Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Then there's the
Fennimore Railroad Museum
(610 Lincoln Ave., 608/822-6319,
10am-4pm daily Memorial Day weekend-Labor Day, free) down the street. Smaller steam
engines ride on a 15-inch track, and children can ride. The claim to fame here is the
“Dinky,”significantasonepartofthemostextensiveoperationsinthestate—16totalmiles
throughout the Green River Valley, and famed for its horseshoe curve, necessitated by the
grade of the valley.
Essentially a cobbling together with lots of ancient Indian trails south of the Wisconsin
River, the historic Old Military Road, the first overland link east to west in the state, con-
structed in 1835-1836 by soldier labor, used to stretch as far as Prairie du Chien. Today,
you're as likely to see bicyclists along the route as you are cud-chewing bovines on the
Fitchburg-Dodgeville Military Ridge State Trail.
The “Trollway,” as the main drag in predominantly Norwegian Mount Horeb is known, is
reminiscent of a northern European mountain village. Predating statehood, Norwegian and
Swiss (and a few Irish) farmers staked out the rolling ridges and valleys around these parts,
andthewholeareaboastsathoroughlynorthernEuropeanbrick-and-framearchitectureand
not a few log structures and octagonal barns.
Otherwise, the
Mount Horeb Area Historical Museum
(Main and 2nd, 608/437-6486,
noon-5pm Fri.-Sun., Memorial Day weekend-Labor Day, free) is housed in the old muni-
cipalbuilding.This1918homefeaturesadozenrooms—morethan4,000squarefeet—that
regularly change themes.
Bust-the-wallet-wise, there are more Scandinavian gift huts than trolls in this town.
All the information you need is at
www.trollway.com
.
Accommodations and Food
Prairie Style by an acolyte of Frank Lloyd Wright. It's a one-bedroom gem; it also sleeps
four. It's worth the splurge.
