Canadian World Traveller Fallr 2016 issue American World Traveler Fall 2016 issue | Page 84

Photo: Jon Jarosh/DCVB

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W i s c o n s i n ’ s D o o r Pe n i n s u l a
The Enduring Charm of a ‘Kingdom so Delicious’
Article & Photography by Jennifer Merrick

The most wonderful thing about Door
County is the perfect combination of
wilderness and civilization,” reads a
quote from the 1969 March issue of
National Geographic. It is an article that
would forever change this corner of
Wisconsin, located on a 70-mile peninsula
with Lake Michigan to the east and Green
Bay to the west. Its 190 miles of shoreline,
and the glacially-sculpted forested landscape is a vacationer’s dream, but before
March 1969, the majority of Americans had
never heard of it. That changed.

“

“Cape Cod on an inland sea,” the magazine
wrote, and then described the blooms and
bounties of the county’s cherry orchards,
bountiful fish, high limestone cliffs, shipwrecks and scuba dives, as well as the
enduring traditions of the Scandinavian and
Icelandic descendants who make this region
their home. When the article came out, visitors flocked here and some even stayed; and
it’s remained a popular tourist destination to
this day, especially for city escapees from
Milwaukee and Chicago.

Discovering the Parks
The peninsula is part of the Niagara
Escarpment, a geological wonder known for
its limestone cliffs, sculpture-like rock formations and waterfalls (the most famous one
being Niagara Falls). The best places to
appreciate this natural art in Door County
are in its many parks, and a good place to
start is Cave Point County Park. Here we listened to the hypnotic sound of Lake
Michigan's waves crashing the bluffs while
walking along the ledges and pebble beaches. The power of the water could be clearly