Travels in the Driftless Area – the rolling hills and rivers of southwest Wisconsin, eastern Iowa, northwest Illinois and southeast Minnesota that were left unglaciated during the last ice age and so not generally flattened like other parts of these states!
If you’re already taking a trip to Potosi, maybe to the Potosi Brewery as written about in our last article, why not keep going and drive out on to the Mississippi? I mean that literally: Potosi Point, one of my favorite places to go for some beautiful views, peace, and quiet, is less than a mile outside of town.
The Mississippi River shoreline as viewed from Potosi point in mid-November. Photo by Terry Burns.
How do you get there from the Potosi main drag?
Just keep driving down South Main Street, and the road will literally take you out to a boat launch on the Mississippi. The trick is, you have to take a little jog in the road as it goes out of town.
Cross the railroad,
go under the culvert,
and drive straight out!
You’ll see some railroad tracks running along the river, and need to take a left off of State Road 133 (which was the same as Main Street, but now separates off to the north.) Drive under a little culvert, which as you can see from the photo sometimes gets flooded) and be careful to watch for water. On the other side of the culvert, you’ll be on road that runs right out into the river.
You won’t have to search very hard to see wildlife ranging from cranes waiting for dinner or beavers building dams.
By late fall, beavers will be building dams on either side of the road. It’s also a good place to view cranes and other sea birds.
If you follow the road to the end, you’ll be at a little boat launch and viewing spot in the Upper Mississippi Wildlife Preserve called Potosi Point.
At the end of the road, you’ll be several hundred yards out into the Mississippi, near the main channel.
That’s all there is to it. Oh, and if you want some shade or forgot binoculars, there’s a nice little viewing pavillion where you can look downstream. Enjoy your trip!
Viewing pavilion faces downstream, the earlier photos faced upstream.
Wisconsin is known for beer. Part of what makes our beer so great is the expertise of the brewers who came here, but, as those brewers have said in many places, another reason is the purity of the water and the way its filtered through the unique geography of the area. It also doesn’t hurt that the same properties that make the area’s rolling hills also make it easy to store and chill beer barrels in the many caves throughout the area.
We have breweries all over, but there is one that really stands out as a pillar of the community its a part of: the Potosi Brewery. that is, unless you don’t find brewing for charity, town-wide taste testing, or beer raining from the sky terribly interesting! If you’re like most Wisconsinites, I know you’ll enjoy Potosi Wisconsin and their brewery.
Potosi Brewery (the brick building in the background nestled into the hill, as viewed from a local park.)
The brewery began in 1852 by Gabriel Hail Sr. and his sons, Gabriel Jr. and John. Though they were brewing in 1852 they didn’t have an actual brewery building until 1854 when they had one built. Potosi was a perfect place to start a brewery back before refrigerators and modern transportation for several reasons. The building was built with direct access to the inside of a cave that was naturally around 46 degrees. It was a perfect place to store the beer. Potosi also has a stream of spring water that they could use for brewing. They stopped using the spring water several years ago and then they switched back and people have said that the beer is crisper and more flavorful. In addition to all of those amenities for brewing, Potosi is also very close to the Mississippi River which allowed them to ship their beer easier back when the brewery was starting up thanks to the Potosi steamboat.
The “world’s largest beer” in Potosi, Wisconsin, located across the street from the pavilion in the preceding photo.
The brewery changed owners around 1882, it was then bought by Adam Schumacher in 1886 and exploded in popularity due to his skills in brewing German lager and it officially became “The Potosi Brewing Company”. The brewery went through prohibition, and then some growth and changes until sadly in 1972 they closed their doors. That wasn’t the end however, in 2008 they reopened their doors thanks to the hard work and dedication of the citizens and now it stands as a major tourist attraction and home to the “National Beer Museum”. They also donate their proceeds to charities such as a Platteville scholarship fund, local boy scout troops, and other organizations.
A photo of my father and I before the tour started. Photo by Lauren McMicking.
One weekend this fall, I decided to invest a mere $13 to take a tour. As soon as my father heard about it I was obligated to bring him along! Then my brother heard and encouraged his girlfriend to also come with so he could have the house to himself and enjoy his new video game without interruption. So then, after having paid for both of them and myself, we set off. Lauren brought her camera and my father brought his winning smile.
Tours are every
weekend and include a look at the production facility, town history, and most
importantly…free beer. For the responsible adults there was a fine selection
of craft beers to choose from and you could responsibly sample a few. However
of course, we were irresponsible adults with no need to be anywhere for the
rest of the day so we decided before we even got there that we would try
everything we could see. Then we were given a free pint of whatever we wanted
to take with us on the tour and they shoved us on the tour so we wouldn’t drink
them dry.
Potosi’s long history meant there were plenty of fun and interesting facts. For instance, in 2007 before they reopened, they had a small but important problem. The facilities had burned down and the recipes were lost. So, the town bravely banded together and drank from batch after batch until they had settled on what they believed was the original recipe. The beer in question is called “Good Old Potosi”, which is described as “a Golden Ale with a delicate malt flavor and sweet finish. Light in body, full in flavor.”. In my opinion it’s a fairly boring beer but it tastes just like an old beer should. One of my favorites was the Steamboat Lemon Shanty which has a light color and crispy lemon flavoring.
We also learned that it wasn’t always a cake walk working in the brewery. They used to have a pipe to send the beer from the production facility to the bottling facility (both original facilities are now re-purposed for other things) and this pipe spanned over the street. However, the beer sometimes had trouble staying in the pipe. When semis rolled through town they would hit the pipe and cause it to burst, sending a shower of beer down on the town.
There’s a lot more to Potosi than just beer. There’s beautiful scenery, great people, and …. there’s wine.
A painting by a Kingfisher by Wes Hilmick.
They’re also home to the Whispering Bluffs Winery. The winery is located in what used to be the bottling plant of the old brewery before it was renovated and reopened. All their wines are made in Wisconsin, from Wisconsin grapes. All the wines are inspired by local birds. The painting on the left is the same as the picture on the bottle of wine. The painting itself was done by the owner of the winery, Wes Hilmick.
Just down the hall from winery is a
woodworking shop called Bright Idea. The shop is also located in the old
bottling plant. Lining the walls of the hallway between are framed articles of
the local paper that tell the history of the brewery. Bright Idea is owned and
operated by a father and son carpentry team, Gary and Tyler David. They sell
tables, candle holders, and other beautiful work that they hand crafted
themselves. They own their own sawmill and harvest all of their lumber locally.
Bright Idea has a website, as well as Facebook and
Instagram where they promote and sell their products as well as tell their
interesting, Wisconsin grown, story.
Kingfisher wine, featuring the same painting by Wes Hilmick
Potosi is home to a brilliant brewery, winery, and a carpentry shop. In my opinion, a small town doesn’t get much better than that. They have a fun tour of the brewery where you have plenty of chances to try their specialty beers. Then you can enjoy wonderful food at the attached restaurant. The bottom line is, if you’re looking for something fun to do in Southwest Wisconsin Potosi is the place to be and best of all it’s all local, local ingredients, owners, products, and it helps Wisconsin thrive. Schedule tours or look at the craft beers here at the Potosi Website.
Road America: what is there not to say about this historic track?
Since the 1950’s, this monster 4.084 mile and 14 turn road track has been tucked in the hills (giving it the name National Park of Speed) of Elkhart Lake, WI; right in between Green Bay and Milwaukee. This track is a whole new kind of test for racers. When it first opened in ‘55, the track was known as Elkhart Lake Road Races before being changed five years later to Road America. Every year RA hosts over 400 events including nine major race events, giving a little something for everyone. Some of the big-name weekends that everyone looks forward to, including the employees, include MotoAmerica, IndyCar Series, IMSA, and NASCAR Xfinity. Each one bringing a different experience to the table.
So how did Road America come to be?
Road racing began to gain popularity after World War II in the late 1940s due to a major influx of sports cars in America. Formed in 1944, the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) was the main organizer of these types of races and with the help of the Chicago region of the SCCA and the village of Elkhart Lake, the first races were formed where Road America stands now.
Recent motorcycle competition from the Superbikes competition at Road America. Photo by Grace Daehling.
In 1950, the track from start to finish was only a 3.3-mile track and took the drivers around different county roads in the area. However, the next two races, in 1951 and 1952, took the drivers on a different route, being 6.5 miles long and still driveable to the public today. This course is the one inducted into the National Register of Historic Places in November of 2006 with signs marking significant parts of the track.
After a tragedy in 1952 at Watkins Glen when a child was killed, the United States ruled to discontinue motorized racing on public roadways which sparked the movement to privatized race tracks. Since then, many races have come and gone from the track. Some of the most recognized being: NASCAR Grand Nationals in 1956 and the Xfinity series since 2010, The Stadium Super Trucks since 2018, IMSA GT Championship, IndyCar series since 2016, and the Superbike series with MotoAmerica.
One of the cars from the IndyCar series. Photo by Grace Daehling.
Road America is so much more than racing though. The track offers great food, wonderful camping with each spot having a unique view of the track, and frisbee golf across the property. The people that come to the track will always have smiles on their faces, making each event worth attending. Strangers come together and bond into a community over different racers. Even though the person sitting next to you in the stands might be cheering on your rival racer, fans still find a way to put that aside and enjoy a good competitive race. People aren’t at each other’s throat over a pass or over a collision, but are rather understanding of what good racing really is. Another thing that Road America is amazing at is bringing a new demographic of people to each event.
I can’t even come up
with enough ways to explain how magical this really is. Being an employee of
the track rather than just a spectator I have the advantage of seeing all of
this behind the scenes. Let’s try explaining this in a way I actually know how.
Imagine this…
Driving around the
property to different turns with cameras in hand and my eyes weighing down at
7:30 in the morning. There’s always the smell of bacon cooking mixed with early
morning fuel from the track to really wake you up.
Very few people are
awake and those that are cooking their family breakfast and ready to get the
race day started. As part of the media crew, we begin filming campsites that
are all competing to win the theme of the week and people offer us a coffee to
go. This particular morning was going to be different. It was something I could
just feel. All day the racers are warming up on the track and fans are finding
their spot and everyone is ready for the main event to start. As the day moves
on, the hopes of an on time race is starting to look slimmer and slimmer as the
storm clouds roll in from the distance.
As my friends Josh, Wolf (“Wolf”‘s name is also Josh, so we always called him by his last name), Ben and I were about to split off the skies open up and the rain begins. We quickly take cover in winners circle to make sure our equipment stays dry and it doesn’t get damaged. I soon got a text from my boss telling us that the race is going to be delayed due to lightning and heavy amounts of rain.
As with any outdoor
sport, rain isn’t a big concern; however, as soon as lightning comes into the
picture, we have to wait at least a half hour from the last strike to resume
anything. This rain wasn’t letting up anytime soon and was in fact getting
worse.
The crew who works at Road America makes magical moments like this possible. Photo by Grace Daehling.
The four of us and about
ten other people stayed in this small room waiting to receive news on when the
race was going to take place and about two hours later, we got word that the
storm was soon to pass. We had a half hour until the racers would take to the
track. We all turned to each other to figure out a new game plan. We didn’t
have any rain gear for the cameras, and we knew that the rain wasn’t done for
the day. Eventually we came to the much dreaded conclusion that one of us was
going to have to sacrifice the dryness of our hideout and run and grab all the
gear. That conclusion came to me.
I ran from the room we
were in all the way to the media center and my car to grab anything and
everything I could. I had both camera covers, three rain jackets, two SD cards
that I had to switch out, and two batteries when I came back. From there we
figured out were the two groups were going to split up and shoot.
“Josh and I are going to hit
the catwalk for start and finish, the end of pit row, and try to get to turn
five if we have time. We also have to set up for post-race press conferences so
we’ll see if we get there.”
Ben thought for a second
before replying with, “Let us get turn five. That way we can possibly get
kettle (another turn on the track) and turns twelve and thirteen. It makes it
easier for everyone. We have to go to winners circle anyway.”
Josh and I waited till
the last minute to race up to the catwalk to set up for the start. Within a
minute of us getting up there, the racers are signaled for crews to leave pit
row and for racers to start their engines.
The pur from the
horsepower these cars are producing can be felt through every molecule in your
body. Each racer takes off from their pit spot after the pace car ready to warm
up their tires and get in pull position. They make their way back to the start
and wait for the red light to turn green. Everyone inside the track is ready to
sit on the edge of their seats for the next three hours.
Three… Two…. One… Green…
The flags start waving, and the racers take off
from zero to one hundred in the blink of an eye. The horsepower pushing through
every ounce of your body, the feeling is so intense it’s almost as if your
heart won’t be able to take it. The sound so loud it makes our voices sound as
if they are a whisper in the void of space.
The next couple of laps go by and we move to a new spot on the track every half hour or so. The lead has changed so many times it’s hard to know who really has it, but we manage to keep track. As much as we didn’t want to be out in the rain, it was a long race, so it gave us a chance to screw around and try new shots and more artistic shots. The race comes to the last 45 minutes and Josh and I make our way back to the media center to change out batteries and set up for post-race driver interviews and to get some water.
“How are things out
there?” our boss asks as we come rushing into the office.
“Couldn’t ask for better
weather out there right now,” Josh said sarcastically he clips in the almost
dead battery. “The rain is getting heavier and we still have to get the
finish.”
Once we change
everything out and get our mic checks done, we headed back out to the catwalk.
At this point there was about fifteen minutes left in the race and we just
watch the race for as long as we can before having to step back into the
rain.
We come to see that the race had come to a yellow flag causing the racers to line up as they make their way around the track. Lidell, who was in 14th position with 20 minutes left in the race, made his way up to a 4th place reposition while Wittmer repositioned in 2nd place. They round turn 14 to see the green flag waving allowing the racers to take off in a frenzy. Along with the green flag giving the go, they also had a white flag signaling the last lap of the race.
The Road America track. Graphic courtesy of Will Pittenger, Wikimedia Commons.
Wittmer quickly takes
the lead going into turn 3 as he almost trades paint with the racer he was
passing. Coming into turn 5, two cars are out of the race as they slide off the
slick tack; however, Wittmer is doing anything he can to keep his lead. They
make it past turn seven, whip around turns eight and nine and head into the
carousel. The front four of the field is holding steady. Coming out of carousel
and going into turns 11,12, and 13, the front runner takes off and pulls the
lead by inches. Lidell, who was still in fourth, had something else in mind and
wasn’t going to settle for a no-podium finish.
Going into Canada
Corner, turn 12, Lidell comes to the outside of third place and quickly drifts
around the outside to take over both the second and third place racers. A bold
move to do on a dry track in the best weather, let alone on a track with
standing water. He pushes to catch up to Wittmer when they reach turn 14.
Racing up the back
straight away, Wittmer has about 50 meters left and his team cheering for his
win when his car stalls. The fans all bust out in shock of what just happened.
Was he out of gas? Did his engine fail? The fans were left in suspense as the
driver began everything in his power to just coast past the finish line before
Lidell has a chance to catch up and pass him just before the finish. However,
all his efforts came to nothing. He tried turning his car and blocking Lidell
from passing him knowing he would be risking his car and disqualification in
front of a 200-mph running beast coming at him.
At the last second,
first place was captured by the driver who raced smart and took advantage of a
malfunction on another teams’ part. The finish was the most devastating yet
thrilling end to a three day build up, three-hour race with a win margin of only
0.070 seconds. You could feel the fans adrenaline pumping through their veins
and hear their hearts drumming out of their chests.
This is what Road
America is about. I could sit here and type the facts and what the track
features, but without experiencing the magic of the track itself, there is no
way to comprehend what it is that everyone at the track is so obsessed with.
So, what is Road America? Well that is an experience for you to find out
yourself.
If you would like to
watch the last lap of that race, visit this page and watch the most amazing
take over in racing history happen. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GFmcNJbgjg
If you live in southwest Wisconsin then you’re used to everyone asking you what there is to do or complaining about how it’s full of corn fields and nothing else, you might suspect that they’ve never been outdoors. Not only is this a beautiful place for fall sports, but there are also plenty of local teams to enjoy for a fraction of the price you’d spend in larger cities.
Although I enjoy going to numerous sporting events, the ones I enjoy the most are the UW-Platteville Pioneer Football Games. Like many Wisconsin natives, I grew up from the time I was a little girl with sports on the TV at home: mainly Packers or Brewers games, and I was lucky enough to attend a number of those growing up. It always made me sad that I wasn’t athletic enough to partake in most sports when I grew up but being able to go to these events helped fill that void. There are many great things about going to Pioneer football games, hopefully by the end of this post you’ll want to go, even if sports isn’t really your cup of tea.
Sophomore running back Evan gates receives the hand-off from sophomore quarterback Caleb Hanson during a fall 2019 UW-Platteville game. Photo by Grace Daehling.
The University of Wisconsin- Platteville Pioneers are a part of NCAA Division III and the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference which also includes, Whitewater, Stout, Stevens Point, River Falls, Oshkosh, La Crosse, and Eau Claire. The official season starts in the beginning of September and ends mid-November. Platteville started off the season strong with a 38-30 win against East Texas Baptist, and continued as undefeated for several games. They dominated Thomas More 41-10, then moving forward they crushed Lakeland College during their first away game, 55-28.
The team is averaged 37 points per game and this season went undefeated at home. Currently the team is led by head coach Mike Emendorfer. He is assisted by Ryan Munz, Jason Wagner, Dan Bauder, Patrick Sheehan, Donavon Nathaniel, Brody Dell, Ryley Bailey, and Justin Blackburn.
Coach Justin Wagner stands on the sidelines with the players. Photo by Grace Daehling.
There are many players making great stats this season, but football games aren’t just enjoyable because of the football. One the sideline we can find some pretty great folks cheering on our Pioneers all while they’re doing some amazing stunts. Then we look to the stands and have our fantastic marching band playing whenever they can: whether it’s during a time-out or a kick-off you can hear them doing what they do best. Then those two are joined on the field during the halftime show by the talented dance team. These halftime shows are a real treat to watch.
This year’s season is over, but hope we can see you next year!
Greetings, Driftless readers! As we wind towards the end of fall, I thought I’d publish a few more stories on fall sports, just to give us something to look back on during the cold winter!
Thanks to local writer Adam Smith for his excellent article on rugby. On tap, we have two more stories focusing on fall sports: Samantha Graetz, writing on UW-Platteville Pioneer football, Grace Daehling (an excellent sports photographer, whose photos also appear in Sam Graetz’s piece).
After that, we’re going to move on to another favorite Driftless area recreation: beer!
You might be thinking – what is there to do around here that I haven’t already done? Well, for starters, most people in the Wisconsin area have probably not played rugby before. Along with being a great game, rugby is a sport that most people in this part of the world learn by playing (although I’ll introduce you to some of the basics in this article.) Most of the road trips I go on, especially in the fall, are to rugby competitions. But rugby, unlike a lot of other team sports, is just as much about the fraternizing afterwards as the game itself.
Interested? Then read on! First, I’ll introduce some of the basics of the game, then teach you some of our after-game songs, and after that, tell you about some of the rugby opportunities here in Southwest Wisconsin.
The 2019 UW-Platteville Men’s Rugby team (Photo:
Courtesy of the Platteville Men’s Rugby Club Facebook Page)
Rugby
basics and background
One of the most famous stadiums built for rugby is the Millenium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales. Here’s a shot from the 2015 Wales vs. Fiji Rugby World Cup. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
I like to think of rugby as the estranged love-child of the two sports, soccer and American football. Rugby has the physicality of football, with the pace and kicking skills required in the soccer realm. The goal of rugby is very similar to football and soccer, you want to score more points than the opposing team. In order to score, you have to touch the ball to the ground in the tryzone. This is called a try and is worth five points. A tryzone is like the endzone in football: there is one on each end of the field. The field is 100 meters in length and 70 meters in width. An example of how a rugby field, called a “rugby pitch” looks is shown in the photo above, from the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
Another way points are scored is by kicking the ball through the posts, centered at the beginning of each tryzone. An offensive player can kick the ball at any time during the match, if it goes through the posts they are awarded three points. However, the ball must be a drop kick that touches the ground first, before being kicked. After a try is scored, there is an opportunity to kick the ball through posts, and this attempt is worth two points.
The best way to describe a rugby ball, is to call it an undersized watermelon. Rugby balls are in the shape of an ellipse, similar to a football, but much more rounded at the points and larger overall.
Offensive players are allowed to pass, run, or kick the ball. In rugby, you are only allowed to pass the ball backwards. If you want to play the ball forwards, it has to be kicked. The opposing players defend by tackling the offensive player to the ground. In this sport there are no pads or helmets, therefore tackling rules are much stricter in order to keep players safe.
A tackle attempt (this one is an illegal-high tackle) Photo courtesy of Kurt Kravchuk
Once a player is tackled, the ball carrier must release the ball onto the ground or to a teammate. Offensive players form a ruck to keep possession of the ball. They form over the ball-carrier to protect him and clear any defenders off of the ball. Another offensive player, called the scrumhalf, will take the ball off of the ground and pass the ball to a teammate.
An example of a ruck, from a recent UW-Platteville vs. Northern Michigan University game. Photo: courtesy of Kurt Kravchuk.
Rugby is very similar to soccer in multiple ways as well. In contrast to football, there are no breaks between plays. Each team has 15, 10, or 7 people depending on which format of rugby you playing. 15-person rugby, or 15s, is played in two 40-minute halves, 10s rugby in two 10-minute halves, and 7s rugby in two 7-minute halves. Time only stops for injuries and certain penalties. Like soccer players, rugby personnel must be able to play most, if not all of the game. Teams cannot substitute players in and out. Once a player is substituted out, they cannot come back into the game.
Another comparison to soccer are the restarts: most breaks in play result in free kicks or penalty kicks. The ball is also kicked to start the game, after halftime, and after any scoring play. There are so many similarities between these sports that it really is as if soccer and football had a child, rugby being the offspring.
A kickoff dropkick (the ball must touch the ground first) Photo courtesy of Kurt Kravchuk
The most unique quality of a rugby
match is the scrum. A scrum results whenever the ball is thrown or dropped forward
by an offensive player and can also be an alternative to free kicks during a
penalty play. During a scrum, bigger players – denoted as forwards – from both
teams bind together. The ball is placed in the middle of the scrum and the
objective is to drive the other team off of the ball to gain possession. This
tug-of-war situation highlights which team is stronger and more conditioned,
and it also highlights which team has been skipping leg day.
A scrum: players pushing against each other for possession of the ball. Photo courtesy of Kurt Kravchuk
A scrum: players pushing against each other for possession of the ball (Photo: C
Why should you play rugby?
Photo: Courtesy of UW-Platteville Rugby Player, Erik Wohlfiel
I play here in southwest Wisconsin on the men’s UW-Platteville rugby team. My friend and teammate, Erik Wohlfiel, let me use one of his Instagram posts (above) . This post immediately caught my attention because it perfectly sums up why people are so drawn to the game of rugby. The main reason to play this sport for me, and my teammates, is the camaraderie.
There is honestly no other reason I would want to drive about six hours to Duluth, Minnesota on a Saturday, in a car filled with five teammates and their gear. It’s an interesting experience partaking in country-karaoke and listening to comedic podcasts with friends on these long drives to away games. Our team here at UW-Platteville is currently sponsored by Steve’s Pizza Palace. On Thursday we head over to Steve’s to participate in trivia night, which is open to anybody. It’s a good time to spend with friends, test our knowledge, and support our sponsor. We also volunteer about once a month to help out at Ruby’s Pantry, which is in association with Platteville United Methodist Church. The men and women’s clubs hold a banquet at the end of each year for the members only. This is the most formal annual event of the year where players are encouraged to bring a date and dress nicely. Player awards for achievements such as ‘hardest-hitter’ and ‘most-improved’ are handed out at the banquet as the fall-league season is celebrated and reviewed.
Group picture from the 2016 UW-Platteville Men’s Rugby banquet. Photo courtesy of Platteville Men’s Rugby Club Facebook Page.
Furthermore, the quote that Erik’s post refers to speaks about the brotherhood/sisterhood formed from playing the sport. When you go get tackled or go down in a game, you will always have a teammate to protect you and you’re your back. This bond extends off the field as well and you often build long-term friendships through rugby-related events.
You also get to visit and view many different areas of Wisconsin in the process, as well as the edges of Minnesota and Michigan. In addition, you get to interact with and meet new people from all of these areas.
What is a rugby
social?
This brings me to the most unique aspect of rugby, which is the socials. A social is an after-party or a post-match gathering, if you will. Both teams just got done beating the snot out of each other for an upwards of 80 minutes, but yet we can all be friends. This is very different from other sports where competition is the most important part and in most other sports it is looked down upon to fraternize with the opposing team.
In club rugby, fraternizing is one-hundred percent welcomed. I’m not exactly sure if this happens in youth-rugby (I’ve gotten mixed signals from my teammates about this). However, in college club teams and adult leagues it is traditional for the home team to host a social after each game. It isn’t unusual for the referee or coaches to come and hang out at this event either. This is where you are introduced to the culture that is rugby and some of the activities that rugby players like to do here in southwest Wisconsin.
Some of the activities common at socials include jousting and singing round songs. Since there are adults and people of age 21 and older at these socials, rugby players of legal age like to participate in a drinking game called a ‘boat race.’ The jousting consists of two players from each team. One player from each team will be the base, and the other player will be on their shoulders holding a goal post pad used to simulate a lance. The two people at the base will start running at each other, and the top two people will try to knock each other off of the other person’s shoulders. This is a fun activity at the social where anyone can get involved or watch for some laughs.
The boat race is a beer-drinking relay race that features around four to six players from each team for participation. Each participant will have two beers, one in each hand. Each team of four to six will be seated on the ground as if they were in a row boat, close together and all facing forward. The two ‘row boat’ teams will be facing an individual who starts the race. The starter commands the teams to row and points a hand to the sky. The teams listen to the command and make a rowing motion with the two beers, making sure not to spill, because that could be a potential disqualification. They continue making rowing motions until the starter drops his hand back down to his side, signaling the start of the race. Each person in the relay drinks their first beer as fast as they can. Once, they are finished they put the empty can, or solo cup, on the top of their head to signal to the next man in the boat to start drinking his beer. This continues down the ‘row boat’. The person in the last seat of the boat finishes both of their beers and sends the relay in the opposite direction for the rest of the team to finish their second beer, down-and-back style. This is always an extra competition that both teams really enjoy. It draws the biggest crowds at the social and people will cheer on their respective teams.
Rugby Songs
The round songs follow a general format, their purpose is to generate comedic punchlines. Each verse will be sung by a soloist and then the rest of the group will join in for a refrain. Everyone at the social stands in a big circle and sings along. Anyone can sing a solo punchline, but they have to signal to the group that it is their turn to go. A soloist signals to the group by putting their hand over their forehead. The rest of the group will point with their elbow at the person who is signaling. This is the system the group has used to determine whose turn it is to sing.
One of the most popular songs we sing is called “Yogi Bear.” This the format of the song:
(Soloist)
“I
know a bear that you all know!”
“Yogi,
Yogi!”
(Chorus)
“I
know a bear that you all know! Yogi, Yogi bear.”
“Yogi,
Yogi bear—“
“Yogi,
Yogi bear!”
“I
know a bear that you all know! Yogi, Yogi bear.”
The soloist who signals would come up
with the next punchline (sorry Chicago Bear fans).
(Soloist)
“Yogi
sucks at football!”
“Chicago,
Chicago!”
(Chorus)
“Yogi
sucks at football! Chicago, Chicago bears.”
“Chicago,
Chicago bears—“
“Chicago,
Chicago bears!”
“Yogi
sucks at football! Chicago, Chicago bears.”
This second song is another popular pick, it’s a comedic song that uses the idea of Jesus not having enough apostles to play 15s rugby. The song also explains why Jesus wouldn’t be able to play rugby Himself (the song is referred to as “Jesus Saves” or “Jesus Can’t Play Rugby.”)
(Soloist)
“Jesus
can’t play rugby, because he only has twelve friends!”
(Chorus)
“Jesus
can’t play rugby, ‘cause he only has twelve friends!”
“Jesus
can’t play rugby, ‘cause he only has twelve friends!”
“Jesus
saves, Jesus saves!”
“Jesus
saves—”
This follows the same format as the
last song and a new soloist will start the next round.
(Soloist)
“Jesus
can’t play rugby, because his dad will rig the game!”
(Chorus)
“Jesus
can’t play rugby, ‘cause his dad will rig the game!”
“Jesus
can’t play rugby, ‘cause his dad will rig the game”
“Jesus
saves, Jesus saves!”
“Jesus
saves—”
Then after a few rounds the song ends
like this.
(Soloist)
“Jesus,
we’re only kidding!”
(Chorus)
“Jesus,
were only kidding!”
“Jesus,
were only kidding!”
“Jesus
saves, Jesus saves!”
“Jesus
saves!”
Rugby
opportunities in southwest Wisconsin
Many of the opportunities to play here in Wisconsin are in relation to the organization known as the Wisconsin Rugby Football Union. This organization hosts rugby leagues for all ages classified into three categories – youth, collegiate, and senior club. Their page has information regarding upcoming events, resources, and registered club teams. For every level the sport is easily accessible. Anyone is welcome to join these clubs, and there are plenty of schools around the state participate for middle school, high school, and college students, as well as seniors (anyone who is out of school). There is collegiate match-play every Saturday, even if you aren’t interested in playing, rugby is an entertaining sport to watch and support. You could even study up on the rule book and become a referee, if that’s something you are interested in. There are also plenty of tournaments and events where spectators are welcome to hangout, buy apparel, and get something to eat.
Popular
tournaments in Wisconsin
Collegiate leagues take place in the fall from September through November. In the spring and summer, there are a lot of open tournaments that any team can register to play in, or individual players can participate in. Especially in summer, a lot of teams are lacking players and will take anyone who’s ready to go. Many tournaments we participate in don’t require a specific roster so teams are allowed to borrow players from each other if they need substitutes or don’t have enough players.
One of our favorite tournaments to participate in is Whiskey Ten’s. This is a ten versus ten tournament at the Dan Ryan Woods in Chicago Illinois. The South Side Irish rugby club has been hosting this event annually in the spring, I’m not sure when it originally started. This tournament guarantees three matches for each team. Men and women’s teams at both the senior and collegiate level participate in this tournament. The three-field area has an apparel and food tent for spectators and participants. Anyone is welcome to come watch teams play a lot of rugby. There are plaques handed out to the top-placed teams. There is a social after the tournament at Kelly’s Irish Saloon that serves dinner for the players.
Another example of a tournament is Pigfest which is hosted by the Oshkosh Rugby club. Pigfest takes place in Oshkosh, Wisconsin and is the longest running 10s rugby tournament in the Midwest. This tournament is a summer tournament, usually sometime in July. UW-Platteville won both of their games at this tournament last year, before it down-poured and the remainder of the event was called off. This even has been called Pigfest because guests are welcome to some great food. The tournament offers rotisserie pig, burgers, beer and other beverages.
Platteville’s
Mudfest
Our own club team at UW-Platteville hosts an annual tournament called the Mudfest. This tournament is a 15s tournament that has been running annually for 24 years. 2020’s upcoming Mudfest will be the 25th anniversary of the event.
The image above shows some of the usual teams that register for our tournament. That schedule was specifically for the Men’s college and senior bracket, women’s teams participate in this tournament as well. Rugby is the main event, where the winning team can play an upwards of five 80-minute games. This tournament is truly and iron-man competition to see who has the most conditioned and disciplined squad. In 2019, our UW-Platteville Men’s club was able to win the tournament. We won four games and only lost one match to the UW-Platteville Men’s Alumni team.
This event draws a large crowd each year and is celebrated by citizens in the city of Platteville. Depending on planning, there are extra events after the rugby-playing is over. In 2017, the city decided to block of sections of Mineral Street to allow for a band. This has happened numerous times over the years to allow for block parties and event participants to celebrate in an organized environment.
Just like the other tournaments that were mentioned, Mudfest sells food and beverages. Last year our sponsor, Steve’s Pizza Palace, sold pizza slices at the event. Volunteer members from the WSUP radio station also participated in last year’s Mudfest by dj-ing. They played music and made announcements for the duration of the tournament.
Overall, Mudfest is a celebration of rugby and the history of Platteville. Aside from Diary Days, this rugby tournament is one of the most celebrated and long-standing events in the area.
Get Involved
I hope this has given you a better understanding of rugby and the opportunities it presents in southwest Wisconsin. If you and your friends are ever bored on a weekend or want to get involved in a new hobby, then rugby is here for you. Rugby has opportunities for everyone at varying levels of participation. I’ve definitely enjoyed my time playing for the UW-Platteville Men’s Rugby club and made numerous memories I will never forget on and off the field. Therefore, I encourage anyone who has taken the time read this – to get involved or get out and support your local rugby club!
Experience the grandeur and prestige of Cuba City’s heritage
Along Cuba City’s main drag, one sees silhouettes of every U.S. President. The red, white and blue shields also include the state that person was born in, the years he served, and the which “number” President he was.
In the deep north of America’s bread basket lies a tiny town of about 2000 people called Cuba City, Wisconsin. The town is nestled snugly between the bustling and collegiate Platteville metropolitan area (pop. 11,000) and a cluster of even smaller towns like Hazel Green, WI (pop. 1256) to the south and Dickeyville, WI (pop. 1060) to the west. The town is fundamentally a strip of road lined with businesses which are surrounded on both sides by a grid of single story houses that stretches for a half mile outward in all directions.
Cuba City’s welcome sign
Along this strip of Highway 80, one immediately notices the signs with silhouettes of U.S. Presidents: all of the U.S. Presidents. One may also soon see the focal point of this, the main strip of Cuba City’s main street: a tourist attraction called the “Presidential Courtyard,” a monument to the city’s nickname, “The City of Presidents.” Cuba City is a time capsule of small town America filled with relics from the Cold War age of patriotism.
Part way through the main strip, you’ll see this rock marking the “Presidential Courtyard,” or the related red caboose pictured below. Photo by Jacob “Vinny” Klang.
Questions about the naming of Cuba City are so common that many shops have hung signs explaining how the city got its name. Every store, retailer, and restaurant has these signs which are written by the city, perhaps to help visitors get more confused.
Some storeowners have put up signs to let visitors know how Cuba City became known as the “City of Presidents.” Photo by Jacob “Vinny” Klang.
Around town there is a theory regarding the evolution of the town’s name: the town was originally “Yuba City” but since there was already a “Yuba” in Richland county, “Cuba” was chosen as an alternative.
How did “Cuba City” then become the “City of Presidents”? Let’s start there and work our way backwards to the presidential signs.
The official title was chosen in 1993 when the city’s common council changed the slogan from the “Parade of Presidents” by popular vote. But the patriotic naming scheme started in 1975 when the village was preparing to celebrate the United States Bicentennial Anniversary. The titular parade referred to plywood sigils featuring those silhouettes of every American president referred to earlier, which were and are still hung on every lamp-post along Cuba City’s main street. The sigils have since been replaced with durable weather proof plastic, and joined by the “Presidential Courtyard” near the center of the strip, one I’ll talk more about in a moment.
Presidential Caboose sits in the Presidential Court yard. Grant County, Wisconsin (where Cuba City is located) is named after President Ulysses S. Grant.
All of those signs seem like a lot of work for the 1976 Bicentennial Celebration, especially for a town of 2000 people. One theory about why the town leaned into such heavy participation in the bicentennial was that they wanted to ward off any suspected affiliation with communist Cuba. At that time in global politics, Cuba was a bastion of socialist thought and was the source of a much anxiety in the American consciousness (and had been so since the Bay of Pigs in the early 1960s.). Having this unpatriotic tie to Cuba would not have been good for the city’s tourism so they may have doubled-down and made a very American tourist attraction to counteract this association.
Is this true? One retired history professor commented that she had also heard this speculation, as had the editor of this blog. But neither could link it to documentary evidence, so a speculation it remains. In any case, since the original presidential signs in the 1970s, the idea has taken on a life of its own.
Since then, the Presidential Courtyard has been built upon a patch of grass along Main Street where the sigils ended. But of course more presidents have been added to the parade since the late seventies so the courtyard is now about two-thirds down the street.
The best and easiest way to experience the displays is to drive into town and park along the main street near the edge of town where you can casually walk the stretch of road at your own pace. There are benches to rest on along the way and plenty of shops and bars to sit or get distracted in. If you’re worried about parking on a busy street you can park in the residential neighborhoods for the same effect (remember to note what street you’re on so you can find your way back later). For the travelers short on time there is also a free and public parking lot at the Presidential Courtyard itself.
By the time you’ve soaked in the sights, sounds, and smells of the flowers you’ll find yourself back at the “Presidential Courtyard.” This courtyard was assembled from scratch in 2006 as an addition to the Parade of Presidents and it contains a bright red train caboose, several potted plants, informative signs, and a stray cat with a tuxedo pattern on its fur.
Refurbished Cuba City State Bank clock which contains a time capsule scheduled to be opened in 2056. Photo by Jacob “Vinny” Klang.
As you enter the courtyard from the front you will notice a large refurbished clock hanging above you like it has hung over Cuba City since its construction. Inside the clock is a time capsule made by the Cuba City high school and is scheduled to be opened on the 50th anniversary of the courtyard’s construction in 2056.
The train caboose is a refurbished and well maintained train car. Along with the portrait of Ulysses S. Grant, one sees a variety of informational signs. Next to the train on the same track is a utility cart with a display of railroad tools. Opposite the track is a gazebo optimized for family picnics and a few benches, all of which have more signs for visitors to learn from.
The caboose acts a mini-museum of presidential history. Also, one of the presidential sigils hangs here in the corner instead of on the street: the one with a silhouette of George W. Bush, the only U.S. president to actually visit Cuba City. President Bush signed it when he visited in October of 2004.
A leading figure in Cuba City, Joe Goeman, explained that it was “one of the biggest things to happen to Cuba City [when] the president came to visit. Of course, that didn’t happen by itself. We had people write to the presidents for several years until finally it happened.”
George W. Bush presidential sigil replica housed in Presidential Courtyard Caboose signed by former president George W. Bush. Photo by Jacob “Vinny” Klang.
The rest of the caboose has displays of memorabilia from presidential campaigns and other Americana. The caboose is open to the public on Saturdays between Labor Day and Memorial Day and also on the third Wednesday of every month or by appointment.
Behind the caboose is a smaller car called a “Speeder Car” which has a tray of tools hitched to the back. The speeder car adds depth to the train display by showing the variety of tools needed to build and maintain a train network and implying the hard work and skill needed for America to have such powerful industry. Opposite the speeder car is a milk trolley with a trio of vintage milk canisters on one side. The milk trolley has plenty of room for visitors to climb up on and take photos as a family. The milk trolley is included as part of Wisconsin’s history of milk processing.
The tool cart outside of the Presidential Courtyard. Photo by Jacob “Vinny” Klang.
This location is a fun place to visit firstly as a relic of 1970’s patriotism, secondly as a testament to Cuba City’s talent of maintaining public works projects, thirdly as a unique slice of Midwestern culture, and lastly as a unique place to discover by oneself or as a group of domestic explorers.
“The most eclectic bookstore in southwest Wisconsin”
Just past the Wisconsin River settled in one of the crests of the Driftless area hides the small town of Viroqua. Along main street, visitors can find small local shops which each exhibit their own sense of rural charm including Gary’s Rock Shop and the Ewetopia Fiber Shop. The Driftless Café is a favorite among the locals as the perfect family oriented environment to grab a bite to eat.
Scenic views on the drive out to Viroqua, WI from Platteville, WI
However, if you stray from the main drag you might run into what appears to be the old, abandoned industrial side of this rural Wisconsin town. Among the vintage style buildings rests three old, brick tobacco factories.
“Forgotten Works” entrance shows its history as a tobacco company.
The “Forgotten Works” factory, also known as Driftless Books and Music
One of these factories (which has been lovingly renamed “The Forgotten Works” factory) hosts an eclectic used bookstore known as Driftless Books and Music. This brain-child of owner Eddy Nix invites visitors in with an engraved stone that hangs above the door. It reads “This is the entrance to the forgotten works. Be careful. You might get lost”.
Stone engraving that hangs above the door to Driftless Books and Music.
Storeowner Eddy Nix grew up in La Crosse, Wisconsin, just up the road from Viroqua. After graduation, he had the itch to travel and get out of town. So, he took the opportunity to travel to South Africa with a Rotary International program. In his own words, his experience “…was fascinating” (Nix, 2016). After the program, Eddy spent the next era of his life exploring Europe, South America, and “…places like that” (Nix, 2016). In the mid-‘90s, this world traveler had started to miss his home here in Wisconsin. He explains that all of his travels made him realize and appreciate the uniqueness and beauty that can only be found here in the Driftless region.
He began this new chapter in his life by opening a used bookstore in Viola, Wisconsin inside an old post office building. After a hail-Mary eBay search where he typed in “bunch of books,” Eddy came across an auction that was listed in the wrong category, simply titled “50,000 books.” He drove out to Connecticut and spent three months sorting through and packing up two semi-trucks full of books that were otherwise going to be thrown in the dump. When Eddy returned to Wisconsin. he began the process of unpacking and organizing.
He said “It literally took four or five years. It was like a giant Tetris game” (Nix, 2016). However, after flooding and tornadoes, Eddy knew he had to start looking for a new home for all his books.
Inside Driftless Books and Music
The perfect opportunity seemed to fall into this store owner’s lap. A local philanthropist, who was also a regular in the store, was in possession of an old tobacco warehouse that was not in use. In an article published by the Minnesota Skinny, Eddy explains that “This guy saw what we were doing. He gave it to me as a challenge to make this thing real” (Haataja, 2018). He believed in Eddy’s vision and pushed him to make it a reality. This was a true case of things just falling into place.
Sign announcing Viroqua historic district
When I visited the store this fall, I asked Eddy if he ever had a moment of “What did I get myself into?” to which he replied, “Plenty”. He said that he had a lot of questioning moments throughout his journey. Specifically, moving his business into the old tobacco warehouse became a thing of his nightmares. The building itself was old and challenging. The steam heating system was broken and did not function the way Eddy needed it to. He soon realized that he would go broke during the brutal Wisconsin winters just trying to keep the building comfortable.
So, Eddy improvised.
For the three coldest months, he closes the shop and gives himself a much-needed vacation while also giving himself some time to take books home to organize and catalog. Eddy explained that he has found through his experience that “What seems like a crisis can actually be an invitation”. He said that these moments gave him time to step back and reevaluate the situation before moving forward.
Some gardening books in search of a new home
I remember how, on my first visit to this unique place, I stepped underneath the engraved stone warning at the entrance and was instantly overwhelmed with a sense of nostalgia. The entrance hall is lined with bins of music records which all reminded me of an old shop in my hometown that my friends and I frequented in high school. But I wasn’t even in the bookstore yet. As I passed through a second door I felt that wave of past memories pull me down further. In front of me was a room, packed floor to ceiling with books. Hundreds of books. And in the middle of the room, a couch and table for guests to find a good read, take a seat, and become lost. From behind a stack of books a friendly face appeared and greeted me.
Books waiting sorting
Eddy Nix makes time to stop and welcome all who come
to The Forgotten Works with a happy “Hello” and a friendly smile. Whether he is
working on sorting through donated books, organizing and placing more titles
out on the floor, or busy packaging up pieces ever so gently in recycled brown
paper bags to be shipped to customers from his online business, he is never too
busy to offer his assistance. When I returned to Driftless Books and Music, I
watched as two ladies wandered in to be met with the same upbeat greeting that
I had.
More books!
One of the ladies happened to be holding what looked like a grocery list of books written on a folded post-it. The two women told us that they were just looking around, but more specifically were interested in checking out the romance novels. One of them mentioned a specific author which Eddy thought over for a minute before directing them to the romance section and saying that he thought he might have some, if not by that author, a few that were similar in the basement. He proceeded to the lowest level which housed just as many books as the main level and effortlessly found the shelf he was looking for. I watched with a sense of awe as he scooped up the books. In a building that holds over half a million books, it takes some crazy organization and memory to remember where certain titles are resting.
Still more books…
If you move further into the brick structure, you will
pass through yet another doorway into an even larger room with, you guessed it,
more books. If you don’t get lost among the tree covered hills and valleys of
the Driftless area, you will get lost in the maze of bookshelves at this hidden
gem.
I perused the shelves, unsure exactly what I was looking for, until I finally settled for the “self-help” section. The bookshelves were arranged to form small cubby areas with seating for visitors to use while looking for the perfect match. I started with the top shelf and skimmed for interesting titles. My hand worked its way across all of the bindings until I found myself sitting crisscross applesauce on the wooden floor.
Old books take you down memory lane.
I opened the cover of the first book that I had pulled out and set aside and felt myself going back in time. Back to the moment when I was much smaller and felt myself fall out of love with reading. My mom had brought me to a small used bookstore in Bismarck, North Dakota. By the time we left, I had a stack of new-old novels and a new spark for reading.
When I sat down to talk with Eddy about the bookstore and his journey, I could feel a real sense of love and appreciation for the store and all of the visitors who stopped by. He told me that he enjoys visiting and listening to the guests who just come to visit the old building because of its tobacco history. He explained that almost every week a guest comes with their family and a story about how their grandfather or other family worked in the building or were one of the farmers who would drop off their tobacco crop at the side door which is now kept open to help with circulation.
Eddy explained to me that the tobacco industry brought families together to work with one another which is something that is just not as common nowadays. I really could feel a sense of pride from Eddy that he gets to hear and be a part of those stories. I could tell that he appreciates that history and enjoys helping it to continue to live on.
A homey-feeling children’s reading area.
Another visitor entered the store with two boxes of
books that he wanted to donate. They were his grandmother’s who had recently
been moved into the nursing home. After the visitor left, Eddy sat down on one
of the couches to start sorting through the new treasure. The first book he
pulled out, no joke, was titled Say No to Nursing Homes.
We laughed and continued on. He found an old high school textbook which he set aside and explained that he was going to donate to a local high school that was looking for textbooks to use as props in an upcoming play. As he was paging through another book from the pile he found a folded grocery store ad that appeared to have been used as a bookmark some time ago. “Biblioscat” he called it.
Eddy said he feels as though he is “tending to a part of a person” when he goes through donations like this. While going through donations he has found signatures of loved ones who have passed, among other treasures that mean a lot to families. In one case, Eddy sent a book to the family of the author who did not have a copy for themselves. He told me that going through each box feel like “fulfilling a mission. It’s like a treasure hunt.”
Walking back towards the entrance
In addition to the sense of adventure, appreciation, and overall wonder, an underlying passion and message lays between the pages of this place. Every year, Eddy pointed out, “approximately 300 million books get thrown in landfills.”
Unwanted, these are used books that people just don’t know what to do with. These texts sit and take up even more space in our growing landfills. The way the printing industry is set up, books are published in mass production, way more than actually are purchased by individuals. Therefore, there is a surplus of books that bookstores often do not know what to do with and libraries do not have the capacity to take in. These books often simply get tossed out along with the other used books that individuals have read and don’t know what else to do with. Eddy explained that this is often an overlooked issue: if you think about it “some titles are going extinct as fast as species.”
Eddy has saved many books so their joy can be passed on to others.
Driftless Books and Music gives a home to these used books and functions as a place where people can save these titles for others to enjoy for years to come. Anyone can donate their used books to Eddy who will in exchange offer some in store credits or even sometimes cash.
This way, donors can then peruse the store in search of a new read. Unless the book has signs of mold, Eddy finds a place in the vast brick building to put the piece of work until it is rediscovered. In Eddy’s words, “Who am I to judge which books should be kept and which ones tossed?” He further explained that although a title might not be the kind of book that he would personally pick up for enjoyment, he finds it fascinating what each item in his store is worth to different people. Whether it be for the family history or just that they find that particular item meaningful.
One last look at the inside of Driftless Books and Music… until the next visit!
A more recent goal of Eddy’s is to help expand used
bookstore connections to help save the books from the landfill graveyard and to
encourage younger people to pursue this as a career option. He hopes to start a
co-op where used bookstores can network with each other and libraries to create
a much-needed support system. Eddy hopes he can use technology for his benefit
to help this network organize the titles they possess most effectively. He also
hopes it will help readers find the title that they are looking for easier.
Eddy said that he has always seen bookstores as this type of cultural intersection. They provide a social area that brings communities together in a supportive and safe environment. He explained that he hopes that this place leaves his visitors with a sense of ontological questioning or a feeling that just makes them pause and really think and reflect. Whether visitors stop by in pursuit of a specific title, to browse the shelves, or to reminisce on the history of the location, this attraction is guaranteed to be a memorable stop. As I traveled home through the Driftless hills, I couldn’t help but feel like the world could use a few more repurposed tobacco warehouses and a few more Eddys to lead them.
To read more about Eddy’s story and Driftless Books
and Music, check out the following articles and follow Driftless Books and
Music on Facebook using the links below:
Nix, E. (n.d.). “The guy who owned this old tobacco warehouse here in Viroqua, he just gave me the building. Just gave it to me.”. Retrieved September 25, 2019, from https://www.lovewi.com/eddy.
We can’t spend all of our road trip in one corner of southwest Wisconsin! So today, we’re going to wind north to Vernon County, home of a plethora of state and county parks. One of them, Wildcat Mountain (are those some mounds, or what?) also doubles as a ski resort. It’s also home of the 8600 acre Kickapoo River Reserve, a valley along the largest tributary to the Wisconsin River and a truly spectacular wildlife and canoeing spot. As DriftlessWisconsin.com points out, “[b]ecause the glaciers that missed the Driftless Area did not change its natural course, the Kickapoo River Valley is one of the oldest river systems in the world.”
We’ve always liked driving through Vernon County– any part of Vernon County.
The county’s top industry happens to be organic farming. They’re also home of the world’s largest cooperative of family farms, Organic Valley, whose main distribution center is almost totally solar-powered.
The Organic Valley headquarters in LaFarge, Wisconsin.
Signage from the “Uff-Da Shoppe” in Westby
The U.S.A.’s oldest tobacco cooperative isn’t out east, like you might think. It’s in Viroqua, Wisconsin. Photo by “Appraiser.”
Co-ops are a way of life here, as is preserving a sustainable local heritage. Want some cool Scandinavian gifts? Stop into little Westby’s “Uff-Da-Shoppe”! Or drive on to the county seat, Viroqua, whose population doesn’t quite break 5,000. Along with a health-food coops, they also are home to the nation’s oldest tobacco-growing cooperative.
But as we told you on our submissions page, we’re word nerds here. And it just happens that little Viroqua is also home of one of the coolest bookstores we have ever seen! It’s also time to introduce our first guest writer, Rachel Eckmann. Welcome, Rachel!
Last week, we looked at some of the beautiful views and took a walk down the south ridge. But the real fun lies to the north!
Caves, Crevices and Campfires
If you’ve made it to the top of the mound for a hike, the north path is a lot longer and, to me, more fun. If you go, take a compass (or make sure you know how to use the one on your cell phone!) Unlike the easier south path, this trail is one you can get lost on.
You’ll spend the first quarter-mile just walking along the ridge, but the trail is fairly well-marked for this first little bit. Eventually you’ll be under the trees… just stay on the trail!
Even once you get in the woods, the trail is fairly well marked.
“Stay on the trail.” Sounds like an easy concept to follow, right? But if you’re like most of us, pretty soon you’ll notice that more of the coller-looking things — ravines, jutted up rock formations, climbable treefall, views of “the other side of the mound” — all lie off to the right (or east), which is also where its easiest to get lost. But after all, you did bring a compass and cell phone, so…. pretty soon, in spite of yourself, you may find yourself tempted off-trail!
The trail will lead you past lots of fun hide-aways.
… and past lots of “rockfall” …
Sometimes you even find some cave-like hiding places. But that’s only if you’ve given into temptation and left the main trail.
When you get to the far north end of the trail, you’ll see how the Mound ridge has narrowed. Any time except late summer, you’ll have a view off to the north. There’s almost always some sort of campfire pit there. Recently, a local rock artist built this little pyramid!
The north end of the Platte Mound in winter.
One the other side of this particular ridge, you can see nearby Belmont Mound.
Remember how I told you in the last article how you could see Sherrill Mound from the Platte Mound? Well, you can also see the Belmont Mound, if you walk off the trail far enough to the east and find a high ridge. You just can’t get the best picture through the trees. There’s also another little mound (literally called “Little Mound”) that sits half-way between them.
Icicles on the north trail, from early November 2019
If you’re lucky enough to take your hike just after a freeze (but when things have thawed enough on the sunnier side next to the “M” that you can get up the stairs), you’ll find all sorts of cool icicles, dripping out of the limestone. That’s because 1) it stays colder up in the shade, obviously, and 2) Since limestone is very porous, water easily flows out of its crevices and makes icicles. (You’ve probably seen this same phenomenon on highways, where a road has been blasted through limestone. In winter, it seems to spew icicles faster than the surrounding area.) They’re a lot of fun to see!
Now for the anticlimax…
You can hear all sorts of local stories about different caves up on this trail. Some people swear there really aren’t any. They’re either lying to you or didn’t look very hard. I’ve been in a couple of these caves and listened to stories over beer about lots of others. True, some of the stories were crazy-sounding (like the guy who used to sit at the old Ed’s Cafe and opine that their were Egyptian hieroglyphics inside the mound somewhere). Others, like the story of a child who fell into on of the caves many years ago resulting in that cave being sealed off (either with concrete or by dynamiting it), can’t be easily proven true or false.
But there ARE many places visited not just by me but by seasoned spelunkers with hard-hats, lights and lines. I won’t be the one to tell you how to get to them. Any cave beyond the size of the one shown earlier in this article is a place you shouldn’t go into without someone who knows what she’s doing . . . and that person is not yours truly.
But I can tell you some brief stories about them,
One of the caves, reports long-time resident Garry Prohaska, is more than thirty feet long. Another has multiple rooms. How many caves does the Platte Mound house? Well, retired professor Tracy Roberts has pointed out that the Mound’s limestone ravines, and the way they were formed through stream erosion, suggests that there likely are many unseen sunken caves where water has already created a crevice. That cave-making process takes literally thousands of years: one property of limestone is its ability to maintain its structural integrity for a very long time. There’s no record anyone has made of where the caves are (though you can find Facebook discussions where some locals are telling others to keep quiet about the locations!) But chances are pretty high that, if someone was in a cave 20 years ago, it’s still there, though perhaps covered with surface debris.
Another long-time Platteville resident, now sadly deceased, once described how to get into his favorite cave. Luckily for us, he did it in general enough terms that you can get an idea of the process but not actually locate the cave.
He reported, “if you go into that crawl space [under a particular rock] you’ll get into a small room. [Shine your flashlight] to the left and look for a crack. Crawl on your belly through the tunnel, spiral down to the right, and when you are able to get off your belly, climb down and you’ll have room to stand up. Move slowly to the left, and there’s a second entire room.”
By the way… caves like this pockmark the Driftless Region, especially wherever you find ravines and limestone. But you’ll need to find someone else to show them to you. My time wriggling through rocks belonged to a younger, thinner, and slightly crazier version of myself. My advice is to just enjoy the hiking… that’s beautiful enough!
One last story though… here a (very) old road trip story from a preacher’s journal about one particularly large cave somewhere in the mound (Thanks to my friend Laurie Graney for locating this article. It’s from November 26, 1835, and the various spelling mistakes are from the original.)
A Methodist Circuit Rider’s Tour
West Platt mound. Preached at night. This mound with its mate 3 miles east of it, rises 200 feet above the common levil of the country. They are each about a mile in circumference, & mostly covered with timber. The west one has in it a cave which has been explored 1[oo] or 200 yards [in], & after winter set in a rattlesnake was found crawling about as in summer.
Wisconsin Historical Collections Volume XV. “(1835 ) A Methodist Circuit Rider’s Tour. “
Do any of the caves really go in 100 or 200 yards? I don’t know. It’s fun to think so!
All right, I guess the least we could do is show you an old hideout or two. These places, all off of the east side of the trail (the side towards Belmont Mound), are all safe and easily hiked through. Sometimes you notice that folks have been camping there. The Boy Scouts used to, but now and then older folks do, too.
Walking just below the ridge of the mound in fall, you are bound to find something.
[Editor’s note: since the Platte Mound is so heavily associated with Platteville, the most populous city in Grant County, though it’s actually across the county line in Lafayette County, we’ve tagged it for both places.]
We’ll be back with more on the Platte Mound and its history after winter comes! Now let’s head north to Vernon County, Viroqua, and a great bookstore….
Unless noted, all photos by Terry Burns
Tell us about your favorite place in the Driftless Region!
