Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
U.S. 63 south and scout around for pulloffs. This is among the first areas to thaw in spring
andthusisoneofWisconsin'sbestplacestoviewmigrantwaterbirds.Eagle-eyedtravelers
can also spot the pullout area for a bow-and-arrow-shaped outline in the bluffs on the way
to the next town.
That town? Bay City. Take Highway EE east—lovely birding along Isabelle Creek. Sit-
ting at the head of Lake Pepin, Bay City was a key transit point for shipping fish to Chica-
go. Later, it had a dubious honor as the location of the county's first murder. Today it's got
an 1850s Irish immigrant elm
log house and history center
(open one weekend per month
June-Aug.;formoreinformationcallthecountyhistoricalassociationat715/273-6611)and
decent camping.
West of Bay City in the main channel of the Mississippi River lies Trenton Island, reg-
ularly swallowed by Mississippi River mud floods. In the early 1990s, state and county of-
ficials began to “prod” the residents into relocation buyouts—that is, without disaster-relief
money. Still, some of the former 100 residents will not leave—a cogent reminder of the
river'sirresistiblenatureandtheunvanquishableattitudeofresidentsdescendedfrompion-
eers hardy enough to hack a home out of a wilderness.
Maiden Rock
On the way out of Bay City, keep those eyes to the left—bluffs, coulees, green gumdrops
everywhere. The Miss gets so wide it is, actually, a lake—Lake Pepin. Between Bay City
and Maiden Rock, taking Highway A east and then south to a bridge over the Rush River
before heading back to WIS 35 via 385th Street is a lovely scenic route—and one of the
Midwest's top birding stretches, mile for mile. The appellation of the next village, Maiden
Rock, gets a visual aid. A Native American “maiden” preferred a plunge off the crown of
the hill to an arranged marriage. Maiden Rock is another artistic enclave on Lake Pepin.
North of town is a wayside with unsurpassed lake vistas and the Rush River, a stream
splashing with trout.
Partwinery,partpumpkinfarm,partalfrescoItalian eatery,
Vino in the Valley
(W3826
450th Ave., 715/639-6677,
www.vinointhevalley.com
, Thurs., Fri. and Sat. evenings and
Sun.afternoonsonly)iseasytodismissassomethingofagimmick.Butthere'sreallynoth-
ing like eating a grand plate of pasta and salad of local ingredients in a lovely rural setting.
It's tough to find: from Maiden Rock it's Highway S, west on WIS 10, then follow signs.
South of Maiden Rock, the road grips the river's edge; it's not quite thrilling, but you'll
want to drive carefully. A mile south, for a brief side trip, take Highway AA east to 20th
St., another of Wisconsin's Rustic Roads leading on a gravel path four miles to Highway
