Cheese, Racing, and Restoration

Family vacation is supposed to be a time to escape; to rejuvenate, refresh, and bond with those we’re supposed to love best. But, with expectations running high –and that last potty break request getting on your last nerve  – usually within hours of travel your gang is cranky and stressed out.

Frankly, vacation often seems like too much work.

But just last week I discovered a vacation spot that has me dying to hop on a plane and get back pronto: charming Elkhart Lake, about an hour north of the Milwaukee airport. Deep in Wisconsin dairy country, it’s quaint and relaxed, and home to only about 1,000 year-round locals.

Beyond its Midwestern friendliness, Elkhart Lake is known for three things: its pristine, spring-fed blue-green lake, the surrounding Kettle Moraine State Forest, and the nearby Road America racetrack that attracts both professional and amateur racers. (Do the names Mario Andretti or Paul Newman vaguely ring a bell?)

Here you can be as active as you like – kayaking, hiking, or engaging in activities involving four wheels – or you can drop onto a chaise on the immaculate beaches and not budge until local boaters, as is their custom, blow conch shells to signal dusk’s arrival.

(But heck, if you’re going to spend all your time prone, schedule some pampering at Aspira, the holistic spa at the The Osthoff Resort.)

Grab a Lakeview Room

Three “resort” properties ring the northeast side of the lake: Victorian Village Resort, Siebkens Resort, and The Osthoff Resort.

Siebkens and Victorian Village offer relaxed, updated accommodations, while The Osthoff is the showy cousin, pulling out all the stops. It’s impressive in every way, including its numerous, long hallways in which I repeatedly got lost. Tip: use your nose when searching for the spa!

If you like intimate, and your family is small, nab the third-floor rooms of the nearby Jay Lee Inn B&B. The third floor becomes your private hideaway when you book the two bedrooms and shared bath. Owner Monica Lettow cooks up incredible breakfasts! Just know there is no elevator, and a stay includes interaction with Lettow’s stately pooch.

My favorite place to perch: the full-kitchen condo units at the Victorian Village Resort, as the lake views are phenomenal. From your roomy, private front patio (ground floor units include latches to ensure your wee ones stay contained) you can watch the sunset – or the people – when the Barefoot Tiki Bar gets its weekend groove on.

Owner Judy Salzwedel warmly welcomes families to host reunions onsite. Her only rule about kids: “What you bring, you have to take home.” (I’m okay with that!)

Good Eats Galore

If vacationing in a small town makes you worry about having to resort to bad food, fret not. Elkhart Lake serves up incredible eats, thanks to high expectations of those well-traveled race enthusiasts. As well, there is a small, but exceptionally well -stocked grocery.

A fabulous place to lunch is Off the Rail, a cozy café that serves up awesome sandwiches and other baked goods. Tip: The sandwiches are huge, so your kids can share.

For dinner, try the Lake Street Café. Pair the house specialty, Tenderloin Shiraz, with one of the available 600 wines. For the kids, there’s a healthy kids menu, including yummy wood-fired pizza.

The best part of dining in Elkhart Lake: whether you choose to dine at the resorts or in town, it’s nearby. So plan for leisurely strolls. Including a stop at Gessert’s ice cream shop, to grab an old-fashioned phosphate or thick malt shake. Owner Yvonne, a long-time local, can fill you in on Elkhart Lake’s gambling history!

Family Fun

It goes without saying that you need to jump in the lake when you’re here. But if swimming’s not your thing, here are some of my favorite non-water to-dos:

*Tour Henning’s Cheese Factory. Watch how this family operation makes their cheese by hand, including mammoth wheels up to 12,000 pounds (that’s 6 tons!). Then nibble on the free samples; you’ll likely buy pounds to take home. Try the fresh cheese curds – they squeak!

*Explore Broughton Sheboygan Marsh Park, the second largest intact marsh in Wisconsin. It’s only 3 feet deep, so you can walk across it in winter! Be sure to climb the 80-foot aerial tower, the tallest in the state, for the bird’s eye view. Just know there’s a camera at the top that feeds into the Three Guys and a Grill restaurant below. Scott, who owns Three Guys, is the spitting image of Annie’s “Daddy” Warbucks! Scott will likely entice you to try some fried Walleye, a local fish favorite.

*Geocaching at Road America. What’s more family fun than scavenger hunting via gocart? Not much! Your GPS unit may not be as persnickety as mine, but triumphing over it was a thrill. HA!

*Defensive driving lessons at Road America’s driving school. My initial fear at being told I would be hydroplaning across the wet parking lot nearly had me wetting myself. But instructor Jim Halvorson channeled my jumping nerves, and soon had me capably achieving “collision avoidance,” as he calls it. Mike Kertsher, Road America’s program director, can give you full details on both activities.

Elkhart Lake, I miss you. But I will return. My soul soaked up that beautiful water, creative atmosphere, and unique activities. I was happy in Elkhart Lake.  I bet your family will be, too.

June 18th, 2011 | by Sheri Bell-Rehwoldt 7 comments