish Fry and concert in the park (at the winery) and then make a stop at Kewanee. The weather forecast was a bit iffy, so we traveled to another destination a bit further down the coast, Manitowoc, arriving two days early.
Manitowoc is the home of Wisconsin’s Maritime Museum which includes a tour of a submarine. During WWII, when our Navy didn’t have the resources to build all the ships it needed, a shipbuilding company in Manitowoc was contracted to build submarines. They built 28 submarines (25 were built in time to see action in the war) with four lost during WWII. Each sub took about 9 months to build, with 7,000 workers working around the clock. Together the Manitowoc submarines sank 132 Japanese ships. The sub tour was extremely interesting, but very hard to capture in pictures. What a life for those seamen living aboard submarines. As I learned during the tour, what are the 3 smells in a sub? Food, Fuel, and Farts. Ha ha.
In Manitowoc, we also tasted our first Wisconsin cheese curds, which were lightly battered and deep fried served with a jam dipping sauce. They were yummy! Thanks to Roger and Chris on Betty Gail for sharing their appetizer. We also watched the SS Badger, the last coal-fired passenger steamship, dock in Manitowoc. The SS Badger makes their 4-hour run daily from Ludington, MI to Manitowoc, WI across Lake Michigan and then back again. There is a large Badger statue by where the ship docks, where Murphy had a photo op.
We are continuing to move south along the Wisconsin’s Lake Michigan shore this next week, hanging out in Port Washington over Labor Day weekend. Chicago is in site! At Manitowoc, we are on Day 161 of the loop, so far stopping at 99 different locations, traveling 3,289 miles.
Thanks for joining along on our adventure. Until the next update….
Brenda, with Captain Dave & the masterful Murphy, 290