Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
mouth of the Apple River appears. Canoeists should disembark here or try going up
the Apple River. Tons and tons of tubers will be winding their way downstream against
you; so many people “tube the Apple” that
Life
magazine put the event in its pages
in 1941, and the press has dutifully shown up ever after. You'll pass through the
St.
Croix Islands Wildlife Refuge
before entering the Apple River, and if you can make it
against the current, little
Somerset
waits upstream a handful of miles. There's not much
in Somerset, historically known for its moonshine operations, but today the town has
frog legs and pea soup; it's famed for both culinary delights. The former culinary con-
coction can be sampled at
River's Edge
(River's Edge Dr. off WIS 64, 715/247-3305,
www.riversedgeappleriver.com
,
9am-5pm daily) in town, the latter at an annual town fest-
ival.
Beyond Stillwater, Minnesota, the river widens into what is known as
Lake St.
Croix
—at times up to 7,400 feet across. The next Wisconsin community above Lilliputian
size,
Hudson,
socalledforthearea'scloseresemblancetotheHudsonRiverValleyofNew
York,startedasatradingoutpostandsteamshipsupplypoint.Thiseye-catching rivertown,
Wisconsin'sfastest-growingmunicipality,hasarelativelyfamous
octagon house
(10043rd
St., 715/386-2654, tours 11am-4pm Tues.-Sat., 2pm-4:30pm Sun., May-Oct., $7 adults),
datingfrom1855.Thiserstwhilehomeofalocaljudgeisdoneinperiodstyle,andaVictori-
an garden surrounds the outside and leads to the carriage house.
To the east,
Willow River State Park,
2,800 modest acres along the eponymous river,
offers a few waterfalls. The area was once used as an entryway to burial grounds. Three
dams form three separate flowages in the park.
Cozy B&Bs are found in every direction. Dominating the historic district architecture
is the huge and wonderful
M
Phipps Inn
(1005 3rd St., 715/386-0800 or 888/865-9388,
www.phippsinn.com
,
$179-209),notfarfromtheoctagonhouse.Builtin1884,thisbeacon-
bright white, 1884 Italianate has more fireplaces than most B&Bs have rooms.
For food, there's a fairly wide variety.
Barker's
(413 2nd St., 715/386-4123,
11am-11pmdaily,$8-16)isaspaciousplaceinahistoricbuildingwithbooths.Ithaslotsof
burgers and sandwiches, along with lots of beers. Sandwich specials are creative—such as
chicken with peanut-chipotle sauce. The author's traveling companion insists that the
San
Pedro Cafe
(426 2nd St., 715/386-4003,
www.sanpedrocafe.com
, 7am-11pm daily, $8-17)
simply must be mentioned for its luscious pan-American cuisine. It has lovely patio dining.
Or go for gut-busting Teutonic food at
Winzer Stube
(516 Second St., 715/381-5092,
dinner daily), in a gorgeous old opera house. This author thought of his grandmother with
their Saturday
sauerbraten.
