Wisconsin - Northwoods Fall Colors!

Chequamegon and Nicolet National Forest

Coronavirus trips are few and far between, but I took advantage of a beautiful fall weekend to go “up north” to my sister’s cabin in the Chequamegon and Nicolet National Forests. It is located a bit east of Eagle River, Wisconsin, and is surrounded by dense forest.

I took the minivan-camper, which is more or less a tent on wheels, and parked in her driveway. The drive up allowed me to see the fall colors on display throughout the Northwoods, but by the time I got to the cabin at 6:30 pm ish, it was getting dark. My brother in law was out in the boat fishing. He didn’t come in until 9ish - ?? I just don’t “get” fishing. There is no way I’d be able to sit in a cold boat for hours without a bite.

The next day, my sister and I went off and were hiking in the woods, driving down the forest roads and making our own paths. She likes to see the maidenhair ferns, and that was our excuse for the hikes – to try to figure out why they grow in some places and not others. – Just so you know, we mostly found them under a stand of hardwood trees, not evergreens.

On one of our short hikes, we hiked (purposefully) into a bog. It was a neat spot! There were two different types of carnivorous plants in there. The one I have a photo of is the Pitcher Plant.

Also over the weekend, we went on two bike rides, each about 10 miles long. The biking is good up there in the National Forest – very few cars, and the road basically becomes a large bike path!

At night, the starts were AMAZING. The Milky Way was plainly visible, and its breathtaking how many starts can be seen! It was cool – down to about 45 during the night, but my campervan and sleeping bag kept me cozy. All in all, it was a great, but quick getaway.