I am not one of those lucky people who can say " I have been visiting The Door since I was a child.." I am, however, one of those lucky people taken there a few years ago and I fell in love.
I have always thought that Wisconsin was superior to Michigan in some ways. Wisconsin is still a wilderness. The trees grow bigger and the cows grow fatter than it's cousin across the Lake. Wisconsin is outdoors men fishing and hunting. Michigan is beautiful Sunsets and rambling shoreline.
My experience with Wisconsin has always been Central Wisconsin. Albeit a pretty and natural environment (and I still have plenty of love for it that will be addressed in a later posting) it was lacking something. I love the giant lakes and rivers in Central Wisconsin. But to drive up the Lake Michigan Shore heading up to the Door sealed it.
My first trip to the Door was a drive up through Milwaukee(which I enjoy immensely). But I truly loved when we finally left the highway in Manitowac to join the string of towns that wind up 42 to the Door. It is a beautiful ride. If you have never gotten off the beaten track and taken the extra time to drive up 42, I strongly suggest you try it.
It was during that ride that I realized how beautiful Lake Michigan is. It's hard to believe when you are looking at that mass of water, that it is only a lake and not even the biggest of the Great Lakes.
First, we ride through Manitowac on 10, which leads us to 42. The tree lined residential streets are like an old time movie scene. There is even a sign for the Manitowac Zoo! Who knew?
On your left you will see set beside the mansions of Manitowac a former high school (now a middlw school) that looks like it was taken from a scene of the movie Grease. A sprawling old school with pillars and a huge front lawn that leads up the steps of this (one can only assume) fine institution. In the back of your mind you can hear some alma maters fight song droning......
This lovely road spills out onto 42 at the Lake. The LSD has Lake Michigan on the right, along with a path for the locals to walk and bike all year long. On the left, scattered houses and businesses spot the highway. There is even an old road side gas station that you pull through. This is unlike our familiar corner gas spots with multiple lanes and multiple pumps, this one has just two islands that you pull up to....dangerous but different.
As you make the turn to Two Rivers, the Lighthouse Inn marks the end of the Manitowac path. You can get a Lake view room for about $79. It looks like one of the places my Mom would have liked. I haven't been able to stay there yet, but I plan to, very soon!!!!
Just before you leave Manitowac you will be slapped back into the reality of urban decay. There sits Lakeview Plaza, most of the stores shuttered, Only the Penneys appears to remain. It's just a small reminder that the economy can collapse anywhere.
Two Rivers is the first of several fishing towns that wind up 42. It is a quaint little town (it does have a McDonalds) that holds a few good secrets known only to the fisherman that travel there to find the abundance of WhiteFish and Perch. My favorite diner, Phil Rohr's Ho' Made Soup sign peeks out over the top of a ramshackled little diner that sits right next to the street near the second of the Two Rivers. The diner holds maybe 25 people. Two of the preferred tables are in the window. There are a few small wooden booths and of course counter service. We didn't stop on my first trip, but it has since become the place for breakfast or an early lunch. The soup is DELISH! Phil is usually back there cooking, the place is ALWAYS packed. The have specials everyday, which include fried perch, handmade hamburgers and fries with BUTTER on them! Yes, I said butter, melted. My friend got them the first time.....when we got home she had to take double doses of her Lipitor! I chose the gravy! The place is a gem. Phil hands out postcards to the non-locals. He even sells t-shirts. If you go, and you should. Make sure you make a pit stop in their unisex bathroom. The room is so small that the sink to wash your hands is inside the restaurant. (Just outside the bathroom)It's a trip well worth taking.
