Beulah Bog

We can take Beulah Bog off the "To Do" list; we went today and it was definately worth checking out:
It was a beautiful drive in the East Troy area, with it's hidden hilly and swervy roads-- there was a bit of a hike from the parking lot to get to the bog, some of which was on a plank walkway that was buoyed up on plastic drums. Six wasn't sure what to make of the walk, which bobbed underneath him and kept tossing him into the water. Jacob, of course, had to step in the muck, too, which was surprisingly very hard to extract him from; when I was finally able to pull him out, his pants were covered with some peat-ish looking material, similar to the stuff they found the "bog people" in. Cool!
When we neared the thick of the bog, we were surrounded by gorgeous tamarack trees, where the water turned from clear to red; huge growths of moss covered the surface of the water, and everywhere you looked there were hundreds of pitcher plants emerging from the swamp.

After our hike, we couldn't help but visit Lauber's, an old fashioned Ice Cream Parlor in East Troy. It's our all time favorite ice cream place, with it's turn of the century furnishings, old jukebox, and penny candy for sale, just like what I used to buy when I was a kid. Lauber's is one of those rare places that is equally as magical for the grownups as it is for the kids.

p.s. visit the bog before the mosquitos come out in full force.