Make The Most Of Fall With These Fun Day Trips

MOLLY MEISTER AND ANDREA ZANI

Molly Meister is a public information officer in the DNR’s Office of Communications. Andrea Zani is managing editor of Wisconsin Natural Resources magazine.

When it comes to traveling around Wisconsin, there’s no better time than autumn to see the sights. Check out these day trips just right for fall.

This popular fall destination is in Hubertus, just northwest of Milwaukee. The Carmelite Friar community is home to the Basilica and National Shrine of Mary. A scenic tower rises 192 feet from base to tip, with gorgeous panoramic views of the Kettle Moraine area atop the 178-stair climb. The tower is open daily, weather permitting, through October.

If you can’t make the visit this fall, check out Holy Hill’s scenic tower camera offering a bird’s-eye view of the treetops, updating every five minutes. Find the camera and all visitor details at holyhill.com.

There are two great ways to see the lovely colors at this central Wisconsin state park. You can head to the park and climb the 60-foot observation tower, best accessed from the Gray Trail. Or visit Granite Peak Ski Area and take a fall chairlift ride to the top of the mountain to check out the park scenery.

For Granite Peak chairlift ride details, check out skigranitepeak.com. And for more on Rib Mountain State Park, go to dnr.wi.gov/topic/parks/ribmt.

At the Mid-Continent Railway Museum in North Freedom, in Sauk County, the beautiful Baraboo Hills become even more scenic under the colorful cloak of fall. Take a train ride to travel right through the splashy display.

Mid-Continent is open for rides along the former Chicago & North Western Railway on weekends through Oct. 16, with peak color expected during Autumn Color Weekend Oct. 8-9, and Pumpkin Special trips Oct. 15-16. Learn more online at midcontinent.org.

Several other railroads offer the chance to see seasonal colors by train, mostly open on weekends only in fall.

• Osceola and St. Croix Valley Railway, part of the Minnesota Transportation Museum: transportationmuseum.org

• East Troy Railroad Museum: easttroyrr.org

• Riverside and Great Northern Railroad, a kid-sized train in Wisconsin Dells: dellstrain.com

• Wisconsin Great Northern Railroad, just north of Spooner: spoonertrainride.com

At nearly 2,000 feet in elevation, Timm’s Hill in the southeastern Price County town of Ogema is Wisconsin’s highest point. The county park features an observation tower to show off the scenic views of the surrounding area, heavily forested with northern hardwoods. Park gate is open daily through October.

Whether you’re a kid or kid at heart, there’s nothing quite like tramping through a pumpkin patch in search of that perfect orange orb or puzzling your way through a corn maze. With agriculture so integral to Wisconsin, there’s no shortage of pumpkin patches and corn mazes, and many farms also offer haunted houses and other fun in fall. Here are just a few:

• Schuster’s Farm, Deerfield: schustersfarm.com

• Country Bumpkin Farm Market, Wisconsin Dells: countrybumpkinfarm.com

• Wilke’s Corn Maze and Pumpkin Patch, Wausau: wilkefarm.com

• Waldvogel’s Pumpkin Farm, Juneau: waldvogelfarm.com

• Schwertel Family Farms, Trempealeau: Find them on Facebook.

• Schairer's Autumn Acres, Birnamwood: schairersautumnacres.com

• Treinen Farm, Lodi: treinenfarm.com

• Oulu Corn Maze, near Iron River: oulucornmaze. com

• Creek Bed Country Farmacy, Poynette: creekbedcountryfarmacy.com

Brave souls can try this spooky fall tour on the Wisconsin River and journey into the “haunted canyon.” It’s dark, it’s scary, so be prepared! Learn more at dellsghostboat.com.

The cranberry is Wisconsin’s No. 1 fruit crop, and fall is harvest time for these colorful berries. Cranberry tours and festivals are an autumn tradition in the state.

Home of the world’s largest cranberry festival, Warrens (in Monroe County) is the heart of cranberry country and home to the Wisconsin Cranberry Discovery Center, discovercranberries. com. Also in Warrens is the Cranberry Museum Inc., operated by the Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers Association, which lists information on cranberry marsh tours, festivals and more on its website, wiscran.org.

Take a stroll through one of the many picturesque wineries in Wisconsin and raise a glass to the changing seasons. There are events aplenty, and if it’s early enough in the fall, you might even catch a harvest-time grape stomp.

The Door County Wine Trail is a good place to start, with eight scenic wineries on the list, doorcountywinetrail.com. At the opposite corner of the state, the Southwest Wisconsin Wine Trail features four wineries, southwestwisconsinwinetrail. com. Here are a few other show-stopping destinations:

• Bailey’s Run Vineyard and Winery, New Glarus: baileysrunvineyard.com

• Wollersheim Winery and Distillery, Prairie du Sac: wollersheim.com

• Botham Vineyards, Barneveld: bothamvineyards.com

• Hawk’s Mill Winery, Browntown: hawksmillwinery.com

• Elmaro Vineyard, Trempealeau: elmarovineyard.com

• Dancing Dragonfly Winery, St. Croix Falls: dancingdragonflywinery.com

Check the Wisconsin Winery Association website for many more locations statewide, wisconsinwineries.org.

Because fall means football, it’s worth mentioning this day trip — where the colors are all green and gold. The ode to Packers glory at Lambeau Field is open daily except for some holidays, stadium special events and home game days, when a game ticket is required for entry. See packershofandtours.com.

And while you’re in the area, consider a side trip to nearby Point Beach State Forest, just 45 minutes from Green Bay. Or head to Door County and its lovely state parks — Potawatomi, Peninsula, Whitefish Dunes, Newport and Rock Island — where the spectacular fall colors are simply hard to beat.