A new book from two Eau Claire-based travel writers details nearly a dozen potential road trips to take across Wisconsin.
With “Historic Wisconsin Roadsides,” Tom Manus and Kristi Flick Manus told WPR’s “Wisconsin Today” their book aims to highlight unique destinations.
“We like quirky. So it’s really a throwback to when road trips were so popular. The book actually leans toward pop culture more than dates and pictures of old buildings,” Tom said.
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One of Kristi’s favorite finds is the Zippin Pippin roller coaster in Green Bay, used by Elvis Presley.
“It was in Memphis, and he used to take all his friends there. And Green Bay purchased it and put it up at Bay Beach, and it is a really fun roller coaster,” Kristi said.
The book outlines road trips through nearly 80 towns, with more than 1,200 recommendations. The guidebook plans trips from the Driftless Area of southwestern Wisconsin to the Northwoods.
The following was edited for clarity and brevity.
Kate Archer Kent: Your Harbor Towns and Shipwrecks tour takes us from Kenosha to Algoma near Door County. Where do you recommend that we stop when exploring the shoreline of Lake Michigan?
Tom Manus: Both of us would agree that you start in Kenosha and ride the restored streetcars. That is a favorite. It’s a two-mile track and it goes by five free museums.
Kristi Flick Manus: On the weekends, the streetcar takes you past farmers markets and street markets. Another place in Kenosha that we absolutely love is the Friday morning fish fry at Oliver’s Bakery.
TM: There’s also Sheboygan. One of my favorites is the James Tellen Woodland Sculpture Garden. The Kohler foundation originally restored that. It’s just a beautiful, peaceful walk through the woods enjoying the sculptures that were made by the artist. It’s really peaceful.
KAK: You zoom in on Milwaukee’s Harbor District and give a shout out to four restaurants in this city. How important is food on a road trip?
KFM: To most people, it’s extremely important. To us, not so much. When we’re on a road trip, we want to be going. When you stop at a restaurant, it kind of slows you down a little.
One of our favorite things is going to grocery stores. No matter where we are in the world, that’s a place we always stop at because it’s a great place to talk to people, find out what’s unique in the area, and it also gives you an opportunity to try different food.
KAK: The Wisconsin Dells tracks millions of visitors every year. One of your road trips takes us out of the Dells through Baraboo and Sauk City and Beaver Dam. What places around the Dells would you recommend travelers check out?
KFM: One thing I have a memory of, and I still like seeing it, was the Badger Army Ammunition Plant. Just the history behind that … I think everyone should see it.
TM: Before you leave the Dells — maybe hit it first on the way out — is the H.H. Bennett Studio with the vintage photographs.
You really just want to get out and explore. In our book, we tell you directions from one town to the next … but we want people to get out and really make their memories, write their own story. Go through our book, take the list for each area and say, ‘Hey, I want to see this, I want to see it all,’ or, ‘I want to see this and this and this.’ But we want people to write their story. Because travel really develops people. Even if you’re 80 years old, it defines who you are and it creates a new image, if you let it.
KFM: A road trip doesn’t have to be 20 days or ten days or five days. It could be two hours. You could get in the car and just go experience a new ice cream place or a new park. There’s so much to see.
