WATCH THE VIDEO: Wandering Wisconsin: Dells of the Eau Claire

Dells of the Eau Claire

Our state has a very interesting geologic history. 

Though you wouldn’t know it when driving through the rolling Wisconsin hills dotted with dairy farms, at one point a long time ago things looked a little different. 

Geologists believe that about two billion years ago massive volcanoes were centered in what we know today as Marathon County!  Why do they think that?  The Dells of the Eau Claire. 

When the lava from these ancient volcanoes hardened into rhyolite–some of the hardest rocks on the planet–millions of years of tectonic shifting tilted that horizontal rock vertically.  That’s how today we see those beautiful chunks of rocks bolt from the ground seemingly soaring toward the sky.   

But wait…where did the volcanoes go then?  

The glaciers steamrolled those volcanoes when they retreated northward, whittling them down to smooth rolling hills.  Glacial melting provided the water needed to erode away sections into the Eau Claire River, giving us what we see today.  Few places on earth can you see naturally occuring square rock formations paried with smooth circular edges because of sand and water erosion. 

For more information on Dells of the Eau Claire and the other parks in the Marathon County Parks family, visit them online here.

Posted under Community, Earthquake, Environment, Geology, Nature, Science, Summer, Trails

The Cave of the Mounds

WATCH THE VIDEO HERE! WANDERING WISCONSIN: CAVE OF THE MOUNDS

Water is powerful.

We experience its might when rivers flood and dams produce electricity.  Given time it can carve beautiful vistas like the Grand Canyon and anyone who’s experienced the majesty of Niagara Falls needs no background on how incredible water is.

To experience another example of what water and time can do, take a look beneath your feet at Cave of the Mounds in Blue Mounds, Wisconsin.  Here you’ll discover an underground world that is breathtaking as it is intriguing.   

As the water from Wisconsin’s rain and snow slowly trickle into the ground, the right geologic conditions and materials were in place for this beautiful area to develop over time.  A long time…more than 1.5 million years. 

The Cave of the Mounds

Today this National Natural Landmark is a great place to spend a hot summer day (since it’s always 50 degrees in the caves) or to spend a chilly winter day (since it’s always 50 degrees in the caves….yep even in winter). 

It offer parents a way to get kids on summer break to learn a lot while experiencing what can be described as the state’s biggest science classroom.  Plus it’s a great activity for families to spend a day as explorers.  But don’t worry…because of the way the cave developed there’s no animals inside it.  It doesn’t have an outside entrance, except for the one you go in that was accidently discovered in the 1930′s.

For more information check out Cave of the Mounds online.

Posted under Environment, Geology, Nature, Science, Seasonal Items, Summer, Travel

The Norway Building, a Stavkirke or Stave Church built in the 1800's in Norway, moved to the United States for the Chicago World's Fair.

Click here to watch WANDERING WISCONSIN: LITTLE NORWAY

Ready for a history, science, foreign language and ancestry lesson all wrapped up in one?

Ja? (Yes?)

Many Wisconsinites trace their family trees to the beautiful land of Norway. In 1856, Osten and Birgit Haugen left Telemark, Norway to settle just outside of what is today the town of Mt. Horeb, Wisconsin. They named this gorgeous land of rolling hills Nissedahle or Valley of the Elves.

Fast forward 155 years to 2011 and that same spot of land is now Little Norway, a living history museum where you not only see how our state’s first immigrants lived, you experience it firsthand.

If you have family roots in Northern Europe you’ve likely heard of Midsummer’s Eve. This is a holiday celebrated across of the northern tier of the continent, but particularly in Scandinavia. These are areas of the world that spend a good chunk of the year with very little sunshine because of their high latitude and the earth’s rotation around the sun. So, on the summer solstice (the longest day of the year in these parts of the world) when you get to see some sun, you celebrate it!

Midsummer’s Eve celebrations in Norway revolve around food, music, and bonfires. Though it started well before the advent of Christianity to Europe, it’s still celebrated today as a way for families to enjoy the warmer weather and the longest bout of sunshine they see all year

Little Norway has a gift shop full of products, food, and unique gifts straight from Norway.

The summer solstice comes later this week, but if you’re looking for a fun activity to do with the family this weekend, start the holiday off early.  Little Norway will be holding its own Midsummer’s Eve events on the 18th of June.  There will be food, dancing, bonfires, and for the kids a lot of learning about how Wisconsin’s first immigrants made the state we enjoy today…and what Norwegian culture is like!

Posted under Community, Environment, Science, Seasonal Items, Summer, Travel

Interested in keeping Marathon County’s beautiful parks system clean and green?  Well, here’s your chance!

Become an Adopt-A-Park volunteer and help monitor park maintenance by alerting the parks commission when something is wrong. 

Here’s how it works.  Choose your favorite Marathon County Park or Recreation Area.  Let the Parks Commission know you’d like to become a volunteer by giving them a call at 715-261-1550 or stopping by their offices at 212 River Drive, Suite 2 right in downtown Wausau.  They’ll give you a list of what’s in the park you choose to adopt so you’ll know what’s there (and if something’s missing what it is). 

Then, at least once every two weeks between May 1st and October 31st, stop in and take a close look around.  Is everything in ship-shape?  If something is broken or out of place, fill in your online report with details on what’s up.  Submit the report and the Parks Commission will take it from there.

That’s it!  The more people who volunteer the more sets of eyes we’ll have keeping watch over things and the cleaner our parks will be!  Plus, should any maintenance issues come up, the right people will be notified faster, meaning problems go away quicker! 

This is a great, free activity open to anyone!  Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Church Youth Groups, and everyday citizens are more than welcome!  I just adopted Sunny Vale Park down the road from where I live.  It’s a park I visit frequently anyway, now I’ll just take notes if anything seems out of place and help keep the park clean!

To learn more visit the Marathon County Park Commission’s Adopt-A-Park official website here.

Posted under Community, Environment, Nature, Spring, Summer, Trails

  

It’s always cool to visit interesting places, and if you’re interested in going to one that is in our backyard, totally free and educational for the kids, listen up! 

The Earth has four hemispheres.  Using coordinates from lines of latitude and longitude, you can pin point any location on the planet.  There can only be one center for each hemisphere.  So, where are they?

Both points in the Southern Hemisphere are in the oceans.  You’ll need a boat and a life preserver to visit them.  The Northeastern Hemisphere’s center point is in a extremely mountainous region of China.  Prepare the passport and an adventurous spirit, because it’s quite difficult to get to. 

But right here in Marathon County lies the center of the Northwestern Hemisphere.  That means we are the half-way point between the International Date Line and the Prime Meridian plus the North Pole and Equator. 

Long before we all had personal GPS systems and computers, a local man discovered this interesting point using maps to help draw visitors to his tavern in Poniatowski, Wisconsin.  Amazingly, he was off by such a small amount, that the Reitbrock Geologic Marker was built to remember his adventurous spirit.  Visitors to the marker were given a free beer and signed their name into the 45×90 Club registry. 

Today, you can still become a member of the 45×90 Club by taking the nice drive our to Poniatowski (about a half-hour west of Wausau), snapping a photo and then returning to the Wausau-Central Wisconsin Visitors Bureau in downtown Wausau.  There you’ll sign your name and be given a free commemorative coin marking your achievement traveling to the center of the Northwestern Hemisphere!

Posted under Community, Geology, Nature, Summer, Travel