Well we did it, made our trek to Yellowstone. All campers before they hang up their tires must make this trek so we made our plans set aside a weekend and made the reservations. We were joined by three Sinners, (that's their name.) The two hour drive from Milwaukee to Yellowstone was peaceful. Rolling hills and the budding of spring made the ride most enjoyable. When we arrived the ranger told us this was the first weekend that the campground was open and as you would expect at Yellowstone there was a long line of people waiting to check in. Our campsite was nestled in a hollow with plenty of tall pine trees to shade us from the sun. Cromwell, our dog was eager to get out and swim in Yellowstone Lake and run through the woods. This was our first trip out this spring so we too were eager. Alright so we are not in Wyoming but in Wisconsin but it is still fantastic. The park is called Yellowstone Lake State Park.
This has become an annual event with our fiends the Sinners who also own an Airstream. We meet in early spring at one of our state parks to start the camping season. Friday night in Wisconsin you go out to a fish fry regardless if you are RVing, backpacking or even celebrating your own funeral. It was Friday and we were on our way to the fish fry in Argyle, WI at a local supper club. When we arrived and opened the front door a blue cloud of cigarette smoke poured out. Sadly this is another tradition in Wisconsin. Along with S. Carolina we are a tobacco state. No, we don't grow it but we are under the strong arm of Phillip Morris due to our dairy industry and their many subsidiaries. Thus the state has very few smoking regulations. We fled this carcinogenic haven and walked two blocks to a smoke free heaven. The Partridge Hall. This is a lovely restaurant in a restored 1878 building. On the top floor is the Star Theater which had a Chekov play on stage that night. The food was great, service was friendly , atmosphere superb, a true gem in a small rural town. We came for the fish fry and it did not disappoint us. The rest of the menu looked just as good. There is a web site for the restaurant http://www.partridgehall.com/index.html
The next day was Cinco De Mayo; however, my watch, which I rarely set to the correct time or date said it was the 4th. Why do I tell you this? Well the 5th of May is also Fran's birthday. We began the day with a hike down to the lake so Cromwell could go swimming. The entire way Fran was dropping huge hints like, "look there are five trees", or "see the five birds flying." She even began humming the Mexican National Anthem. Finally I said, "Tomorrow is Cinco De Mayo, not today." At that she really put time in my place about forgetting her birthday. I pleaded for forgiveness and showed her my watch which clearly said it was the fourth and got a half hearted forgiveness. Cromwell was unaffected by the mix up in dates and had a wonderful time on the walk and a great swim in the lake. He met a family of Canada Geese who he swam with while fetching the many sticks we threw.
We rejoined the Sinners to drive into Darlington in search of a cheese factory. We not only found the cheese factory but in Darlington, a town of several thousand people, they were having a huge celebration for Fran's Birthday. Seems there is a sizeable Mexican population here and the 5th of May was being properly feasted. Too bad we had already eaten our lunch since there were many stands of food vendors with tempting smells which I knew would taste just as good. I did break down and have a taco with pork shaved from a pig on a spit which tasted wonderful.
We agreed to make this an annual affair. Next year we will invite the kids to join us. The Sinner's family as well as ours. The park is gorgeous, the surrounding area is fun to explore and best of all we were with good friends.
