My Favorite Things To Do In Door County, Wisconsin

Since my daughter is participating in a triathlon in Door County this weekend, and I’m going along to be her cheerleader, I started to reflect on some of my favorite things to do in Door County. If you are unfamiliar with the area, Door County is a peninsula that sticks out into Lake Michigan and Green Bay. If Wisconsin is a mitten, Door County is its thumb. It’s a unique area of Wisconsin that is perfect for vineyards, cherry trees, and apple orchards. Not to mention beautiful shoreline scenery, beaches, and lighthouses. 
Here are some of my favorite things to do in Door County:

• Door Peninsula Winery Door Peninsula is one of the few wineries left in Door County that offers free wine tasting every day.  While they do have dry wines, my favorites are their sweet and fruity flavors. There is more than just wine here to shop for, they have a variety of things such as fudge, cheeses, oils, ciders, gifts, and more. This stop comes quickly on your way up the peninsula, luckily they open at 9am and luckily my friends and I don't mind winetasting in the morning. 5806 WI-42, Sturgeon Bay

• Breakfast at “The Rusty Tractor” in Egg Harbor This cute breakfast spot is farm-themed, and when I say farm-themed, what I really mean is the restaurant is in a real barn! The food is delicious, the portions are large, and rustic décor is fun. It’s a great place to start your Door County day. 6216 WI-42, Egg Harbor, WI

• Lautenbach's Orchard Country Winery & Market This is my other favorite Door County winery. You can choose from 50 award-winning wines and hard ciders to create your own tasting flight. Wine can also be purchased by the glass or bottle, and enjoyed indoors or in their outdoor area with vineyard views. Check their website for their live music schedule. My other usual purchases here are their fresh cherries, sweet cherry juice, and whitefish dip. This is what Door County tastes like to me! 9197 WI-42, Fish Creek

• Peninsula State Park This Wisconsin State Park is one of five state parks in the county. (I told you it was scenic here!) Peninsula State Park has a lot to offer, a large campground, a summer theater, an 18 hole golf course, a sandy swimming beach, bike trails, a lighthouse, 20 miles of hiking trails, and an observation tower. My favorite thing to do here is hiking the Eagle Trail, a 2 mile loop that parallels that shoreline and has rocky areas, 150-foot cliffs, interesting plant-life, and lovely views of Eagle Harbor.  More great views can be found at Eagle Panorama and Eagle Tower. When they rebuilt the 60' Eagle Tower, they also built a handicapped accessible ramp that goes all the way to the top! It's pretty amazing to see. When you are standing on the observation deck, you are 253' above Green Bay! 9462 Shore Road, Fish Creek, WI

• Hardy Gallery & Anderson Dock This iconic spot is another must-see. The tradition of writing your name here started with sailors in 1910, and has continued to today. Visitors are encouraged to paint or sign their names on the exterior of the gallery and now every bit of it is covered. Yes, I have my name on Hardy Gallery as well! It makes a very unique photo backdrop. 3083 Anderson Lane, Ephraim
• Not Licked Yet Frozen Custard  My favorite dessert spot in Door County, Not Licked Yet has really unique sundaes like the "Snowball Inferno" and the "Potato Head." They also have a really peaceful outdoor seating area next to the Fish Creek. Every time I have been there, we have watched families of ducks and geese swimming around in front of us as we ate our custard. 4052 Main St, Fish Creek
• Casey's BBQ & Smokehouse I'm really looking forward to taking my daughter to Casey's this weekend. I'm sure she will have a big appetite after her race, and what better to eat than Casey's apple-smoked brisket. I enjoy mine in the Brisket Quesadilla. 9626 7855 WI-42, Egg Harbor

• Cave Point County Park After all of that good food, it is probably time for another walk.  A lovely spot to take it is at Cave Point County Park. It features caves cut into the limestone cliffs on the shore of Lake Michigan. You may see kayakers here because the view from the water is even better. Lake Michigan is a beautiful shade of blue-green, the cliffs are incredible, and the walking path is full of roots but not very difficult, it is a wonderful walk. If you take the shoreline path to the right, you can walk all the way to Whitefish Dunes State Park. 5360 Schauer Rd., Sturgeon Bay

There are so many things that could be added to this list. Door County seems to have something for everyone. Maybe I'll try something new this weekend when I'm there, but I doubt it, these are favorites for a reason!