Visiting Appleton and Chicago!

[Trigress]

Well, after letting the lovely KLM lady ensure me that I really will get into the US even though my surname can't be spelt exactly as in my passport due to weird-character-syndrome I have now booked my flight to Chicago.

I'm attending a wedding in Appleton (Wisconsin) and as we speak a friend of mine is telling me how beautiful Wisconsin is. So, this one goes out to you, dear TEs: what should I definitely not miss out on when in Appleton? Should I rent a bike and go for a ride? Should I take my hiking boots? Wetsuit?

I'm flying to and out from Chicago O'Hare, what do I really need to think about when getting myself a hotel in Chicago? Again, is there somewhere I definitely need to go? Should I rent a bike again? See Barack Obama's house? Get blown away in the windy city at some particular place?

Ok, ok, I know I probably ought to get myself a Rough Guide, but in general I think it's more exciting to hear from the locals where to go and what to see, what tourist traps are worth getting caught in and so on!

In advance, thanks for all suggestions and ideas!

[papaver]

Chicago is a cool city, you should absolutely pay it a visit. Sears Tower, the pier, lake Michigan that sort of stuff. There's some cool architecture too. It must be possible to rent a bike there. It's rather flat as I recall...

[Thorn]

Appleton? Hmm...not an area of the state I'm overly familiar with (hopefully someone from around there pipes in). If I were in the area, I'd consider riding around Lake Winnebago ( http://www.midwestsportsevents.com/m...MapFinal09.pdf ).

But, if you're driving from Chicago to Appleton, I'd suggest taking the long route and going via Madison, in particular, Mt. Horeb and ride the proposed 2012 (?) Olympic Bike course ( http://www.tourofamericasdairyland.c...escription.php ). I'd start with the Uphill Grind for bike rentals ( http://uphillgrind.net/ ).

Any ride west of Madison is going to be worth it -- rolling hills, low traffic roads and great scenery. Some consider it some of the best riding in the country. I'm not sure about that, but it is the best riding in the midwest.

Now, as for Chicago--nope, too big of city; too much traffic; too busy for this woman. I try very hard to stay away. You might try posting your question to the Great Lakes form on Bike Forums (http://www.bikeforums.net/forumdisplay.php?f=233 ) Unlike some of the groups on bike forums, the guys on the great lakes forum are well behaved. Most of the regulars are from the Chicago area (even if they do talk about riding in southwest Wisconsin more than Chicago!)

[Thorn]

Oh, wait, you're from Norway....uh...you may find SW Wisconsin "odd". A lot of the early settlers were from Norway so there are still Norwegian names, Norwegian styling and there are still people who think they speak Norwegian. However, it has been nearly 200 years and their interpretation of Norwegian can be...uh..err..different than what is Norway today and the language they speak I've been told is not Norwegian.

By example of "odd"...I sent a visiting German co-worker to German Fest one year (Milwaukee was settled by Germans and every year the community puts on a large festival). He came back a combination of mortified, amused, and confused.

How you see Mt. Horeb? -- well, it just depends (note: even Wisconsinites can find Mt. Horeb "odd", but the land is pretty--it reminds me a lot of areas of Britain and Wales)

[Aquila]

I ride in Appleton when I go to visit family there. The roads are good (paved well), drivers pretty courteous out in the country (which takes a few minutes to get to, even from the center of town). There's also a bike trail near my brother's house, and probably more around town, but I haven't really explored them. Here's a site that you may find helpful: http://wibikeroutes.net/Wisconsin%20Bike%20Links.htm

But I probably wouldn't rent a bike if I were there just to ride. The one bike shop I know in town seems really friendly and well-equipped, and it looks like their website has information on local riding. (Wheel and Sprocket)

If you'll have a car, you might want to drive up towards Door County, which is beautiful.

If you like to hike, the Ice Age Trail isn't too far: http://www.iceagetrail.org/countyhike.htm, and that's way cool (at least what I've seen). There might also be trails along the Fox river. (Here's one I found.)

There are other things to do in Appleton, too. Last time I was there, we went to the Paper Discovery Museum and made paper (appropriate for kids and adults).

I can't think of why you'd want a wet suit there, though.

If you like birds, you're a couple hours (by car) from the Horicon Marsh or the Crane Foundation (One of the places that's trying to create a new Whooping Crane flock), and those are both interesting.

As for Chicago, it's a GREAT city, with so much to do! I've never ridden there, but the Art Institute is incredible, as is the Museum of Science and Technology (erm, I may have the name wrong). There's also a really good chocolate place right in that area... but I can't think of the name off hand, alas.

I hope you have a wonderful trip. If you have other questions, I'd be happy to try to answer, though I live on the other side of the state.

[Trigress]

I knew this was the right place to ask! Thanks a million!

I'll get back to this afternoon, it's morning here now, and I'm on my out to be a bike referee in a crit race, so I need to get back to you with more detailed questions!

Thanks, you're great!

[Brandi]

I used to spend my winter's there, in both cities. Gotta try the pizza in Chicago and the brats in Appleton. As far as what to do? Since I spent winter's there i could not say. But a wetsuit I [romise you won't need. And it rains a lot during the summer and can be hot. So dress light and bring a bathing suit.

[Skierchickie]

Why not a wetsuit? Appleton is not far from Lake Michigan, and Chicago is right on it.

[Thorn]

Lake Michigan is a ways from Appleton, but Appleton is on Lake Winnebago--a very large freshwater lake. Large enough that the wet suit might be appropriate.

Swimming in Lake Michigan? Definitely wet suit swimming as the water temp rarely reaches 70. Eons ago when I was younger, fitter, and dumber I swam every day off Milwaukee's Grant Park without a wet suit. I'm not sure I'd try that now.

However, another cycling/hiking thought to consider is to hit the Kettle Morraine State Forest. It is off the direct path from Chicago to Appleton to the east, but is lovely. Good biking and really good hiking. The Ice Age trail (Wisconsin's dream of a long distance hiking path) is pretty complete through that area. The trail follows the distal edge of the last glacier. In some areas the trail is nothing more than recovered rail bed ( e.g., from southern Door County south ), but inside the Kettle Morraine area it is rolling (up the morraine and down into the kettle; up the morraine and down to the kettle....lather rinse repeat).

If interested, let me know--we've hiked a lot of that area and we can point you to some of the prettier areas. Likewise cycling routes.

[Thorn]

Gotta try the pizza in Chicago and the brats in Appleton.

Second the brat...Wisconsin brats are unique and not anything like their namesake the German bratwurst. As a vegetarian I broke my diet and ordered a bratwurst when I was on a business trip to Germany. Blah....bland and disgusting. A good Wisconsin brat is spicy.

Also, when in Wisconsin, you *must* stop at a custard stand. While you can now find custard stands outside the Midwest, we probably have more than most. Custard is really rich ice cream made with egg, made fresh every day. A good custard stand will only offer 3 flavors--vanilla, chocolate and some special flavor of the day.

[Trigress]

Good heavens. I'm running out of time!

Thanks a million for your advice, I certainly will take a pair of trekking shoes, and some cycling gear, and I think now that I will hire a car in Chicago and drive the scenic route to Appleton. You've changed my plans! I'm a bit worried about driving a car in the USA, but sometimes one simply has to take a step out of one's comfort zone...

I will check out the brats, the custard stand and the pizzas, and then I'll have to see what I can squeeze in the remaining days!

Thorn, when the departure is approaching, I'll get back to you on hiking trails, ok?

[Thorn]

No problem....I'll dig out my notes. Looking at Google's suggestion for riding between Chicago and Appleton some of the nicer trails are not very far off the route.

As for driving in the US, my German coworkers claimed it was trivial. In my area of the world, we dread driving to Chicago; the Germans couldn't understand that.

Compared to Europe, our roads are wide and straight--our cities are "new" and were mostly laid out on grid plans. The Germans other note was that on the freeway, they liked our road signs--they told you what road and the direction, not just the name of the city that is nearby.

That said, there is significant road construction coming out of Chicago. You can expect congestion until you are well into Wisconsin. Chicago is notorious for it.

[Aquila]

Some folks have mentioned food, so I have to put in a thumbs up for deep fried cheese curds in Wisconsin. Mmmmm, melty cheese! They go really well with Brats, too!

In my experience in Wisconsin, I find really good food at places way out in the middle of nowhere, and it's usually pretty cheap.

[mtbdarby]

What dates will you be in Appleton? I second the Lake Winnebago bike trip - its 90 miles around it. It's been a dry cold summer so far here so layers are recommended. Our nights are still cold.

As for the artery clogging food - heck ya! It's fair season here so lots of good Wisconsin food to be had with music festivals abounding. PM me if you'd like my phone number in case you have questions of any sort - I'm under 2 hours from the Appleton area and am currently unemployed (I knew there had to be perks to this!).

Have a safe flight and enjoy the journey!