Princeton: Treasures To Be Found
For the itinerant treasure hunter, Princeton is your kind of town. It is home to the state’s largest outdoor flea market, held every Saturday mid-April through mid- October. When you’re done there, head to antique spots dotting the community like MNM Antique Mall and Woolbrights River City Antique Mall. For modern goods, there’s Twister for kitchen gadgets, and Daiseye for earth-friendly apparel.
Get a loaded potato chip platter at Once in a Blue Moon Café or a Reuben sandwich at Buckhorn Bar & Grille.
“The people here are the definition of charming,” said Beth Pelland, former director of the Princeton Area Chamber of Commerce. “People look you in the eye, smile and say hello, and you feel very welcomed.”
Surprised to Find: An annual Rubber Chicken Fling event, in which people fling rubber chickens for distance and accuracy. Clearly, there’s no place for pretense in Princeton. They also have a fall festival to celebrate the whooping cranes that summer in the area.
Elkhart Lake: Stylish, Relaxed
This quaint lakeside village veritably oozes charm. There are white clapboard resorts with porches and cupolas, sandy beaches, tiki bars, and a pretty brick promenade, all positioned to take best advantage of the Mediterranean-like blue waters.
According to Kathleen Eickhoff, executive director of Elkhart Lake Tourism, “business owners here are front and center.” In fact, it’s not unusual for guests of The Osthoff Resort, Siebken’s and Victorian Village to pop in to say hello to the owners upon arrival.
Adding to the charm is that nearly everything is walkable. Stroll in one direction and you’ll find yourself at Two Fish Gallery. In the other direction, Gina’s for high-end outdoor apparel and home décor items. And smack dab in the middle is Vintage, a wine store with tasting room.
Bikes are a common sight, too, with serious pedaling in the Kettle Moraine a major draw. Racing at Road America is the modern iteration of the road racing once staged through the streets of the village.
Most Unexpected: Hands down, the culinary scene. Start at Off the Rail for coffee drinks and breakfast goodies, Lake Street Café for lunch, Gesserts for ice cream, Paddock Club or the Concourse Restaurant for fine dining, and Brown Baer for drinks and live music. The cooking school at the Osthoff is a culinary treat, too.
Cambridge: Pottery Put It on the Map
Pottery put Cambridge on the map of charming destinations starting in the late 1980s when the community carried the title of “salt glaze pottery capital of the world,” setting the stage for quaint shops and restaurants to open. Today, Rowe Pottery Works continues to help define the village as an artists’ enclave.
“Rowe Pottery has inspired artists the world over,” said Tobi Bolt, a board member of the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce. Along with Rowe Pottery, there’s also Cambridge Wood-Fired Pottery.
For urbanites looking for a break from the busyness of their workaday lifestyles, explore the 422-acre CamRock Park system.
Famous Names: Cambridge was home to two inventors with names vacationers will recognize. Ole Evinrude, inventor of the outboard motor, and Arthur Davidson, one of the founding members of Harley-Davidson motorcycles, came to live in Cambridge in the late 1880s. Fast-forward and you can add race car driver Matt Kenseth to the list of prominent locals.
This content was originally published here.
