Londonman

My wife and I are visiting Chicago in July to visit relatives. Sadly my wife can only stay a week, but I have a bit more holiday time - another seven days or so - and would like to tour around some of the mid west on my own. Any recommendations?

For the record I should say I have travelled extensively around the East and West coasts, been several times to Chicago, but never out in to the country. I like driving (particularly in the US!), and have an interest in all sports, music and politics (of the liberal variety but don’t flame me for that!) and have no problem with my own company.

All advice gratefully received.

bethke14

I would suggest a day trip to Madison - it's about two and a half hours from Chicago, and is a lovely city. It has a fun downtown - State Street is directly connected to the capitol, and is full of restaurants, shops, bars, book stores, etc. Given you leaning toward liberal politics, there is probably a lot here that you could appreciate. Madison is a proudly progressive city, and State St. is one place where that shows.

You can also sit on the Union Terrace, the student union for UW Madison. On a nice day it is usually pretty crowded, and is a wonderful setting overlooking the lake. The campus itself is pretty in the summer, and also sits on the lake, and is nice to walk around.

Anyways, Madison is a wonderful city, and well worth a trip, in my opinion

dfr4848

The Midwest really covers a large area, so with about 7 days I assume you won't/don't want to do the "if it's Tuesday, it must be Belgium" tour. A few suggestions:

1) drive up the western shore of Michigan, maybe as far as Traverse City or Mackinac. Lots of resorts, bays, lakeside towns, boating, etc

2) drive up through Wisconsin into Door County and over through the Dells and maybe up to Lake Superior

3) drive up to the North Shore of Minnesota along Lake Superior. Beautiful country. Great small towns, lots of outdoor activities. That said, this might be a little of a push for a week, but worth it IMO.

If any of these (or other suggestions) sound attractive, let us know and we can provide additional details.

Londonman

Thanks both for the suggestions. Of course Mid West was far too wide a definition, but I am grateful for your interpreting my request so well

Madison definitely sounds worth a visit and looking on the map that might fit in with the suggestion to drive up through Wisconsin into Door County.

I will be travelling mid July. Will experience problems in finding hotel rooms as I travel around at that time, or do I need to pre-book in advance?

JJ5

Totally vote for Western MI- and I've seen all of the above choices.

If you want a much more boring, but truly more Midwestern feel and actuality of USA's past physical actuality- I would opt for a drive to the Mississippi River- either West or Southwest.

dfr4848

If you're going to be in some of the more popular/resort areas (like Door County) I'd reserve in advance - the summer's can be quite crowded. Places like Madison shouldn't be a problem since the Univ of Wisconsin will be out, except for summer classes, so it won't be as busy as other times of the year. BTW, Madison really is a nice area. I visited there when my SIL did her internship at UW and very much enjoyed it.

exiledprincess

Londonman, before I start mentioning a couple of options for you, you might want to look at the website for Midwest Living. Gives much information regarding different areas of travel, events, and so forth.

I like to drive, too. But congested interstate driving, bleh! So get off those interstates and onto the smaller roads.

If you go up the western shoreline of Michigan, make sure to travel on the Red Arrow Highway (in Harbor Country) and the Blue Star Highway (around Saugatuck/Douglas).

If you are going out west in Illinois to Galena (a GREAT destination), come into it on the old Stagecoach Trail (which actually was a stagecoach trail). The last time I traveled it, it was a perfect day in later June. The sky was so blue with puffy little white clouds, perfect temperature (windows open) and you see for MILES over green rolling farmland. It was one of those times, it just felt good to be alive, you know?

Some years ago, my boyfriend (at the time) and I went from Chicago over to Galena on back roads and then down the Great River Road along the Mighty Mississippi through Hannibal, MO (Mark Twain's boyhood home town) to St. Louis (visiting St. Charles, which I thought was great).

I also highly recommend going to southern Indiana. The NW corner of Indiana is highly industrial and not scenic at all. When you go further south to Indianapolis, it is flat, flat, flat driving through farmland. Ever see the classic Alfred Hitchcock movie "North by Northwest" with Cary Grant? The iconic scene with him running from the cropduster - that's the place (honestly)! BUT after you get past Indianapolis, then the land becomes rolling to hilly. Great driving there.

If you go this way, and you enjoy auto racing at all, make sure to stop in at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum. Then, further south of Indianapolis, there is Columbus, IN (which is a fantastic destination if you enjoy architecture) or Bloomington, IN. Around the latter is where the Hoosier National Forest begins and you are in Brown County, IN. From Bloomington, IN take SR46 to Nashville, IN for a great drive. You will see other places in this immediate vicinity such as Bean Blossom (famous for the Bill Monroe's Bluegrass Festival).

Also, from Indianapolis, if head west, look at Parke County - one of the highest concentrations of covered bridges in the world (I think 30 of them are in the immediate vicinity of Rockville, where you can get driving maps to find them). In fact, if you wanted to stay at Turkey Run State Park (in the inn), you could rent a canoe in the vicinity and paddle Sugar Creek, gliding under one. TIP: Great windy roads from north of Rockville to Terre Haute, IN.

If you go further south than these places, you could travel along the Ohio River Scenic Byway past Louisville through the *other* Madison (IN) onto Cincinnati.

So, if you went through Indiana down along the Ohio River Scenic Byway, you could experience these sports: professional auto racing (Speedway); canoeing, hiking, horseback riding, swimming or sailing (Parke County, Brown County, Bloomington - Lake Monroe areas); horseracing (Churchill Downs is in Louisville, KY) and professional baseball (Cincinnati).

Last recommendations:

The Pitchfork Music Festival will be happening when you are in the area.

If you enjoy thoroughbred horse racing, you can easily get out to Arlington Park Racetrack via Metra.

If you are traveling July 23-29 in Wisconsin, consider going to the EAA Oshkosh Airventure. Great.

Have fun planning your adventure!

ChiDad

Londonman,

Let us know the dates you'll be on your own. It would help for special events planning.

My suggestion would be to drive north to Milwaukee and do the Art Museum. Maybe catch a Brewer's game at Miller Park. Head up to Door County for a day or two. Then, come over to Madison for a few days. The Capital building and the Farmer's Market on Saturdays are must see's. The Art Fair on the Square is mid-month. Music scene is always good here. Great dining options as well. Madison Mallards are a great minor league baseball experience. Visit Frank Lloyd Wright's Talesin in Spring Green and see the American Players Theater for Shakespeare under the stars in a wooded setting. Then, an easy trip back to Chicago.

Two other possibilities. You could go up the Lake Michigan coastline in Michigan, overnight in Saugatuk and take the high speed ferry across the Lake (skipping Milwaukee and Door County). Or, you could limit your time in Door County and add Galena, IL for a couple of days after Madison. It is on the Mississippi and has a wonderful history. It is also a nice drive out there. A stop in Pedaris or Mineral Point to see Wisconsin's links to the English and Scottish settlers might be of interest. Galena to Chicago is 3-4 hours but without much traffic.

Happy travels,

Kevin

nanabee

If you like baseball and history how about a catching a game at Wrigley Field.

TheWeasel

In a week, you could drive around Lake Michigan in either direction. While in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, you should head north to drive along Lake Superior.

bbqboy

I'd drive Away from Chicago, perhaps heading West through Iowa to the Mississippi, the heading South through St.Louis to Cairo. Up the Ohio through Illinois and Indiana or So, then head back to Chicago. That's a rough draft. There are dozens more trips you could make.

exiledprincess

Oh, yeah! I completely forgot to mention this but another poster on another thread reminded me of it. If you are going into the Saugatuck/Douglas area of Michigan, you can rent a dunebuggy.

I imagine you usually don't get to do that in London, so might be a bit of fun!

JJ5

Yes, there are sand dunes near Mears and Silver Lake that are the largest open to free use in the USA. You can rent a jeep and go straight down, or go onto the 1000 acres left to pedestrian only traffic. Warren Dunes in MI and other smaller dunes in IN are closer to Chicago and on the way if you take the drive up MI's left side (Lake MI coast) right off of I-94.
South Haven and upwards all have lots of B&B's but are crowded that time of year.

Honestly, seeing it is June tomorrow and you are going in July, the easiest and most relaxing trip re logistics this late and already into summer, would definitely be the Galena and westward ride or South to St. Louis and Southern Illinois creek and hill areas. Much, much less density of traffic- if that's what you are looking for. Plus it is much representative of historically agrarian/agricultural American town life. IMHO, the megapolis of Chicagoland has changed and affected the other choices much, much more.

cheribob

Very close to Chicago (about 1.5 hours) is a very senic area, the Illinois River Valley. Starved Rock State Park and/or Matthiessen State Park are beautiful with limestone cliffs and waterfalls. Not what you would expect in the flat midwest. Starved Rock has a beautiful lodge. But you must make reservations in advance.

http://www.starvedrocklodge.com/

Another unique place in the midwest is Effigy Mounds National Monument in Harpers Ferry IA. It is just across the River from Prairie du Chien, WI. When I went there I became enthralled with the mounds. I read everything I could get my hands on concerning Indian Mounds (I think there were 2 books). I have always wanted to go back.

http://www.nps.gov/efmo/

Yes, we do have hidden treasures in Illinois.

JJ5

And cheribob is so right, how can I forget something on the way- if you go South. Springfield has become much, much more than it was. The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum are worth a full day and it's all hologram and interactive spectacular. And if you are at all interested in the Cohokia Mounds (they are pre-Native American mound cities)-those are further, but well worth the visit as well.

patg

While Door County is a great place to visit, it's more of a "kick back with friends and family" destination and I don't know how it would be for a single traveler.

I like the suggestion of Madison, plus Taliesin and the Kettle Moraine), followed by a trip to the Mississippi with a stop in Galena. Plenty to see and do for a week, without too much driving.

Londonman

Wow! This is the first time I have used a board like this for seeking suggestions and would really like to thank everyone for their suggestions to date.

Methinks a spot of intensive research is now needed over the weekend

Best wishes to all

Nick

tmontauk

Don't bother coming to St. Louis. I live here and like it but I've always thought it must be a very dull place to visit. I agree w/the going North.

dfr4848

Nick - to follow up on tmontauk's comments (and meant to say this in an earlier post). I wouldn't head too far south of Chicago. July can get pretty warm, and there's so many nice options from Chicago northward where it's likely not to be so warm, though certainly not guaranteed.

bbqboy

Well, he asked to see the Midwest, not the Great Lakes. Cars have AC. I was mainly thinking of the Great River Road, and the Arch. Hit the Amish communities in Indiana. Get a Pork Tenderloin.
Springfield is a great idea.