Washington Island Wisconsin

Our intention when we headed out to Washington Island,

located at the farthest point north on the Door County Peninsula

was to take the vehicle ferry ($53 for the jeep and two passengers) over to the island

and then take an additional passenger ferry ($11 each) over to Rock Island State Park,

and hike one mile to the Pottawatomie Lighthouse. . .(more pics)

before I continue with that story,

I must show you how we got parked on the ferry. . .

it was so full that they backed us into this last available corner.

It would have been an hour wait for the next ferry,

so we were happy to be aboard. . .

not to seem blasé’, but we use the ferry system in Texas (which is free)

quite often, as a matter of fact. . .our very first date, 40 years ago,

was to go with friends to ride the Bolivar Ferry in Galveston,

so we were fine with the entire situation. . .

(the deck hands asked if we had ever driven onto a ferry before)

as an aside. . .this is the trolley tour you can take, if you are not inclined to bring your vehicle over. . .

back to the story. . .in our usual fashion (being horrible tourists)

we got a later start than intended. . .and discovering that the last ferry BACK

to the mainland was at 4:30. . . we needed to make a decision. . .

(the later ferry runs will start in July)

if we went to the State Park, and hiked to the lighthouse,

we would have NO time to explore Washington Island. . .hmmmm. . .

so we chose to forego the lighthouse, and simply explore the island. . .

here’s what we discovered. . .

first stop. . .The Mountain Tower

a lovely little hike up the stairway to heaven,

and then another few steps to the top. . .

for a fairly great view of Rock Island (you can just see the tower of the current lighthouse)

and the Wisconsin Mainland across Green Bay. . .lots of marine haze though. . .

a very nice Minister/Schoolteacher couple offered to take this pic. . .

they were from Green Bay, and taking a quick summer break. . .

we just meet the nicest folks out and about everywhere we go. . .

as we are driving along, we see this group of Sand Hill Cranes. . .

I’m telling Dave. . .stop, I need to take a pic. . .I’m not sure what they are, but I know they are special. . .LOL!

I later contacted Jeannie (Sparky) from Where’s Eldo, as I was sure I remembered seeing them on her blog. . .

she verified that they were indeed Sand Hill Cranes. . .I guess they like cooler summer weather too.

on to the next item on our brochure. . .Schoolhouse Beach. . .

a lovely place to enjoy our tuna salad and crackers. . .

an entire beach of beautiful polished limestone rocks. . .

I told Dave after taking this pic of dry rocks and wet rocks. . .

“I am intrigued by the weirdest things”. . .I think they are just beautiful,

back when my grandson and I used to do paintings on rocks,

I could certainly have used some of these beauties. . .

another beautiful view of Washington Harbor with Schoolhouse Beach on the far right end. . .

the lilacs in the foreground smelled wonderful. . .

it was growing wild all over the island. . .

we drove around searching out every vantage point to see Rock Island. . .

just sure we could at least get a glimpse of the Pottawatomie Lighthouse. . .

but this was the best we were able to do. . .just a glimpse of the tower. . . and the cliffs. . .

my favorite thing on the island. . .the Stavkirke. . .

a replica of a Norwegian House of Worship. . .

and although not historical in the sense of time,

still a very interesting architectural structure. . .

and that was about it for Washington Island. . .

in retrospect, we should have planned better,

and included Rock Island in our itinerary for the day. . .

but overall. . .it was fun day. . .spent together. . .exploring!

and we got to ride the ferry back to the mainland facing forward. . .yaaa!

a quick stop at Bailey’s Harbor on the way home to get a pic of the

mural depicting the history of the village. . .

and by walking out to the end of the dock behind the building,

a lovely view of the Bailey’s Harbor Lighthouse. . .

see you next time at Fish Creek. . .

‘til then,

Janice and Dave

another great blog about the Bailey’s Harbor Mural

Nomadic Newfies

Washington Island Wisconsin VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Bailey's Harbor Wisconsin VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Info about Rock Island State Park and the Pottawatomie Lighthouse

http://wisconsinhistoricalmarkers.blogspot.com/2013/06/pottawatomie-light-station.html

LiveJournal Tags: Full Time RV Living,Motorhome Travel,Washington Island,Wisconsin,Rock Island,Pottawatomie Lighthouse,Rock Island State Park,Bailey's Harbor Mural,Bailey's Harbor Lighthouse