Get Your Muscles Moving Wisconsin Getaway Offers a Workout – and Some Sweet Refueling Stops

By Martin Hintz Daily Herald Correspondent

Packing a lot of exercise into a getaway becomes as easy as pie in west-central Wisconsin.

Go jaunting via bike, canoe and shank’s mare for plenty of calorie-burning outdoor exertion. Add museum visits, exploring antique shops and lolling in snug hostelries, and you have the makings of a delightfully varied weekend within easy reach of home – and a vigorous workout, too.

For a bit of history to jump-start your adventure, begin in Reedsburg, Wis., at Pioneer Village where retired school principal Bob Reed has been volunteering since 1965. Back then, several farsighted locals decided Sauk County’s many old log cabins should be saved before they crumbled away.

As a result, the townsfolk reached out from a 30-mile radius of Reedsburg to acquire dilapidated structures needing rescue. They subsequently dismantled the more historically significant buildings, many of which dated from the middle to late 1800s. With loving care, volunteer labor reassembled and refurbished each one, much as if playing with giant Lincoln Log sets.

Pioneer Village sits in a 52-acre park east of Reedsburg on Wisconsin Route 33. Reed, even at 80 years of age, sets a brisk pace escorting tours from the blacksmith shop to the Kruse cabin, with its unusual puncheon floor made of black locust stakes, and on through the other buildings. At the Willow Creek Church, if ears are attuned properly, a gentle breeze seems to pick up faint strains of 19th-century Lutheran hymns.

Reed relates stories of village artifacts. Ask him how abolitionist John Brown’s desk wound up on display and how much a washing machine cost three generations ago. Like any good teacher, he’ll have the right answer.

Before collapsing onto a heavenly upstairs mattress at Tom and Donna Hoffman’s Parkview Bed & Breakfast in Reedsburg, there will be far-ranging conversation and, of course, a slice of homemade cherry pie before bedtime. The Hoffmans’ 1895 home, a Queen Anne- style hideaway, opened to guests in 1989. The couple are former teachers and world travelers.

Morning arrives with the perfume of Donna’s freshly baked muffins and an exotic egg casserole for fueling the day. Such hearty sustenance is de rigueur because a full day of canoeing, biking and trekking lies ahead.

There’s an axiom that says significant others should neither put up wallpaper nor paddle a canoe together. Either task can undeniably put undue stress on even the most loving of couples. However, the gentle drift of the turgid Baraboo River can put anyone in a forgiving mood.

The river, thank heavens, remains a lenient flowage, one allowing easy correction of directional dysfunction. Keep watch for bald eagles, turtles and flotillas of ducklings.

Rental canoes are available from Mike Cummings’ Treasure Mill, a working grist mill and antique center in the crossroads community of La Valle – where Wisconsin Route 58 meets Route 33. Put in about a half mile east of town, below the Route 33 bridge.

It takes a lazy hour or so downstream to reach Sauk County’s Douglas Park where a landing spot is available and pickup for the ride back to one’s vehicle. Canoeists going upstream will find the wildlife-rich Hemlock Slough and an adjoining county park enfolded in the arms of Buckwheat Valley.

Since 1998, all 11 outdated dams along the Baraboo have been removed in a restoration effort avidly supported by the Baraboo River Canoe Club and other sports groups. As a result, you’ll find miles of smooth water to test canoeing skills. Walleye and sturgeon have already been found in the waterway after generations of absence due to the difficulty these fish had in migrating upstream. Bring your rods and reels.

After boat, there’s bike. Rentals for riding along the 400 State Trail, which runs 22 miles between Reedsburg and Elroy, Wis., are available at the Trail Break Restaurant in La Valle. Proprietor Bill Good will also fix tires and perform minor repairs for folks bringing their own bikes.

Look out for buggies when crossing the street. Amish families farm nearby and their horse-drawn equipment is regularly seen plodding along area roadways. Subsequently, it’s also wise to watch the ground wherever walking.

Steve Balda, another retired teacher, acts as an ambassador along the 400 Trail, a reference to the trains that used to run along this old Chicago-Northwestern Railroad grade. According to tradition, the trains could run the 400 miles on these tracks between Chicago and the Twin Cities in 400 minutes. In his volunteer position, Balda helps spot maintenance needs and occasionally leads school biking groups. The route makes for a great family ride because there are no hills to tire short legs and benches are well-spaced for the short- of-breath.

Informative markers along the way describe the flora and fauna, as well as historical and scenic points. Restrooms are available at the Union Center trailhead, about midway along the route. Either seasonal or day stickers are required for the bike ride, as they are throughout Wisconsin’s state-managed trail system.

All that pedaling works up an appetite, so it’s fortunate that Gina Rae fell in love with cooking while a little girl watching the late chef Julia Child. Making mud pies eventually led to producing real pies at her funky wholesome food restaurant on Main Street in Wilton, Wis.

Rae’s chosen profession was helped by the fact that her dad, Marty, was a pie maker during his service stint the Navy. “At least, that’s what he brags about,” says his daughter.

Pie, in Rae’s mind, is the perfect food, baked in 9-inch square tins for cutting ease, using seasonal ingredients such as pumpkin in the autumn and freshly picked blackberries in the summer. These augment her staple apple, cherry and dangerously delicious Guinness oatmeal stout pies.

It’s almost a relief to flee after devouring only one piece of Rae’s concoctions (oh, all right, two) and make the short hop to the cool interior of Tunnel No. 3 on the Elroy-Sparta trail, laid out on another unused railroad right-of-way.

Park on the grassy area just off Kenya Road along Route 71 and stroll over to the tunnel. It’s 3,810 feet long, so bring a flashlight if damp, dripping darkness presents a psychological challenge. The proverbial “light at the end of the tunnel” is literally a long way off, but a walk-through is a great respite from Indian summer heat.

Next comes Sparta, Wis., where a 32-foot-high statue of town mascot “Ben Biken” – perched atop an antique Ordinary, or high wheeler – greets visitors and reminds them of the region’s connections with cycling. A drop-by the Deke Slayton Memorial Space and Bicycle Museum is in order.

If Rae’s delicious pies were part of his food payload, hometown astronaut, the late Donald (Deke) Slayton, probably wouldn’t have been able to fit into his spacesuit and rendezvous with a Soyuz spacecraft. But all went well with liftoff and linkup in 1975, with a resulting museum honoring Slayton’s out-of-world exploits. Along with space-related displays, some 80 vintage bikes are proudly shown off by museum director Kay Bender. They include some with wooden rims and an ice bike made in Hungary.

A late dinner at the local veterans’ hall is best when sitting on the deck overlooking Perch Lake and the Sparta Municipal Golf Course. Then, after a day’s marathon biking, pie eating and chatting up the locals, collapsing in bed at the Best Western Sparta Trail Lodge is a relief. Be aware that the hotel’s proximity to the sprawling acreage of nearby Fort McCoy means that numerous visiting military personnel use the facility, many preparing for deployment in Iraq. It’s a sobering thought.

Rise early and hike or bike part of a five-mile-long, 100-foot- wide corridor that parallels active rail tracks cutting through a state natural prairie area. You’ll find it midway between Sparta and Rockland, Wis., on Wisconsin Route 16 toward La Crosse. Wild indigo, whose roots were an American Indian medicine, dance in the morning. Clusters of hairy puccoon, a seasonal, long-lasting yellow blossom, peek up from the grass nearby as a train rumbles past.

Then it’s on to more late-morning biking on the Great River State Trail in Onalaska, Wis. By going several miles north on the pathway and then returning, pedalers can get a good feel for the bluffs overlooking the Black River before it merges with the Mississippi. Shuttle service is available by calling the Center for Commerce and Tourism in Onalaska, but 24-hour notice is required. Rentals are available at the Blue Heron Bicycle Works, about two blocks from the trail itself.

An afternoon of canoeing follows next along the 3.4-mile-long Voyageurs Canoe Trail in Perrot State Park, north of Trempealeau, Wis. Bring sunscreen and a hat because the day’s rays can scorch tender skin. By now, with all this practice, paddling in a straight line should be easy.

After a brisk cleanup at the 1880s Lumber Baron Inn bed-and- breakfast in Onalaska, buffalo steaks at Lakeview Restaurant and Lounge are readily devoured at supper. The Lakeview is on Wisconsin Route 35, about two miles north of town.

A deep sleep, followed by a heavenly scented breakfast made by Lumber Baron innkeeper Sandy Berg, does the trick before hitting the road back to Illinois’ flatlands.

More pie? Nope. Another serving of Berg’s apple cake with caramel sauce does just fine.

If you go

West-central Wisconsin

Go: If you love the outdoors and physical challenges

No: If you are not exercise-inclined and prefer big cities to small towns

Need to know: Wisconsin Department of Tourism, (800) 432-8747, www.travelwisconsin.com

Getting there: Drive I-90 to Wisconsin Route 33 and go west to Baraboo. From there, Reedsburg is about a 30-minute drive west on Route 33 and La Valle is farther northwest. From La Valle, take Wisconsin Route 71 to Sparta. To reach Onalaska and Trempealeau, either take Wisconsin Route 16 or link up again with I-90 and drive west to Wisconsin Route 35 and exit north.

Canoe rental: Mike Cummings’ Treasure Mill, (608) 985-7300, www.explorewisconsin.com/treasuremill

Bike rentals:

Trail Break Restaurant, (608) 985-8464, www.reedsburg.org/ members/Default.asp?Members=Restaurants

Blue Heron Bicycle Works, (608) 783-7433, www.blueheronbikes.com

What it costs: Prices for canoeing range up to $25 per day. State bike trail passes cost $15 for the season and $4 for day use. Bike rentals are generally around $10 to $15 per day. Annual vehicle park admission stickers and trail passes can be purchased from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (see www.dnr.state.wi.us/ org/land/parks/fees/@#stickers for prices). Send a check or money order (payable to Wisconsin DNR) to DNR Parks and Recreation, P.O. Box 7921, Madison WI 53707-7921; to pay by MasterCard or Visa, call (608) 266-2181 between 7:45 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. weekdays.

When to go: Autumn driving through the region brings explosions of color from the trees lining the bluffs overlooking the Mississippi River.

Lodging:

Parkview Bed & Breakfast, Reedsburg, (608) 524-4333, www.parkviewbb.com

Best Western Sparta Trail Lodge, Sparta, (608) 269-2664, http:// bestwestern.worldexecutive.com/directory/usa/sparta1/hotels/ 50122.html

Lumber Baron Inn bed-and-breakfast, Onalaska, (608) 781-8938, www.bbonline.com/wi/lumberbaron

For more information:

Center for Commerce and Tourism, 800 Oak Forest Drive, Onalaska, WI 54650-2953, (800) 873-1901, www.discoveronalaska.com

Reedsburg Area Chamber of Commerce, 240 Railroad St., Reedsburg, WI 53959, (800) 844-3507, www.reedsburg.org

Sparta Area Chamber of Commerce, 111 Milwaukee St., Sparta, WI 54656, (800) 354-2453, www.bikesparta.com

– Martin Hintz