Rustic Road 62 and Timm's Hill

The pandemic has altered my assault on Wisconsin's Rustic Roads. In past years I have gone off on one or two strategically planned rides to various locations. These rides enable me to ride a dozen or so Rusties in a couple of days. But this year I have not felt comfortable booking a night in a hotel and have only gone on day rides. So this meant that riding Rustic Road 62 in Price County would be the centerpiece in a long day of riding.

I have been studying the map this spring and summer looking for Rustic Roads that are accessible on a one day ride from my home. Number 62 is west of Tomahawk and about 160 miles away. The quickest route would follow the four lanes on US Highways 29 and 51, but I did not want to ride all the way on the slabs. 

Several years ago I picked up a copy of "Motorcycling Across Wisconsin" (2009), authored by William Murphy. The book has maps of rides, many of them loop style, in the state and each has a particular theme. One of the rides was titled To the Top of Wisconsin and was perfect for my trip. The route was on excellent county roads on the east and west sides of US 51 between Wausau and Tomahawk. As there were a number of different roads involved, I made few notes about the route to back up the information I entered into my BMW NAV VI GPS.

The day before the ride I invited my brother to come along, telling him it would be a 320 mile day. He was up for it and we decided to bring our lunches along rather than try to find a safe place to eat. We met at the Kwik Trip, filled up on fuel, completed our lunch packing, and headed northwest on US 29.

It was a perfect day to ride and soon we were just east of Wausau, turning north. We immediately noticed that the county roads in the area have a red tint from the granite used in their construction. We followed various county roads north and eventually a westerly direction into Tomahawk. Stopping for a break the Amoco on the edge of town, I told my brother that Harley Davidson owns a factory in Tomahawk. 

Willie G. Davidson, grandson of one of the founders, used to vacation in the area. He took an interest in the Tomahawk Boat Factory and in 1961 Harley Davidson bought it. By 1963 the factory was turning out fiberglass fairings, saddlebags and sidecars for the company's motorcycles. We were not far from the factory and saw a couple of Harley semi trucks on their way in and out. After mounting up and riding west through town we spotted another Harley building. Being a Harley owner I could not pass up this photo op. After carefully parking our BMW motorcycles in the lot we asked someone entering the building what its purpose is. She said that the products made east of town were shipped there for finishing. 

It was getting near lunch time and the Rustic Road was 25 miles west, so we got on our way. The NAV VI took us the rest of the way to County RR, Rustic Road 62. It is a paved road that goes south into Timm's Hill County Park. Timm's Hill, at 1951 feet, is the highest point in Wisconsin. The park, which also contains 160 acre Bass Lake, encloses the hill. We stopped at a spot on the lake that had a picnic table and enjoyed the peace and quiet of the surrounding woods. Across the small lake, which the Rustic Road guidebook claims is "teeming with northern pike", was a restaurant and bar. Soon after we arrived the quiet was interrupted by the arrival of an squad of ATV riders at the restaurant. If that many riders think it is worth a stop I will be back once I feel safe in a restaurant.

After lunch we rode just a few hundred feet to a parking area near the observation tower. It was a quarter mile hike up and it was quite warm on top of the hill. We plodded up the old wooden tower and took in the view. It was an almost cloudless day and it was possible to see for miles. The old metal fire tower still stands next to the observation tower. After catching our breath and taking a few pictures, we made our way back to the bikes. There were a few other people around, but it does not seem to be a popular spot for visitors. 

Our route home was on county roads paralleling US 51 on the west side. The first few miles on County C were a mix of curves and hills as we made our way south. Eventually the road straightened out as it entered healthy looking corn and soybean fields. We crossed over US 29 and turned east on County N. We planned to ride this into Wausau before hopping onto US 29 for the 90 mile blast home, but we ran into a "road closed" sign. So at Edgar, home multiple high school football championship teams, we got back on the big highway and road east and home.

It was an outstanding day on the bike and one more reminder that life can be grand even under the burdens of the pandemic.

Riding Some Brand New Rustic Roads in NE Wisconsin

My attack on Wisconsin's Rustic Roads is continuing through this abnormal riding season. In other years a ride to a Rustic Road would include a stop at a local restaurant for breakfast or lunch. The search for just the right place was as much a part of the planning as working out the route to my destination. Early in the season I was disappointed by the fact that I would not be able to enjoy the local cuisine on my rides. But over the past few weeks I have discovered the joy of bringing my sustenance and finding a lake, river, or county park to enjoy with my meal.

Wisconsin adds to the list Rustic Roads on an intermittent basis. The only way to know if there are new designations is to check the website. Two of them were recently added in northeast Wisconsin. I rode the first after finding it by accident and the other one involved planned day trip. As of now I have ridden almost 90 of the state's Rustic Roads. I have plans to make it to 100 by the end of the year but since March I have learned to not count on plans. So I am taking pleasure in the rides that I am able to complete and not thinking too far ahead.

In late June my brother and I went for a ride up into Oconto and Marinette Counties. The route took us up Highway 32 to Wabeno. By doing a map recon I discovered that just west of Wabeno is Richardson Lake County Park. There is a campground and a little picnic area near the lake and we stopped there for lunch. After enjoying the quiet of the woods and good meal we went back into Wabeno, then due east on County Road C. We had not gotten far out of Wabeno when, to my surprise, a familiar brown and gold Rustic Road sign appeared. I did not have my logbook with me, but I knew that number 118 was new and that I had not ridden it yet. By the time I stopped and took the picture my riding partner had come back to see what had held me up. It is not easy to ride with a Rustic Road hunter.

RR 118 is a beautifully paved road with some nice sweeping curves and elevation changes. We rode it across Marinette County to Wausaukee, where it meets Highway 180. This road follows the Menominee River, the border between Wisconsin and Upper Michigan, on its way into Green Bay. There are a lot of great little stops along way where travelers can enjoy the river. When we got to Marinette we were going to go up to Menominee to get some pasties at Kolonel K's, but there was an unusual amount of traffic. It was then that we remembered that the president was there that day visiting Marinette Marine. We rode back south on US 41 and on the way into Green Bay saw the president's chopper and its escort of two Boeing Ospreys on their way north.

After finding number 118 in my own backyard I thought I should get back on the Rustic Road website and see if any others had been added in northeast Wisconsin. Sure enough, there was number 117 just south of Wautoma near Saxeville. I had been in the Saxeville area several years ago riding RR 48 and this one is just outside of town,

On the day I rode down there the forecast was for afternoon thundershowers. I kept a close watch on the sky and checked the radar on my phone at stops. It looked like it would be clear long enough for me to ride the Rustic Road and then get home dry. I used the Nav VI GPS on my BMW R 1250 GSA to guide me into Saxeville and onto RR 117. One of the features of this road is a short side road that has a covered bridge and I did not want to miss that. 

When I stopped for the bridge photo I noticed a park like area to my right. There was a home and some outbuildings on the property, so I was surprised to see a sign that indicated the public was welcome. The bridge spans the Pine River and there was a young fellow trying his luck fly fishing. I watched his efforts as I ate my lunch. An old Buick pulled up and a local gentleman and his family got out. As his wife and daughters took pictures of the bridge he came over to chat. He said that an older couple had owned the property I was on and had tended the gardens as long as they could. When they could no longer maintain it the local government purchased the spot and opened it for public use. It was a beautiful and peaceful location and one I would not have enjoyed if I had been seeking a local restaurant. Soon he went back to tend to his ladies and I spent a few more minutes enjoying the river. Then I remembered the threatening weather forecast and began packing up.

Rustic Road 117 is not very long and soon I was on County K heading up toward Wautoma and home. the county was doing some road work and while there were no detours I ended up having to clean a lot of tar-like specks off my motorcycle when I got home. I chose a southerly route home on Highway 10 and that was turned out to be the wet route. But it only lasted about 20 miles and then it was sunshine and dry roads all the way home. 

The list of Rustic Roads is up to 122. I am glad that I found these two close to home and can now add them to my list of roads ridden. This riding season is different from all others, but in some ways has become better than the others.

Beaver Dam and Madison Harley Davidson Sh

The scourge of COVID 19 shows no signs of abating and I continue to be happy to have a riding goal for the summer. The Wisconsin Harley Dealers Association Passport Tour has given me the incentive to get out on the road and map out new routes across the state. Now that I have gotten Passport stamps at all of the participating dealerships in the eastern part of the state it is time to look to the west.

This week I planned an overnight trip that would have netted me six new stamps and left just one to acquire. But Mother Nature intervened in the form of a rainy forecast and that plan went by the wayside. Or it would have if the waysides in Wisconsin were open. The first part of the route was still in play though, and I made the best of it.

I was on the road after the I 41 rush hour subsided on a beautiful sunny morning. It was cool enough that I was comfortable with a long sleeve riding shirt under my Harley Davidson Killian jacket. The only luggage capacity on my 2016 Low Rider S is a swingarm bag, so I travel with a Fly backpack. There would be enough room in there

 to ditch the riding shirt as the day warmed up.

The first stop was Mischler's Harley Davidson in Beaver Dam. This is the also the home of one of two BMW dealerships in the state. The dealership was opened in Waupun by William Mischler in 1958 selling Harley Davidsons and became a BMW dealer the next year. Soon after, the shop moved to Beaver Dam. It has been in several locations since and the new owners, William's son Art and his wife Deb, moved to the current location in 2002. It is a state of the art facility with easy access off US Highway 151. I have a BMW also, so I make it a point to visit Mischler's at least once each year.

Madison is only about 40 miles southwest of Beaver Dam on 151, but it was an interesting and unsettling ride. The highway has been under some type of construction for at least two years and justt south of Beaver Dam there was a good stretch of single lane along this four lane highway. It ended near the Columbus exit and just as traffic was getting up to speed the orange barrels showed up again. In an unfortunate incident, a truck with some type of crane struck and killed a construction worker. I did not know it at the time, but saw the truck amid several law enforcement vehicles. There is also road construction on I 39 near the exit for Harley Davidson of Madison, but the dealer rep gave me some good directions to avoid it on my way in.

I got my first Harley Davidson in 1998 and at the time was a member of the Wisconsin Army National Guard. I was drilling in Madison then and on those weekends I always found time to visit the local Harley shop. It was called Decker's then and was located on US 51 on the south side. When it was sold and moved to its current southeast side location in 2002 it became Capital City Harley Davidson. Since then it has been sold and renamed twice. The current owner closed his Sauk Prairie Harley Davidson dealership in Sauk City in 2015 and merged those operations with Harley Davidson of Madison.  

This place has an inviting showroom and an excellent selection of parts and accessories. There was a 2020 Road King Special on the floor, the first I have seen in my travels. It had a premium paint job and looked terrific. I remembered more grassy area outside from the last time I visited, but they added some square footage for storage and there was no picnic area on the property. I still managed to find a nice shady spot under a tree to enjoy my lunch. 

While eating I marveled at how perfect the day was perfect and lamented the fact that I was not going to be able to continue northwest toward the next participating dealer. It would have been a great day for it, but the looming forecast meant I was on my way home. After watching a rider or two take some shiny new bikes out for test rides I packed up the backpack, put on my helmet, jacket and gloves and got back on the highway.

I had plenty of time and chose to take some back roads home. Over the years I have been on most of them, but it is a beautiful part of the state. Highway 73 took me through the little towns of Deerfield, Marshall, Randolph, Columbus and up to Fox Lake. I thought of the many people I knew from the National Guard who lived in the little towns around the home of the State Headquarters. 

The little town of Columbus was in the news recently as they announced the removal of their Christopher Columbus statue. I went south on Highway 60 to see if it was still there, but all that was left was a cement pedestal near the empty Shopko building. On my way back to 73 I passed a statue memorializing the local Union soldiers who had died during the Civil War. The Amtrak was leaving the station and blocking the street, so I used the traffic halt to take a few pictures.

Following 73 took me to Highways 33 and 68 and I rode into Waupun ready for a break. A Kwik Trip appeared just at the right time and I enjoyed a Kona coffee and blueberry muffin. A gentleman in a Ford Harley Davidson pickup stopped to chat and ask a few questions about my Low Rider. He and his wife have Harley Ultras and he also enjoys his Sportster when bar hopping. 

The ride home was over familiar roads along the east side of Lake Winnebago. Even though my trip was cut short it was a pretty good day on the bike. I now have gotten stamps from all of the dealers in the bigger cities, so the next rides will be on much less traveled roads.

Passport Tour Stamp Quest in the Milwaukee Area

Wisconsin weather is famously unpredictable and we are experiencing an unusual heat wave. This week the temperatures have been in the high 80' and low 90's with high humidity. This all factored into my quest to get Harley Davidson Dealers Association Passport Tour stamps from the participating dealers in the Milwaukee area. Most of my ride would be near the Lake Michigan shoreline and it would be a bit cooler there.

I left Green Bay at 0830 and made my first stop at Suburban Motors in Thiensville. Thiensville is about five miles west of I 43 and, unlike most other Harley dealerships, is located in a downtown area. A village of a little more than 3000 people, Thiensville has a quaint old downtown and was rather busy on a mid week morning. There are restaurants, coffee shops and bakeries, all busy with shoppers and diners.

Suburban Motors has been in this location for 40 years and prides itself on the fact that they have sold bikes to several generations. This shop had more parts and accessories, along with clothing, than any of the shops I had been in. They also had a good selection of their inventory outside for interested buyers to examine. After a quick look around, getting my Passport stamped and hydrating, I rode back to the interstate and went south.

My next stop was Uke's Harley Davidson in Kenosha. The ride through Milwaukee went well as it was after the morning rush hour. Uke's is a dealership that I have ridden past many times on my way to Chicago and points beyond. There has not been a good reason to get off at the exit near Uke's, so I had never been there. It is not be missed by travelers, though, due to its tower showroom containing five floors of new motorcycles.

Uke's has a long history with Harley Davidson and Kenosha, going back to 1930. Their website details how this family owned business has been a major player in motorcycling in Kenosha for almost 100 years. The building they are in now was built in 2003. It is easy to pass up, but worth a stop. I took time to enjoy my lunch on their front patio, got my Passport stamped and rode off to my next dealership. 

To get to Wisconsin Harley Davidson in Oconomowoc I skirted the south and west sides of Milwaukee on Interstates 43, 41 and 94. Oconomowoc is about 30 minutes west of Milwaukee and the dealership is on the south side of the highway. The groundskeeper had finished cutting the expansive lawn and was in the process of blowing the cuttings off the parking lot. I took this into consideration as I parked my Low Rider S. 

Oconomowoc means "where waters meet" and the area is known for its lakes. The dealership originated in Watertown in 1917 and moved to Oconomowoc in 1995. The big beautiful building I entered was completed in 2005. Like the other new shops I had been in there was plenty of showroom space and a friendly staff. 

It had become much warmer as I rode away from the lakeshore and I knew that I would be into late afternoon traffic by the time I got back to Green Bay. So after a chat with one of the representatives and getting my Passport stamped I went back out into the heat. I finished up the water I had with me before crossing the interstate and riding north on Highway 67, leaving the city of lakes behind me.

I wanted to avoid riding in the heat as much as possible and also avoid going back through Milwaukee. My route took me through part of the Southern Unit of the Kettle Moraine Forest and it was a nice break from the interstates. I did encounter some unexpected detours as I made my way north and east, but it made the ride more interesting. I arrived back on the lakeshore at Grafton and rode back north on I 43. After one more water stop in Sheboygan I arrived home at 1700.

These three shops are in the busiest and most traveled areas of Wisconsin and I am glad to have their stamps. The last seven are pretty well scattered around, but they are in more remote areas. Plans to visit them are already in the works.