Exploring Madison, Watertown and Chilton, Wisconsin - Thurs, Sept. 25, 2014

Today was a "pack it in" kind of day. For our 10K (6.2 mile) Volksmarch in the capital, we chose the Civil War walk. In order to get credit toward my Volksmarch capital badge, I can walk any of the walks listed in the capital of a state. I would have preferred the Capitol walk, but parking was an issue in the heart of downtown, so we chose to start near the University of Wisconsin where we could park at a Best Western.

The Volksmarch took us through a nice, gently hilly neighborhood and through Hoyt Park. We got a little lost, but kept following trails and somehow ended up where we were supposed to be at a bulletin board. From there, we were supposed to go to an overlook, but no signs pointed the way, and there were multiple trails going in all directions. We asked a lady walking in the park and she pointed us in the right direction.

The walk continued through more neighborhoods and then we came to Forest Hill Cemetery, the northernmost Confederate Cemetery in the United States. The men buried here (in the Confederate Rest section) were among over 1,100 captured soldiers of the 1st Alabama Infantry Regiment CSA (Confederate States of America). They were captured in 1862 at Island 10 on the Mississippi River and were sent to prison at Camp Randall.

By 1868 these graves were being neglected when a Louisiana-born widow, Alice Waterman, came to Madison. At her own expense she maintained the plot until her death in 1897. She had the simple painted headboards replaced with stone markers. She is buried with "her boys."

Confederate Rest in Forest Hill Cemetery, Madison, WI

Historic plaque about Confederate Rest

On the other side of the Mausoleum from Confederate Rest is Union Rest. It contains the graves of about 230 Wisconsin Civil War soldiers, most of whom died at Camp Randall. The soldiers buried here either had no families or families too poor to transport the remains back home. This area was donated to the U.S. in 1866, and is now a national cemetery.

Civil War buffs would probably like to visit individual grave sites for the Harvey family, Fairchild family, Theodore Read (last Union general killed in the Civil War), and Henry Harndon (Brigadier General in command of the unit credited with capturing Jefferson Davis in May 1865).

Also in Forest Hill Cemetery, another section of veterans' graves from WWi and WWII, are clustered around two panther and one linear effigy mound (900-1200 A.D.). Sect. 15 of the cemetery contains an extremely rare goose effigy mound. However, the head of the goose was cut off by the Illinois Central Railroad in the 1880s.

From the cemetery, we again walked through neighborhoods on our way to the South West Bike Path (formerly part of the Illinois Central Railroad) which we followed for about 3/4 mile.

In the following photos are hydrangeas. In the Pacific Northwest, hydrangeas are usually blue or purple, depending on the alkalinity of the soil. This is the first time I've ever seen green and white hydrangeas. Maybe these colors are normal in the Midwest.

Green and white hydrangeas.

House typical of the neighborhood we were in.

Bob on South West Bike Path, Madison, WI

From the bike path, we ended up at Camp Randall Stadium and Memorial on the University of Wisconsin campus. 

Bob wore his University of Wisconsin colors for photos today!

Camp Randall was a Civil War military training camp through which more than 70,000 Wisconsinites and nearly 4,000 Confederate prisoners of war would pass.

Stockade from Camp Randall

Camp Randall Memorial Arch

Our jaunt through a portion of the University of Wisconsin campus was short, but we enjoyed watching the Descendant's Fountain on our way through. An interesting side note is that Bob found out not just one of his grandfathers attended University of Wisconsin... both of them did!

University of Wisconsin

Descendant's Fountain

School of Engineering

From the University of Wisconsin, we entered the University Heights Historic District. Many professors, deans and the University president had their homes in this area. Frank Lloyd Wright's Gilmore house is also in this tony neighborhood.

Ely house - Georgian Revival style

Fall  colors = happy camper.

Turneaure house - eclectic period revival design

Buell house - Queen Anne style home

Gilmore house - Frank Lloyd Wright prairie style house
AKA "The Airplane House"

Olin house - deeded to the University for use as
the President's home

Bradley house - Prairie School house

Upon return to our start point, we hopped in the truck and headed downtown to tour the Madison Capitol. We found two-hour metered parking on the street close to the Capitol, grabbed a turkey pesto ciabatta sandwich at Michelangelo's, ate it, and continued on with renewed energy. (Thanks for sticking with me this far...now comes the good stuff!)

Madison, Wisconsin's Capitol

"Liberty" glass mosaic by Kenyon Cox

We were finally able to go to an observation deck outside one of the domes. Madison's Capitol rocks. Speaking of which, their dome is the only granite dome in the United States.

View from the Observation Deck.

Statues above the Observation Deck.

Happy to be outside on the Observation Deck!

"Justice" glass mosaic by Kenyon Cox

"Government" glass mosaic by Kenyon Cox

Inside the Capitol dome is "Resources of Wisconsin"
painting by Edwin Blashfield of New York

Some facts about the Madison Capitol Rotunda/Dome:

1. This is one of the largest domes by volume in the world
2. The painting is 34' in diameter, 200' above the ground floor
3. What looks like a frame around the picture is actually a balcony

Wisconsin's state animal, the badger, is above the doors to the four second-floor chambers. The "Badger State" got its nickname from Wisconsin lead mining towns in the 1830s. The miners lived in shelters dug into hillsides and were called "badgers" after the burrowing animals.

Badger above door to second-floor chamber

Wisconsin's state animal, the badger

In the following photo, there is a sign pointing to a Men's restroom across two floors of empty space with no way to get across here. We found this highly amusing. Ready, aim, fire!

Beautiful framing for the mosaic art.

I fell in love with all the arches.

Replica of the Liberty Bell made in France.

The statue "Forward" in front of the Capitol

With so much to see here, Wisconsin's Capitol is worthy of a visit. If we had more time we would have taken a tour. But it was time to head off to Watertown, one of the cities where Bob's family has roots. We drove around town just to get a feel for it and found the Octagon House. Unfortunately, it had just closed for the day.

Octagon House invites more exploration

A pretty park by the river in Watertown, WI

This park also invites more exploration.

We then continued on our triangular road trip for today. One of the blogs I read regularly is RVing: The USA is Our BIG Backyard by Karen in the Woods. She and her husband, Steve, visited Travelers World Carefree RV Resort and stayed in the site next to us over a year ago. 

Karen and Steve

Since then, they bought a house in Chilton, Wisconsin. We were in the neighborhood and wrote to see if we could drop in for a visit. And what a wonderful visit it was. Karen and Steve showed us their home. It is just right for them with space for Karen's "loom room," a place to park their motorhome, room for the doggers to run, a lovely sun porch for morning coffee or to watch snow fall in winter, a guest room for grandtots, and an almost-empty room where they could put in the kitchen they wanted. We visited on the sun porch, then walked to Hilde's Deli & Bakery for dinner. 

Hilde's Deli & Bakery

Hilde made fresh chicken pot pies which sounded absolutely lovely. Karen, Steve and I had the chicken pot pies for dinner, while Bob wanted something more substantial and ordered the chicken dinner with mashed potatoes and gravy, coleslaw, and a roll. The pot pies melted in your mouth. Mmmmm. What a good spot to eat! Thanks for the suggestion, Karen! You can read Karen's blog about our visit here.

Chicken pot pie with Sprecher Cherry Cola

Bob's chicken dinner

After dinner, we walked back to their house, chatted a bit more, then said our good-byes before heading back to Derge County Park in Beaver Dam. Such a great day today!

Travel Bug out.

Divide and Conquer - Weds., Sept. 24, 2014

Choices, life is full of them. Today, we had to make a tough one. Which attraction do we see? I've had The House on the Rock on my bucket list ever since I worked for AAA almost 20 years ago. When I was a travel counselor making TripTiks for people, I would have them ask me to route them to Spring Green, WI. When I asked what was there, they told me about a fantastical house designed by an eccentric man. So I looked it up and decided I had to see it. Years later, this was my chance.

The other choice for the day was to see Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin. I was interested in that too, but The House on the Rock was my first choice. That's how I rock 'n' roll.

Bob, however, was of the opposite opinion. He really wanted to see Taliesin and do the tour there. I knew he wasn't into the weird stuff he would see at The House on the Rock. 

As we entered the drive to The House on the Rock, I was enthralled with the unique planters along the way. Alex Jordan was inspired to make these pots from the strawberry pots his mother had on her patio. During the summer, the planters here are filled with flowers.

Planters along the entrance drive

Planters on the grounds of The House on the Rock

Love the dragon on top

When we arrived at The House on the Rock, I told Bob if he'd rather see Taliesin to go for it. That's how we decided to divide and conquer. He dropped me off at The House on the Rock, and he drove seven miles to Taliesin to see the Visitor Center and take a two-hour tour of the house, and a one-hour tour of the school. When we finished, he would pick me up.

Both of us went to see houses designed by ego-centric men who lived within a few miles of each other. Curiouser and curiouser. And I was about to go down the rabbit hole.

We started in the Visitor Center. I bought the combination ticket ($28.50) which covered all three sections of The House on the Rock. In the Visitor Center, I used the Women's restroom. Even the restrooms are decorated! The Women's restroom was decorated with dolls and a Christmas display.

Women's restroom

Women's restroom (Erte? Um...maybe)

I asked Bob to see what was in the Men's restroom. He checked and there were ships. At this point, Bob took off to Taliesin.

To say Alex Jordan had an over-active imagination would be an understatement. As a young boy, he was a handful, always on the go. Today we'd probably say he had ADHD. He finished high school and went on to college, but was too busy having fun to finish. In life, he drifted, not knowing what to do. For a while, he worked in construction for his father. That is where he learned how to build.

Starting in 1945, he would go picnicking on Deer Shelter Rock. He fell in love with the beauty and nature of the spot on the rock and returned many times. He paid the farmer who owned the property $10 to "lease" this picnic spot. This, he decided, was where he would build his dream house. His parents helped him buy 240 acres and his life's purpose took shape. He would build his private weekend get-away here and have this home conform to the shape of the chimney rock it was built upon.

At first, he built what he called the "shack." He hated the shack and tore it down, replacing it with a "Studio." He hauled rocks from a local quarry, strapped to his back, and climbed the rock with them. He built outward and downward from the Studio, eventually creating 13 rooms around Deer Shelter Rock. Trees growing on the rock were left undisturbed and he built his house around them, so that they pass through floors and roofs as required.

Alex Jordan was 6'4" tall, but his house has ceilings that are about 5' 10" tall. Remember the rabbit hole I mentioned earlier? It was time to enter Wonderland. If you are claustrophobic or don't like dark, confined spaces, this place is probably not for you. It is quite dim throughout.

Small sitting area with large fireplace.

Chimney Rock wall on left, house wall on right.

Another intimate sitting area with fireplace

Alex loved all things Oriental.

Yet another sitting area.

Neighbors and visitors to the area would go by as he was working and ask if they could come up and see the house. He told them, "Sure, if you pay 50 cents." They paid gladly and thanked him after they saw it. The admission he charged helped him finance hiring an assistant and workers.

His parents wanted him to open the house to tours, but Alex and his girlfriend were very private people. They balked at the suggestion. However, since his parents bought the property, they insisted and Alex reluctantly agreed.

With the added income, he was able to start collections, but then he needed somewhere to put everything. Thus, he added the Organ Room, the Carousel Room and the Old Mill.

Alex had a wide scope of interests. He collected books and music all his life. His curiosity was boundless and his voracious reading made him conversant in many fields. His 38 magazine subscriptions ranged from National Geographic to The Smithsonian, National Lampoon, and Mad Magazine. He loved The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and The Art of War. Reading fueled his imagination even more.

Everywhere he went, he carried a notebook where he made drawings and put in ideas. Those ideas would eventually translate into new spaces for his house. He would show the builders his plans and explain how he wanted a room to look. If, in the process of building, the room didn't look like he planned, he would revise his plan and re-do the room accordingly.


The vision for an Infinity Room was in his notebook for 40 years. He finally talked to a builder about making the Infinity Room a reality. The builder told him he could do it if he made it 164' long. Alex was adamant it had to be 200' long to make the room look like it reached to infinity. The builder was able to help him make it a reality.

The Infinity Room

Even though Alex and his girlfriend had The House on the Hill, they lived in an apartment in town. As stated, they were private people.

In the 1960s a guest who visited the House sent a note to Alex telling him how much he enjoyed his visit. In the note, he asked Alex if he had ever heard of a poem called "Vagabond's House" by Don Blanding. Alex was so taken with the poem, he copied it out in longhand. Here is an excerpt from the poem:

When I have a house ... as I sometime may
I'll suit my dream in every way
It won't be correct or in period style
But oh, I've thought for a long, long while
Of all the corners and all the nooks,
Of all the bookshelves and all the books
The sheepskin divan, the deep soft chairs
And the Chinese rug at the foot of the stairs
(it's an old, old rug from far Chow Wan
that a Chinese princess once walked on).

My house will stand on a rock on a hill
Overlooking a valley deep and still
With big tall pines on guard nearby
Where the birds can sing and the storm wind cry
A bridge and a stair with lazy curves
Will lead to a door where a great gong serves
As a knocker there like a vibrant drum
to let me know that a friend  has come
and the door will squeak as I swing it wide
to welcome you to the cheer inside.

I can see why Alex Jordan loved this poem...it epitomized his feelings about his house.

What I found very interesting was Alex's purpose in building such a unique structure and putting huge collections into it. Alex loved to visit museums, but found them "tedious." He didn't want any of his collection to be stuffy. He often said of his guests, "Don't educate them--entertain them." His only purpose was to bring pleasure, inspire awe, and spark curiosity. Those who look for an explanation have it all wrong--it's about a mood.

Here, then, are my pictorial impressions from The House on the Rock...

Outdoor Chinese garden

Carousel cat high on a wall

Hotei (Rub his belly for good luck...I did)

Japanese garden

Door to enter The Old Mill (love the blue light!)

The Old Mill Women's restroom

The Streets of Yesterday

Fire Station No. 1 (Streets of Yesterday)

Doll Shop (Streets of Yesterday)

Lamp (Streets of Yesterday)

Gladiator Calliope (Music of Yesterday)

Many ivory pieces (from before ban on importing ivory)

Three-story exhibit of a sea creature vs. a squid.

I was able to capture part of the sea creature's mouth

A decorated room with unique piano

Collection of masks

Burma Shave signs

'35 Packard

I totally enjoyed The Music of Yesterday rooms with calliopes, player pianos, etc. When you bought your tickets for the tour, you were given four tokens to use in the music machines. My favorite part of the whole place were the music machines. I was especially taken by The Mikado room.

The Mikado Room complete with music

Airplane room.

The 269-animal carousel has over 20,000 lights, 182 chandeliers, is 80' wide, 35' tall and weighs 36 tons. There are no horses on the main portion of the carousel. Instead, there are cats, zebras, mythic creatures, and some from the imagination of those who created them.

All the horses Alex Jordan collected for the Grand Carousel now hang on walls throughout the house.

Here are my physical impressions of The House on the Rock:

1. I loved the Alex Jordan, Jr., Center (museum about the man who created this eclectic mish-mash). There was so much information to absorb.
2. The magnitude of everything combined is mind-boggling. We're talking collections ranging from dolls, to weapons, to armor, to dollhouses, to music machines, to Asian artifacts, to ivory, to organs, to model ships--something for everyone.
3. It imparts a sense of wonder because of the sheer scope of the project
4. It is dimly lit which makes it hard to see things
5. Most of the collection is not labeled. 
6. Not all pieces are authentic. There are many things that were created on site or are reproductions.
7. The floor is not level, so you need to be careful when walking around, especially because it is not well lit.
8. You also have to watch your head in the house portion as the rooms have low ceilings.
9. The place needs to be cleaned regularly. Cobwebs hang from some of the light fixtures. The dollhouses have dead bugs, mouse droppings and dirt in them.
10. Overall, though, I found it fascinating.

When I finished my explorations of the house, I texted Bob. He was almost finished at Taliesin. It wasn't long until he picked me up. He enjoyed the two tours he took. He may be writing a guest blog here in the next couple of days about his experiences and thoughts on vacation, so stay tuned.

From Spring Green, we drove north to Wisconsin Dells. Our goal was to either (1) take a boat ride to see The Dells, or (2) find a park or trails to walk to see The Dells. Well, the boat rides all seemed to be closed for the season. We drove through town twice looking for a boat ride to take  us out. There was no Visitor Center to be found or we would have asked where we could go to see The Dells, a nature trail or something. We found a state park just outside of town but it, too, was closed. Guess it was time to high-tail it back to Derge County Park and the 5th wheel.

To end, here are some quotes that were found on walls and tables in Inspiration Point, one of the snack bars at The House on the Rock.

"Life is full of obstacle illusions."  ~ George Frazier

"Live out your imagination, not your history." ~ Steven Covey

"Time you enjoyed wasting is not wasted time." ~ T.S. Eliot

"Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties." ~George Frazier

Travel Bug out. [As you can tell, I'm a few days behind. We have been busy and I just haven't had time to write. I hope to catch up more tomorrow.]