Door County

Monday morning was a clear, beautiful day.  We planned to do some driving and see some of the beauty that we had heard Door County, Wisconsin was full of.  Door County is a large peninsula that is surrounded by Lake Michigan on one side and Green Bay on the other.  It has quite a few lighthouses and we planned to see a few of them, as well as drive along the coast and just enjoy the scenery.

The area really is beautiful!  It is full of scenes like this, wooded roads; often with views of the big lake through the trees. We saw quite a few deer and even had one run in front of us.  We also saw a bald eagle.  In areas that were further from the lake we saw fields with orchards, grapevines and bales of hay, and of course lots of beautiful old barns!  We drove through charming old towns and I can't tell you how many old white churches with old fashioned steeples we saw.  I wish I could have gotten some photos of them.

This is the first lighthouse we visited; Eagle Bluff Lighthouse.  It was built in 1868.  As the name suggests, it sits high on a bluff and has a wonderful view of the lake.

This day was Sept 11 and we saw many flags at half mast to remind us of another beautiful Sept day that ended in such great sorrow.  These little planters surrounded the lighthouse.

After leaving the lighthouse, we stopped in a little town and walked around a little.  We saw this car and I had to take a picture of the license plate for our friend Jenny, who might like a plate like this if she didn't already have one that is Poe inspired!

We made a stop at this small harbor before continuing on our way.

We stopped for a picnic lunch at this pretty spot overlooking Lake Michigan.

When we climbed down the stairs we could see the limestone bluff that is seen frequently in this area.

Then we were off to another lighthouse on the other side of the peninsula.  This one is unique in the fact that it is on an island.  You get to it via a causeway, which at some times you can walk across.  Not now though!  I took this picture from the back of a tractor pulled wagon, as it drove us to the island.  You can see that the causeway is covered with quite a bit of water this year.

This is the view of the Lighthouse tower after a short walk.

This is the Cana Island Lighthouse, built in 1869.

This one has beautiful grounds too, and is not on a bluff, so you can go down to the lake.

Such a pretty view!

The lake was sparkling in the sun and it's so relaxing to hear the waves come in.

We thought this was really interesting.  The beaches by us are sandy, but this beach was made of tiny little shells, for as far as we could see!

When we finished our tour of the lighthouse and the grounds, the wagon took us back.  Here it is, headed back to the lighthouse with another group of people.
We thought the ride just added to the fun!

We continued our drive around the peninsula and then got supper.  One of the Door County travel magazines had done a contest and chosen the best burger in the county.  We decided to find the place and try the burgers.  The article said it was a "2 napkin" burger.  They were right!  The burgers were messy, but very good.  Then it was back to the hotel for a relaxing evening.

It was such a nice day, we really enjoyed Door County!