i had been to washington island once, nearly ten years ago. but my memory of the experience was a little fuzzy, and i wanted to go back and make new memories, these i knew i'd remember.

chad's mom bought us a new coleman tent that we wanted to use. after packing the car with the tent, sleeping bags, mattress pads (the ribbed foam ones to conduct heat), minimal clothing & groceries, we set out on the drive to northeastern wisconsin. the drive up is typical wisconsin. lots of cheese chalets & cows grazing in the fields. among the stops made along the way- an antique store, local coffee shop (with almond joy mochas), and a few boutique shops. while in fish creek, we heard a warning on the radio that a severe storm with sightings of a tornado was moving across the bay... headed right towards us. suddenly the sky became dark and the winds picked up. we had to pull over on the side of the road and wait for a half hour for the storm to subside. the rain was so heavy and the winds were so strong. once back on the road, we drove through streets lined with fallen branches and other debris leftover from the storm. arriving at the tip of door county, we had to wait for our ferry to arrive which was earlier halted because of the weather conditions.

our ferry soon arrived and we drove our car onboard. sitting on the top deck was slightly chilly but refreshing. everything smelled nice and wet from the fresh rain. a new string of dark clouds were off in the distance. the ride is approx. 30 minutes, and we were very anxious to get to the island and set up camp before it started to storm again.

upon exiting the boat, we drove across the island to our campgrounds. the owner said that weekend was very slow, only a few other campers, so we had our choice of any campsite. quickly we unpacked and set up camp on the soggy ground.

an hour of daylight remained, so we quickly set off to explore various parts of the island. first we went to the sand dunes, which was very overgrown since i last remembered it. perhaps it does not get enough use these days. the sun was setting and casting itself on selected trees across the water. then we went to schoolhouse beach, which is a very rocky clear water beach. the sky continued to cast magical colors and forms, changing every few minutes. it was spectacular, as you can see from the pictures streaks of aqua, pink & orange swirled through the clouds. the photographs do not do it justice. you had to be there to experience the amazing continuous change of colors and textures.

we got back to camp when it was dark. shortly after, the winds picked up and it suddenly got cold. very cold. the thermometer on my keychain read 40 degrees. combined with the very strong winds, this made for an unusually chilly august evening. we cooked hotdogs in the flickering flames of the fire, which was wildly flaring from the wind. chad dropped his in the ashes... and ate it. we could not get the fire to go out. the wind would start it back up again and again. sparks of fire were flying directly at our tent bouncing off of it. i read the label on the tent. yes it is flammable. scared that we would fall asleep and our tent would be engulfed in flames, i kept a utility knife clutched in my hands just in case i needed to slice the side of the tent to make a quick exit. if it were really to catch on fire, chances of us being able to unzip the tent and exit in the front could be unlikely. i was planning for a slice and run emergency exit.

island camping photo album (35 photographs)
use the buttons to view

washington island - off the tip of trendy door county, washington island is more rural & laid-back.
w.i. car ferry - take your car over to the island.
rock island - department of natural resources site.
rock island campsites - detailed descriptions of all the sites.
rock island review - backpacking, general trail review.
rock island article - "rock island trek a natural feast"
pottawatomie lighthouse - additional pictures & information.
chester thordarson - inventor who owned and cared for the island.
halldór einarsson - carved the island's beautiful norse symbolism furniture housed in the boathouse hall.
royal robbins - one of my favourite outdoor clothing lines.
cherry republic - technically they are located in michigan, but they are a great company i've ordered from.
wisconsin bison - buffalo farms in the state.
truettner's berry farm - berry farm just off the highway.
natural ovens bakery - bakery & thrift shop in manitowoc.
percolator - good for camp coffee.
cajmere's percolator song - because i sing this every time i hear the word percolator.
the pudgy seagull - yummy, cheap food.

(cont. from the previous column)
the day was spent wandering over to the karfi ferry to embark on our rock island experience. no cars, or bicycles, are allowed on rock island. just people. people with backpacks. rock island is simply amazing. everything looks more beautiful on the island. the grass looks greener, the moss is fuzzier, the trees stand prouder. the first thing you see upon arriving is the massive boathouse. personal boats & kayaks can dock inside the archways. inside, a great hall awaits with fireplace, hand carved nordic furniture & a mini museum of icelandic artifacts and the personal belongings of chester thordarson. rock island is the former estate of mr. thordarson. the boathouse and island itself has a slightly haunting, lord of the rings feel to it.

now there are no stores on the island like there are on washington island. no restaurants, no cars, no civilization. and since you are on ferry time while visiting the rock, you have to plan accordingly and take everything with you. during the night, you are "trapped" on the island until morning. it is also a good idea to keep your food stored well in critter proof containers. a popular choice of other backpackers was to use a heavy duty rubbermaid container with several bungee cords wrapped tightly around it. raccoons can easily claw or open things with their hands.

while hiking on the island, my knee started to act up. but the view was so breathtaking, that i soon forgot about the pain. we visited the pottawatomie lighthouse. you must take your shoes off before entering, and your tour is led by the current docent. to be a docent, you are allowed to live in the lighthouse free for a one week stay. in turn, you must spend several hours of the day giving tours to passing hikers. there is no electricity in the lighthouse, and it can get hot in the summer. however it is a unique opportunity to live in a lighthouse for a week.

the shores of the island are made of white rocks. hence the name of the island. there are 35 campsites on the island, and they fill up quick so you need to reserve your space ahead of time. some of the sites are right on the water which are the most popular sites. imagine waking up and unzipping the tent to see crystal clear water rhytmically washing over the shoreline. it is popular to kayak over from the surrounding islands in the area.

back at our island, we made dinner (grilled cheese and hotdogs!) and watched the sun set while enjoying a few beers. at night, the sky is amazing. so many stars it makes you dizzy to look up at them all. stargazing in wisconsin is a treat for a chicagoan.

the next morning, we headed back home. made several stops along the way. got some buffalo meat from a local bison farm- 'the spunky buffalo'. visited a farm where they had freshly baked cherry pies, dried cherry, cherry wine, chocolate covered cherries and cherries every other way you can imagine. we took a slight detour to sturgeon bay, and lunched at 'the pudgy seagull'. it was a greasy spoon type place, but the food was a little better than the norm. we also stopped off at a berry farm and picked raspberries out in the field. then we went to natural ovens bakery and bought some bread and natural peanut butter.