Lancaster, Wisconsin
Lancaster Wisconsin holds very special memories. It is quiet and tranquil. It is my happy place, my escape. My grandparents bought the 58 acres pictured above in 2000 after farming for 32 years. My mom lived right next door until 2016. It was just the three of them on all of this land in the middle of corn and hay fields. The feeling the country brings me is ineffable, and I am grateful for it.
When driving the three-hour trip from the Chicago suburbs up to Lancaster, a lot of farms are passed. I see every patch of land as a new adventure. With creeks and scattered forest areas, it brings out the inner child in me and memories of the creek on my grandparent’s land. Home in the suburbs of Chicago was where I always wanted to get out of. Wisconsin is where I always wanted to go back to. Whenever I’m there, all responsibilities and worry vanish and everything is simple. It’s ice cream sundaes at Happy Joe’s and riding bikes to the pool in town. It’s driving the heavy hauler and running in the fields behind the house. It’s everything to me.
The Farm
My grandparents bought this farm in 1968 with my grandma being 19 years old at the time, and my grandpa 24. To this day my grandpa’s name is still on the silo. They farmed these 150 acres for 32 years. My most cherished childhood memories are of this farm. I remember collecting rocks with my sister, my grandpa playing the accordion, and my favorite kitten named Grey roaming the fields. I can still smell my grandpa’s pipe in the kitchen, and the smell of the orange carpeted stairs leading up from the basement garage to the main level of the house. I recall the upstairs bedroom with gold carpeting being huge, but found in my adulthood it was very small. I remember brushing my teeth with Zak and Wheezie toothbrushes from Dragon Tales. These little things warm my heart, but seem so random as to why. I like to think they were moments I was really happy.
In 2000, the farm was sold to Jane and Mathew, a Mennonite family. My grandpa and Mathew are both mechanics so they stayed in touch. Every year we visit the farm to run around and play. It’s interesting to see what changes and what remains over the years. My favorite thing to do is visit the milk room. The loud noise and smell of the milk bulk tank remind me of simpler times. My mom gave her border collie, Bella, to Jane and Mathew to live on the farm. She seems much happier with all of those acres to run free and developed a very happy-go-lucky personality while herding the cows. Every time we visit, she tackles my brother and I to the ground with endless kisses.
Favorite Pastimes
Every summer I look forward to tubing down the Grant River with Ya’ll Be Tubing Co. We even canoed one year when I was younger. There is nothing better than a 3-hour float in the hot summer sun, laughing with friends as you get stuck under distraught branches that have fallen into the river. Another thing I look forward to that I only started doing recently is a motorcycle ride with my grandpa. He always offered to take me growing up but for some reason I was too nervous.
Grandma & Grandpa’s
Lancaster is home to some of the most beautiful sunsets, especially after a storm. With nothing but fields surrounding my grandparen’ts house, the country landscape takes full advantage of the sky lighting up. There won’t be a single night where the sky isn’t beautiful at supper time. Cats often roam up to the house and keep returning because my grandparents start feeding them. They find shelter underneath the deck and eventually make their way inside to become house cats, sleeping on my grandpa's lap in his brown chair by the window. Their current conquest is Stringer, pictured above. My grandparent’s house is my favorite place. When we were younger, my siblings and I would ride a miniature Farmall tractor around the basement before it was finished. Now, the finished basement is where we sleep when we visit.
Chestnut Mountain
Galena, IL
Every summer we make sure to visit Chestnut Mountain in Galena Illinois. Overlooking the majestic Mississippi River, the resort features a variety of year-round outdoor activities including our favorites, the Alpine Slide and Soaring Eagle zip line. If you're afraid of heights, there are other activities including segway tours, bike rentals, river cruises, an 18-hole mini-golf course, and a 9-hole disc golf course. The property oversees 220 rolling acres, transforming into a ski resort in the winter. We’ve been enjoying these chestnut hills ever since our first visit in 2016 and look forward to it every year.
Crystal Lake Cave
Dubuque, Iowa
Many feet underground resides Iowa’s hidden treasure, Crystal Lake Cave. According to our tour guide, the cave was discovered in 1868 by James Rice and later opened to the public by Bernard Markus, who gave the cave its name. The cave was found to contain rare crystals that only exist in a few places in the world. The way in is through the gift shop, with a set of stairs meeting the puddled cave floor. The temperature in the cave is a cool 52 degrees, so be sure to bring a sweatshirt! If you don’t have one, there are some available for sale in the gift shop. My first time at the cave I picked out a pink shirt that had stalactites and stalagmites on the front. It was my favorite shirt and I wore it everywhere! Another cave I highly recommend is Spook Cave where you enter by canoe. Spook Cave is located in McGregor Iowa, about a 1 hour and 30-minute drive from Dubuque. Visiting caves every summer is a tradition, as you can see in the pictures below.
