Multi-media “ing-ing” means doing a lot of different activities that end in “ing”. This was another great week of camping, ebiking, boating, hiking, and motor biking.

We had a little over a week before our septic designer drops by so we returned to the northwoods and lakes for some more R&R. First off, we took a long ass-killing motorbike ride on the back roads and trails of the Nicolet National Forest. Riding double on our Yamaha TW200 street-legal dirt bike can be tough on the tush, but the scenery was spectacular with thick tree-canopied roads twisting through the forest. The fat tires on the motorbike handles the ruts and the sandy spots of the off-road trails with ease.

From St. Germain we rode the ATV trails to Chain O Lakes Road just north of Eagle River. Chain O Lakes Road winds around a bunch of lakes where we met up with Hwy X, a beautiful narrow road that cuts through the National Forest. From there, we connected with a bunch of gravel forest roads that weave through the thickest part of the Forest. It was so dark and thick that without any sun filtering through, the air grew cold under the canopy.

Deep in the heart of the Chequamegon National Forest.

The next day, groaning from forcing ourselves to get up at the crack of dawn, we returned to the National Campground on Lake Owen, in northwest Wisconsin. This time we brought our pontoon boat. After setting up camp, basically popping open our privacy tent, we launched the boat and toured Lake Owen. This lake is considered to be one of the most beautiful in Wisconsin. It features lots of undeveloped shoreline, crystal clear water, tons of bays and islands, and a handful of sand bars to play on. Shaped like the letter “Y”, it is about 6 miles long. We launched at 2 pm and it wasn’t until 7:30 pm until we pulled back up at the boat landing.

We picked out the same campsite, #30, that we had the last time we were here, just three weeks ago. This time there were twice as many open campsites as before.

Lake Owen is a magnificent clear-water lake.

The next morning brought yet another ridiculously early morning departure. We left the boat at the campground and made our way up to Bayfield to catch the morning ferry to Madeline Island. We wanted to ebike the island three weeks ago when we were up here, but the weather was a bit unpredictable. This time we were right in the middle of a bubble of high pressure that promised sun and warmth for the whole week - perfect for exploring Madeline Island.

The ferry between Bayfield and La Point, the only town on the island, took 20 minutes. It cost $16 per person and $7.50 per bike. (A car would have cost $27). La Point is a fun, funky little town, with a marina, some bike and scooter rentals, a couple of restaurants, art galleries, a crazy place jammed full of junk art, and our favorite, a food truck. We split a delicious gyro from the truck.

Madeline Island has a good 30 miles of paved roads. Our asses were still sore from our motorbike ride so we limited our ride to 18 miles. We made up for that paltry bike ride by hiking 8.62 miles, according to our GPS app. We ebiked to Big Bay State Park, featuring a terrific half-moon sand beach, rock cliffs, sand dunes, a big lagoon, and miles of boardwalk trails.

The day’s efforts left us with sores, asses, legs, and backs, but thoroughly happy. Back at Bayfield, a delightfully talented Celtic band was performing in an open-sided gazebo, practically on the Lake Superior shore. The moanful Irish ballades were perfect for putting the evening to rest. We drove back to the campground and immediately crashed.

Getting ready to ride after disembarking the ferry at La Point, the only town on Madeline Island.

This funky junk art Mecca is a centerpiece of LaPoint. Art, of all kinds, is built into the fabric of Madeline Island. There is an arts school just outside of LaPoint, some art galleries in town, and we watched an art class in front of this junk art establishment paint its interpretations of the place. I cheated and just took a photo.

This junk art car looks ready for a Mardi Gras parade.

Great food truck cuisine.

The half-moon beach at Big Bay State Park.

The following two days of high pressure gave us two more glorious boat trips, one on the Lake Namekagon chain and the other on the Pine Lake chain. Lake Namekagon is a chain of three to five lakes, depending on which map you read. We love boating bodies of water with lots of channels leading to hidden lakes and this body of water didn’t disappoint. It was only a few miles from Lake Owen so it shared the same lush Chequamegon National Forest as Lake Owen. Both waterways took hours to explore.

The Pine Lake chain is closer to the town of Minocqua, Wisconsin. It consists of four lakes and lots of channels. But first, we took a swing over to Hayward, a cute tourist town, for some breakfast. We found a tiny corner Mexican restaurant and got a breakfast burrito with all the fixin’s.

Wow, what a week! I thought we took full advantage of the weather. This is Wisconsin at it’s finest. Even the bugs this year were practically nonexistent.

Breakfast burrito from Main Street Taco in Hayward, WI.

Pine Lake chain o Lakes.

Glossary of terms used for newcomers: 1) V-Jer. The name of our camper. 2) Saturn. The name of our Van. 3) Duende. Our mischievous gremlin that breaks things. 4) Tata. The good gremlin that helps us fix Duende’s dirty work. 5) The Black Hole. This is what we call Walmart because every time we go in for just a couple of items, we come out spending way more than we figured. 6) QT. Quaint Town. 7) Little Buddy. This is what we call our Dyson cordless stick vacuum. 8) “ing-ing”. All the activities that we enjoy that end in “ing” - hiking, ebiking, motor biking, camping, boating, swimming……

Dave and Wanda

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