Door County, Wisconsin

the wandering chick

...Door County

and Washington Island

Wisconsin's Door County is a series of coastal towns on a narrow peninsula that jets northward from Green Bay. On its right is Lake Michigan, and on its left, Green Bay, a body of water that separates the peninsula from mainland Wisconsin. Long and narrow, the strip is roughly 88 miles long (starting at the bustling city of Green Bay) and 29 miles across at its widest point. The peninsula narrows to less than six miles farther up north.

Charming seaside towns like Egg Harbor and Sister Bay make up the west coast, while on the less touristy east coast, one can find Baileys Harbor, Newport State Park and Cana Island Lighthouse.

A ferry leaves the most northern tip of the peninsula at Newport, its destination: Washington Island, an entertaining and day's adventure all of its own.

It's hard to beat the Egg Harbor sunsets over Green Bay. This one and the next few were taken at the Egg Harbor marina.

Sister Bay's small-boat marina

Gills Rock on the peninsula's west coast.

Sister Bay is known for a lot of things, but one of the main highlights that gets all the tourists in a jovial mood is seeing the goats on the roof of the Al Johnson's Swedish Restaurant. A tradition for decades, the goats graze on the roof's sod all day in the warm months and are taken down each night to a cozy barn. They spend the cold winter months in a location on the outskirts of town.

Sister Bay is a wonderful hang-out spot, with lakeside picnic areas, shops and restaurants.

A visit to Washington Island, off the peninsula's most northern point, is a must. It's a short ferry ride from Northport, and the island is filled with points of interest.

Farms such as this one dot Door County's interior.

Near the center of the island is the Mountain Wayside Park and Observation Deck. We climbed way too many stairs to get to the tower, then we had to climb the tower itself! But the view up there was beautiful.

Various farm buildings from around the island were relocated to make up the open-air Washington Island Farm Museum. The oldest buildings date back to the 1870s. During the summers, demonstrations of farm crafts are given, and small farm animals on hand for children to interact with. The farm museum is a nonprofit educational association.

Baileys Harbor is certainly the largest town on the peninsula's east coast, if not the only one!. Quiet and quaint, it's worth a look-see.

This small museum is a log cabin called Jacobsen Museum, located on the south shore of Little Lake. Jens Jacobsen built the structure in the 1930s and filled it with memorabilia and artifacts found around the island. What is especially interesting about the structure of the cabin is that it is built in the traditional Danish style. That is, the logs run vertically rather than horizontally.

Overlooking Lake Michigan on Door County's east coast is the Cana Island lighthouse, built in 1869.

From this area, a ferry transports passengers to an even more remote island, Rock Island.

A lavender farm

Schoolhouse Beach

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