About four and a half hours northwest of Milwaukee lies Rhinelander, Wisconsin. God's country. No Pride flags. No CBD shops. Families, that are actually...families! You folks from New York, or Los Angeles, or Chicago just would not understand. The state lottery is not pushed on you in every store. Pawn shops and auto loan emporiums are not visible. No one is swearing. Rap music is heard nowhere. I like Rhinelander! The local legend here dates back to 1893 as a logger spotted a mini-dinosaur and called it the Hodag.
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| The Hodag |
Tonight the fireworks will be at the park by Boom Lake. It is called Boom Lake even when there are no fireworks on the schedule.
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| Boom Lake |
Remember John Heisman? Okay, he died in 1936 so you probably do not. He founded the football programs at Auburn and Clemson and is the namesake of the college football trophy presented yearly to the best collegiate player. He's buried here. Apparently he was mauled by a Hodag.
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| John Heisman's grave |
A 40 minute drive from here is Laona, Wisconsin. We ventured there and rode on the Lumberjack Steam Train. We rode in the caboose as the steam engine brought us on a 3-mile ride to a logging museum.
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| Lumberjack Steam Train |
We had the entire caboose to ourselves and sat up on the cupola.
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| Caboose |
The peeps, all locals, who worked at the little logging city/museum were so friendly and very clean cut. There were farm animals like goats, ponies, llamas, pigs, sheep, and chicks. Logging equipment like saws and chainsaws. Buildings that would have existed in the old logging days like bunkhouses, kitchens and cafeterias, a slaughterhouse, blacksmith shop, and gift shop. Afterwards we ate at the very friendly breakfast and lunch place, Log Cabin Cafe. Again very friendly staff and no annoying music (Rap) playing over the PA.
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| Log Cabin Cafe |
Before leaving on July 5th we ventured to Pioneer Park in Rhinelander. The park/museum is dedicated to the old logging days of this fine city. A railroad museum, a schoolhouse, a dining and bunk area, logging equipment, and an old steam logging locomotive and train are all here.
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| Logging Train at Pioneer Park |
Sadly we will return to Virginia soon, the world capital of CBD smoke shops, pawn shops, tattoo parlors, and Fast-Cash Loan emporiums. Rhinelander will serve as a reminder the evils that have seemed to take over this country since 2020 may be waning and in some very morally strong areas of this country, never took hold. All of you who respond "It's everywhere," when commenting on the fall of your city or town... you are wrong...it is not everywhere.
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