For the first time in 17 months, my kids are about to go back into a classroom. I’m grateful they are vaccinated and that our state is requiring masks. For anyone who has been in Asia over the last 18 years, you know masks are key to fending off viruses. The lessons of SARS were tough, but lasting.
So my family wanted to be safe and responsible with a short getaway before school started. Ideally, we wanted to limit contact with others and wear masks when we couldn’t isolate. We picked Sturgeon Bay in Door County, Wisconsin, a place my own parents would take my brother and me in the early 1980s.
It was easy to isolate. We rented a little house through Airbnb and had no contact with the owner. She had tea and a couple of teapots in the fully equipped kitchen, which was a plus for me!
We brought our bicycles and rode around the neighborhood, finding the lakefront and—a surprise for us—pelicans! Apparently the white pelican was in that area a century ago, but left around 1900. About twenty years ago they returned and now enjoy a thriving community that migrates to the Gulf of Mexico for the winter. I couldn’t get photos of the pelicans because it was getting dark and I was so surprised to see them. But here are other photos from Door County, including the Peninsula State Park.
I look forward to going back after the pandemic is over, but feeling a little restricted this time allowed us to really take in the scenery and enjoy nature. Yet if this is the future of travel, I’m all in.
With all the space and with bikes for moving around, this looks like the perfect place for R and R during a pandemic for all of you, esp. the kids.
Thank you so much! I think one of the best lessons I’ve learned from the pandemic is to travel responsibly and to respect our natural environment. I’ve been enjoying your hiking photos, too!
Hi Susan,
Door County is GREAT!
When my family and I used to live in the Waukegan area, we used to drive through Door County for the beautiful colors of fall leaves each year. (I was assigned to the Navy base at Great Lakes and we lived there from November 1994 through September 1999.) Sure is a pretty area!
Thank you so much! I could already see that some of the leaves were changing, but not many yet. I was so surprised by those pelicans. I think they were just starting to return when you were at Great Lakes. Thanks for sharing your memories of the area!