Escape to…Algoma and Kewaunee?

When I get a full day off from the my Door County life, I, like most people on the peninsula, kind of want to get away from it for a bit. Don’t get me wrong – a day off in Door County is a great pleasure, which is usually why I tend to raise eyebrows when I tell people that my favorite “daycation” spot is a trip to the nearby villages of Algoma and Kewaunee. “Why go there…when you can stay here?” one of my friends asked me.

There are plenty of reasons, actually – but there’s only room to print about nine of them here:

The author poses with one of Algoma’s historic mural restorations.

1. The minute I turn off of Highway 42/57 onto County Road S, my worries, however hokey it seems, are just…lighter. I think it has something to do with the lack of traffic and the numerous barns that peek out from the side of the road. Truthfully, it reminds me of riding my bike down country roads when I was growing up in the Sevastopol area – even though 20 years has passed and I’m on a slightly different set of wheels.

2. The “main street community” aspect of Algoma and Kewaunee is very similar to Door County – and yet, so different. Perhaps it’s because the main streets of the two towns are so unchanged. With the exception of a newish gas station here and there, most of the buildings and businesses in both of these places look like they haven’t been touched in years – and if they have, the upkeep of these areas is outstanding. In 2000, Algoma actually entered into the Main Street Program – a comprehensive revitalization program designed to promote the historic and economic redevelopment of Wisconsin’s traditional business districts – and Kewaunee has taken that one step further by initiating the Marquette Historic District in the 1990s, which consists of 43 homes with a wide variety of architectural styles, ranging from Italianate, Queen Anne, Prairie, and other home styles popular from the 1880s through the 1930s. I assure you you’ll find at least 20 houses that you’ll want to move into immediately.

3. Algoma’s Main Street Program has brought a myriad of cool things to the town – the most striking of which are the historic representations of advertisements that were painted as murals in June 2007. The murals were painted by an international group of painters who refer to themselves as walldogs – people who have been painting advertisements on the sides of buildings way before graphic design groups and city ordinances.

The elaborate coffee menu at Cafe Tlazo.

4. One of the first stops I typically make upon entering Algoma is Caffé Tlazo. The café is actually a restored 1891 Italianate house, and is home to some of the friendliest coffee shop staff I’ve ever met, the best grilled cheese I’ve ever tasted, and the most intricately laid-out coffee drink menu I’ve ever seen. Free wireless Internet and a coffee drink with chocolate and peanut butter? Yes, please!

5. As someone who is always looking for new places to run (literally), I overlooked the Ahnapee State Trail as a potential area to train until just recently. Making its way through the heart of Door and Kewaunee Counties, the trail is the former railroad bed of the Ahnapee & Western Railroad. The trails consists of 29 miles of trail, and is home to silent sports enthusiasts in the warmer months – as well as snowmobilers in the colder ones.

6. The Flying Pig Gallery and Greenspace is just outside of Algoma’s main drag, but is probably one of my favorite galleries in all of Wisconsin. Co-owners Susan Connor and Robyn Mulhaney have a personal mission to bring an amusing, inspiring, and educational peek into art, and they do exactly that. Striving to focus on folk and outsider artistic styles, the gallery is home to some of the coolest paintings, ceramic sculpture, and hand-painted furniture I’ve ever seen. Prepare to circle the lower and upper levels at least three times.

7. Habeas Corpus Antique Shop is just off of Kewaunee’s main drag on Milwaukee Street. You don’t even need to go inside – all of the accoutrements outside will be enough to hold your interest.

The colorful interior of The Flying Pig Gallery & Greenspace.

8. The Cork Restaurant and Pub. I’ve gone to the Irish-themed Cork a handful of times over the past year, and it has never disappointed. A large part of this is credited to the establishment’s inexpensive and quality food (my favorites are the Gaelic New York Strip Steak with Guinness sauce and the Asiago Stuffed Olives appetizer), a great selection of beer and wine, and live music almost every week. It’s a laid-back Irish pub with a secret dining room in the back – kind of a Kewaunee County Greenwood Supper Club. And to prove how Irish they are, the Cork even schedules a “Halfway to St. Patrick’s Day” party in mid-September.

The exterior of Habeas Corpus Antique Shop in Kewaunee.

9. Few things in life are better than ice cream – unless, of course, there’s a custard stand. Kewaunee Custard, located on Main Street just as you’re entering (or exiting) the city, is an oasis – and the quality of my Algoma/Kewaunee trip seems to depend on what their Flavor of the Day is. Malted Milk Ball:  good. Blue Moon or Lemon Twist:  not so much. Regardless of what the flavor may be, I’ll still make a stop no matter how little room I have in my belly. Any establishment with “Life is Short, Eat Dessert First” painted on the wall will get my vote, every time.

The next time you need a change of scenery, I’d urge you to drive south and check out what our neighboring Kewaunee County has to offer. You’ll use a quarter tank of gas round-trip – which means more money to spend on custard.