The Modern Camper

Growing up, my family did a lot of camping, traversing the best Wisconsin state parks with our trusty popup camper in tow. Many of my favorite memories from growing up are those in which I was camping and spending time with my family in the great outdoors. That's why I was so excited to learn about a new "camper-esque" product on the market for today's adventure lovers...

Recently awarded the coveted designation of “Men’s Journal Gear of the Year 2008,” Sylvan Sport’s GO is the most unique, intuitive, versatile, and lightweight mobile adventure camping and travel trailer ever created.

The all-aluminum, low profile design weighs in at just 800 pounds and can be pulled behind even the smallest cars. You can stow up to 800 pounds of equipment in one configuration, and strap gear and bikes to the Thule-compatible roof rack system in another.

The tent fits cleanly into the roof’s storage box, and when you’re ready to set up camp, the tent stands up in just two minutes. The camper-esque dome tent offers a dining table and space for up to four adults. The GO also comes with a locking, weather-proof gear box where you can keep all of your camping essentials. The GO will set you back $8,000.

Avec

As I mentioned in the last post, I had dinner on Sunday night in Chicago at Avec, which was an extraordinary dining experience. My favorite foodie friend, Seif, recommended the restaurant last year, and I finally decided to see what all of the fuss was about. The restaurant is located in West Loop Chicago on Randolph Street. It’s simple storefront is unnoteworthy, but the inside of the restaurant is truly unique. The clean design of the cedar-lined dining room is striking, and apparently designed to provide a clean palate in which to present Avec’s unique dining experience.

The dining room is essentially one long rectangular room, with a silver topped bar on one side, and long tables for communal dining on the other side. A wall of green wine bottle bottoms present color and visual flair on the far end of the dining room.

The seasonal menu features wine cuisine inspired from the regions of Spain, Portugal, Italy, and France surrounding the Mediterranean. Avec offers “tapas style” dining with small plates, large plates, artisan cheeses, and wines. The prices are very reasonable. Small plates are $4 to $12, and large plates range from $10 to $18.

Although the dining room may look trendy and pretentious, it certainly didn’t feel that way. The wait staff was extremely friendly, and the service was superb. The communal dining set-up lead to easy conversation with neighbors. As soon as we sat down, the couple next to us was offering a taste of their focaccia bread.

We ended up choosing the following combination of small and large plates. My favorites were definitely the flatbread and focaccia, but the dates (pictured, above) and hanger steak were fantastic, too. But maybe a tad more spicy than I can usually handle.

-Chorizo-stuffed madjool dates with smoked bacon and piquillo pepper-tomato sauce
-Wood-fired flatbread with roasted mushrooms, fromage blanc lardons and fresh thyme
-"Deluxe" focaccia with taleggio cheese, truffle oil and fresh herbs
-Pan-roasted hanger steak with rapini, roasted corn, smoked paprika lima beans and herbed butter

Anyone who is living in or visiting Chicago must visit this restaurant. The food is fantastic, and the entire dining experience is unique. Avec does not take reservations, however, so be sure to get there early or be prepared to wait. We were able to get a seat at the bar immediately on Sunday evening, but the place definitely filled up quick.

Sex In the City

For my third weekend in a row out of town, I spent time in the heart of Chicago’s Magnificent Mile, which was a nice change of pace from the last two weekends spent camping and enjoying the outdoors.

As I’ve mentioned before, Karen serves on a planning committee for a professional conference that takes place in Chicago each December. Throughout the year, she heads to Chicago for planning meetings, and I tag along to selfishly enjoy the fabulous downtown accommodations, shopping, and dining, and to catch up with friends who live in the city.

We spent late Saturday through Monday in the city. Saturday was a beautiful day, so after checking into the hotel, we immediately headed to the Ohio Street beach to lay in the sun and read. That night, we ate dinner at A Mano, an Italian Trattoria located on North Dearborn, near the House of Blues. A Mano focuses primarily on antipasti, wood oven pizzas, pasta, and gelato. The Arugula Salad (with pine nuts, parmigiano and Meyer lemon vinaigrette) was fantastic, but my entrée—Herb Gnocchi (with mussels, zucchini blossoms, preserved lemons, and snap peas)—didn’t quite live up to expectations. I liked the open kitchen concept, but business was relatively sparse for a Saturday night, which makes me believe it won’t last long.

On Sunday morning, we did a nice long run on the Lakeshore bike path. Afterwards I met my friend, Seif, at my favorite Chicago breakfast spot—Fox and Obel. It was great to catch up, and after brunch, we did a little shopping on Michigan Avenue. I then met up with Karen after her meetings, and we went to dinner at Avec, a truly unique and extraordinary restaurant that Seif had recommended, and a place deserves a post all to itself. Details will follow.

After dinner, we went to see the film Choke, which exceeded my expectations in being dark and disturbing. I knew the basic storyline and how the main character is a sex-addict, but really, I wasn’t expecting quite that much raunchy sex. I would steer clear of this movie if you’re a.) on a first date, or b.) expecting to have sex in the next month. Otherwise, go for it. I suppose it was thought-provoking, and I did love the soundtrack.

We had big expectations for Monday, our final day in the city. We did another long run on the lakeshore path, I had breakfast at Fox and Obel, and Karen had just a few hours of morning meetings, after which our grand plans included a trip to the Lincoln Park zoo. Unfortunately, our parade was literally rained on, so we settled for a little shopping on Michigan Avenue, lunch at Go Roma, a fast-food Italian chain on North State Street that never fails, and then headed home, back to the comfort of Madison, at least for a few days, until our travels take us to Minneapolis for our next urban adventure.

Fish Boil and Other Door County Treats

White Gull Inn Fish Boil

Karen entering the White Gull Inn

Our Master Boiler, Tom Christianson

White Fish from Lake Michigan

Bringing in the cooked fish for dinner

Let's go eat!

Another one of my favorite parts of this past weekend was experiencing my first fish boil, which has been a Door County tradition for over a hundred years, pioneered by the early Scandinavian settlers of the Peninsula. Many of the local restaurants offer fish boils, but the White Gull Inn's is one of the oldest, and most famous.

A traditional Door County fish boil features freshly caught Lake Michigan whitefish caught by local fishermen and cooked outside over an open fire. The fish is cut in chunks and cooked in boiling water with small red potatoes. Fish oils rise to the surface of the boiling cauldron, and when the fish is perfectly done, the Master Boiler tosses a small amount of kerosene on the flames under the pot. The great burst of flames causes the boilover, spilling the fish oils over the side of the pot and leaving the fish perfectly done, steaming hot and ready to serve.

I loved the fish boil. It was fun and entertaining to watch, and the fish and accompanying dishes were delicious. I love a good fish fry, but doubted that I would enjoy plain, boiled whitefish. But served with a little tarter sauce and a touch of butter, the stuff was to die for. The dinner was also an incredible deal. For $18.95 per person, our dinner included all-you-can-eat fish and potatoes, garden fresh coleslaw, homemade breads and homemade Door County cherry pie for dessert. Of course, there was also the entertainment factor of watching the cooking process and hearing the history first hand from our master boiler. On top of that, there was also a gentleman playing the accordion during dinner. I thought the fish boil would be a "one and done" experience for me, but I loved it and will definitely go back.

After the fish boil, we headed back to our camp site for a nice campfire before turning in for the night. Sunday morning we slept in a bit before heading out on a 14-mile run around the perimeter of the park. The run was very difficult, as most of it was spent in the bluffs of the park, climbing hill after hill. Karen reminded me that it was good training for the hills of the Twin Cities marathon, which we're scheduled to run next weekend. Along the way, we also stopped at the lookout tower, where we enjoyed phenomenal views of Lake Michigan from a very high platform. Towards the end of the run, I was struggling immensely, but pressed on. I was very tired and hungry for breakfast.

Afterwards I told Karen that I was going to eat all day long. She laughed and replied that's my mantra every day. True. Nonetheless, I was ready to eat breakfast. We decided on a cute little breakfast nook in Ephraim named "Good Eggs." Upon entering, I immediately fell in love with the place. They were playing Beck, my favorite musical artist, and their menu featured three simple versions of breakfast omelets, fruit smoothies, scones, and "mountain bars." I loved the vibe, and the food was great, too. Definitely a gem. And very cheap, too.

From there, we did a little shopping in Ephriam, Egg Harbor, and Sister Bay before starting our drive home. We stopped at Orchard Winery on our way out for a little wine tasting and to pick up a pie for the way home. Which, living up to my day's goal, I immediately dug into. It was some damn good apple pie!

Door County (Saturday, Continued)

We spent the rest of Saturday driving up the peninsula, visiting one harbor town after another, including Ephraim, Sister Bay, Ellison Bay, Gills Rock, and Northport. One of my favorite stops was to Uncle Tom's Candies in Northport, which is a small candy shop in an old schoolhouse that I remember visiting as a child during our frequent family camping trips to Door County (we were one of those pop-up camper families). The memory of Uncle Tom's seemed so vivid to me, even though it's been over 20 years since I last visited. Uncle Tom, who owned the shop since the 1970's, passed away in 1997 and gave the store to his favorite employee, who later sold the store to the current owners upon her retirement. Uncle Tom's legacy remains, and remnants of his zany personality are everywhere. I ended up purchasing ungodly amounts of Uncle Tom's famous pancake batter and peanut brittle to get me through the winter, and to send to some very important people. After Uncle Tom's, we drove to Gill's Rock and considered taking the ferry to Washington Island, but decided to save it for another time.

We then drove back South along the peninsula, and stopped for a quick lunch of chili in Sister's Bay, followed by ice cream at Wilson's Ice Cream Parlor in downtown Ephraim, which has been a classic Door County icon since 1906. Interestingly, just in front of Wilson's, on the piers that jut out into Lake Michigan, is where I had a pretty good fall in the lake when I was approximately 5 or 6 years old. As the story goes, I was walking along the pier, tripped, and fell in frigid waters of Lake Michigan. My dad jumped into action, and reached down into the lake to grab and pull me out. We have a great picture of me warming up afterwards by a campfire. Perhaps this accident is what initiated my first swim lessons and subsequent career in competitive swimming...

Cana Island Lighthouse

Our Saturday in Door County was filled with an incredible amount of activity. Despite sleeping on slightly uneven terrain in the tent, I had a relatively restful night (but will definitely be adding a Thermarest to my Christmas list). Karen and I awoke to a quick burst of rain, which luckily only lasted for approximately 10 minutes. Afterwards, the overcast skies immediately cleared out and the sun poured in. At that point, we headed out on a 5 mile run on the Sunset Trail. It was one of those amazing fall runs that I look forward to and remember all year.

After our run, we cleaned up and headed to Bailey’s Harbor for their Autumnfest celebration. We perused the arts and craft vendors, and I purchased a small beautifully crafted wooden bud vase. We then walked around town, and ultimately decided Bailey’s Harbor was not all that exciting. Moving on, we drove to the nearby Cana Island Lighthouse, which is Door County’s most recognizable lighthouse. It was one of my favorite activities of the day, as I really enjoyed learning about the significance of the lighthouse in maritime history, and also about the day-to-day life of the lighthouse keepers and their families. I also liked touring the inside of the lighthouse and climbing up to the top for the incredible views. Actually, climbing to the top was not all that easy for me. I’m really shaky when it comes to heights, so I definitely struggled with the never ending twisting staircase. Amazingly, although the lighthouse was built in 1869, a guardrail was not installed until the early 1900’s!

Arriving in Door County

I think this past weekend was my favorite of the year thus far. It was as close to perfect as could be. I spent Friday through Sunday camping at Peninsula State Park in Door County. The weather was phenomenal—definitely an Indian Summer experience. The fall colors were just starting to pop, and the temperatures were extremely mild.

After a 3.5 hour drive to the Door County peninsula, Karen and I arrived at the park. We set up camp, and were happy to find our site in Tennison Bay, which was wooded, secluded, and along the shore of Lake Michigan. Despite my cluelessness upon making a reservation quite some time ago, apparently I had done good work. After situating ourselves, we went on a short bike ride along the Sunset Trail, and enjoyed breathtaking views of the expansive lake and surrounding islands and harbor towns.

After a quick rest, we drove through Fish Creek and headed to the Orchard Winery in Egg Harbor, the departure location for our 7pm “ghost tour” trolley ride, which promised “a scary, fun, and informative tour filled with tales of ghostly sunken ships, haunted lighthouses and mysterious happenings on the darker side of this spirited peninsula.” While I had done the same tour last fall, I really wanted Karen to experience it as well. We ended up having a great guide, who was a masterful story teller. We had a lot of fun and learned great historical tidbits about the peninsula. By the time the tour had ended, it was nearly 10pm. We ended up grabbing a pizza at Digger’s Pizza and Grill. Despite the name, the pizza was delicious. From there, we headed back to camp and slept in our little tent under the stars.

Camping Is In-Tents!

Tomorrow morning, I'm heading to Door County for a long weekend of camping at Peninsula State Park. My family camped there regularly when I was growing up, and I have many fond memories of the park and surrounding areas.

I am hoping for a weekend with beautiful weather and lots of outdoor fun. Planned activities include the following: a trolley ghost tour of Door County, a fish boil at White Gull Inn, a stop at Wilson's Ice Cream Parlor, a tour of Cana Island Lighthouse (pictured, above), a stop at Bailey's Harbor Autumnfest, a bike ride on the Sunset Trail at Peninsula State Park, and possible stops at one of the local wineries/orchards, Sweetie Pie's, and Uncle Tom's Newport School Candies in Ellison Bay.

I am so excited. I love camping, and I've been planning this trip for over 6 months, as sites at Peninsula State Park are hard to come by! The thought of camping also reminds me of my former student worker, Meghan, who also loved camping and frequently wore a t-shirt imprinted with the message "Camping Is In-Tents!" Good stuff. I still think I might need one of those.

Down Time Up North

I spent a very relaxing weekend in northern Wisconsin at my family's cabin near Minocqua. Karen and I arrived late on Thursday evening. It was quite chilly the entire time we were there, although we did have nice, sunny skies on Friday. The rest of the time was overcast and damp, but we didn't really mind. Most of our time was spent napping, playing solitaire, reading, and eating. We did venture out a few times for antique shopping in town, a hike on the bear skin trail, and a long run--also on the bear skin trail. I love the bear skin trail. It's a beautiful, 17-mile trail from Harshaw to Minocqua, along an old railroad route, complete with trestles and all. I was amazed at how the colors are already beginning to show in the trees around the area. While the trees are mostly still green, some vibrant yellows and reds really stood out.

And is it even possible that I had never in my life played Solitaire before this weekend? Karen taught me and I have become obsessed. It's all I want to do. Solitaire anyone? For a beginner, I'm quite good :)

Derby Day

Kristin and Jose

Group pic

The ladies of the Derby

Kristin and Aaron

Greg and Kristin

Kristin and the boys heading to the infield

Kristin and Greg picking winners

The traditional 35-pound blanket of 564 red roses (which were interestingly never placed on Big Brown's back, as he "freaked out" at the Florida Derby when they put flowers on him)

Beautiful Derby horse

Court Vision (4th position)

Big Brown, Winner of 2008 Kentucky Derby

Luckily, derby day graced us with plenty of sunshine, great racing, entertaining people watching, and plenty of mint julep induced debauchery. We started the day with another homemade breakfast feast a la chez de Koetter’s, complete with regional specialties and mimosas. We were certainly living the life in Louisville.

We made our way to the track just after the third race of the day, where we enjoyed our newly established “infielder” status. Although not quite rolling like at Friday’s Kentucky Oaks, it was a nice change of scenery and offered a nice balance of infield craziness and paddock sophistication. We spent most of our time in the crowded paddock area, which is an area behind the grandstand where the horses and jockeys are staged before heading out onto the track. It’s a great place to admire the horses, and if you really know what you’re doing, observe each horse’s pre-race condition and preparation and make bets accordingly. Of course, I don’t know what the hell I’m doing, so I study the program and local newspapers, but mostly bet on horses with what I deem to be the coolest names.

We watched the big race, the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby (post time 6:04pm), from the Paddock area on a very big jumbotron. There was a full field of 20 horses. Big Brown was the favorite at 3-1, but his 20th post position provided some doubt. Essentially, he would need to cut over from the furthest outfield position and risk getting tangled up in a mess of horses all vying for an inside position. My bet was on Pyro in post #9, an early season favorite who disappointed with a 10th place finish at the Blue Grass Derby, his last race prior to the Kentucky Derby. However, the Blue Grass was run on a synthetic track, so some believed Pyro would come back strong for the Derby. And he was in a fabulous post position.

Big Brown, of course, won the race by 4 ¾ lengths and is now focused on the Preakness, the second jewel of the Triple Crown, which will be run in Baltimore on May 17. Interestingly, Big Brown became just the second horse in the history of the derby to win after breaking from post position 20. Pyro made a mild rally from 18th to finish 8th. So no big money won here. And of course the whole race was overshadowed by the heartbreaking fate of second place filly, Eight Belles, who shattered both ankles just after crossing the fish line, and was immediately euthanized on the track. Eight Belles had been the first filly to compete in the Kentucky Derby since 1999.

Rainy Day at the Kentucky Oaks

Kristin and Michelle

Look, it's Tom Cruise! Oh wait, it's just Eric...

Let the racing begin!

Cooling off.

Kristin and Jose

Mmm...tasty mint juleps!

Our fabulous hosts--Mr. and Mrs. Koetters, and Regina

Michelle, Kristin, Regina, and Sheila

And then it started to pour.... :(

But the race must go on! Here is Proud Spell, winner of the Kentucky Oaks

Winning jockey Gabriel Saez

Aaron, Jason, Jose, and Greg

No amount of rain could stop us!

The 134the Kentucky Oaks was held the Friday before the Kentucky Derby. There were 12 races throughout the day, the first of which took place at 11am. The second to the last race of the day was the famed Kentucky Oaks at 6pm, which featured a field of ten 3-year-old fillies, all competing for $500,000.

Our seats for the day were PHENOMENAL. We had two boxes of seats that were front row, center, directly in front of the winner's circle. A big thank you to Mr. and Mrs. Koetters for hooking us up with a great local ticket broker.

For the first few races, we enjoyed our fabulous seats and took in the entire experience. The horses were breathtakingly beautiful and fast. Of course, the hats and people watching were also great. Unfortunately, the showers came all too soon, soaking the track and making for very sloppy race and spectating conditions. Despite the rain, we sported ponchos, and enjoyed the afternoon.

Proud Spell and jockey Gabriel Saez won the Kentucky Oaks (the 3-1 favorite despite finishing third in the Ashland in her final prep). It was pretty awesome to see the garland of lillies (which is what the winner of the filly's race is awarded) draped on Proud Spell following the race. Gabriel Saez and the owners watched proudly.

I made only a few bets throughout the day, most notably on "Wisconsin Girl" and "Forward Wisconsin," which both sounded like winners to me! My "Wisconsin Girl" did come in second place in the final race of the day, which won me $10 in a side bet with my friend, Jason, and ended up being my biggest win of the weekend.