24 Hours in Door County
Early last week, I opened my planner and realized that I didn’t have anything scheduled for the upcoming weekend. Within an hour, I had a hotel booked in Door County and a plan in place! We hadn’t been to Door County yet this year so I thought it’d be a perfect way to wrap up the fall season.
We headed out early Saturday morning, ready to explore the peninsula and take some photos.
Within 10 minutes, we were in the next little town of Ephraim. Even though the sun was shining, it was pretty chilly outside, especially with the cold wind coming off of Lake Michigan. To warm up, we stopped at Czarnuszka Soup Bar, a tiny restaurant tucked down one of Ephraim’s side streets. I have no idea how to pronounce the name but it’s the cutest little place with just a few different soup options and a couple of small tables inside.
Afterwards, we were back on the road and on our way to Newport State Park! We spent an hour or so strolling the beach and admiring Lake Michigan. It was a lot warmer there and so peaceful!
We thought we’d take a slow drive back towards Ephraim since we had dinner reservations there that evening. When my boyfriend and I are driving together on little trips like these, we almost always take random backroads to get to our destination. We’ve discovered some pretty incredible places by doing this and this time was no different!
We were near Ellison Bay when we noticed a sign at the end of a dirt driveway. We drove for what seemed like forever down a super narrow, one-lane dirt road. The road curved throughout the forest until eventually, we came to a grouping of old-fashioned cottages.
After doing a quick Google search, we discovered that it was an adult folk school called The Clearing where they offer retreats, classes, and workshops. Since there wasn’t a class in session and the website stated the campus was open, we went to take a closer look at this unique and enchanting place.
As we walked along the main pathway, I felt like we’d been transported into a storybook. Stone walls defined the property, giving the place an English feel to it. Some of the cottages were made out of stone and some were made out of logs. Wooden adirondack chairs were placed around the property and old broomsticks hung outside each of the doors. I half-expected to see the seven dwarves milling about 🙂
On our next visit to Door County, I’m thinking we’ll try either The Whistling Swan or Barringers.
