Wanted to share some of our photos from our Payne family retreat at the end of June...
The dates were June 25-29th. Tim & Jess were our gracious hosts on Saturday and most of Sunday at their spacious apartment in Bangor.
On Sunday evening we drove to this Bed & Breakfast south of Tomah.
On Sunday evening we drove to this Bed & Breakfast south of Tomah.
We stayed on the lower level. The house sits atop one of the coulee ridges between Kendall and Elroy. On the south side of the house were beautiful beds of day lilies. Our host said there were hundreds of varieties planted there.
Down the hill from the lily garden was a koy pond. There was even a koy pond in our sun room!
Even further down the ridge was this garden and sitting area. Dan, Laura, and Grandma stayed out well after dark looking at the night sky and enjoyed the light show provided by thousands of fireflies.
It wasn't long after we arrived that the sun set. Matt & Sarah enjoyed the time along in nature.
The next morning is was Fiber-1 pancakes and some tasty chocolate bread before Dave, Laura, Dan, Matt, and Grandma set out for a hike on the historic Elroy-Sparta Bike Trail. Here's Grandma modeling her "Return of the Jedi" hat to protect her from the sunny weather in Kendall!
Here's Dan and Laura loosening up before the hike...
Can't forget about Matt...
Check out the beautiful sunny skies as we began our 2-hour trek into the woods. This is the WELS church in Kendall. (Watch for it in the photo when we return to town later...)
Check out the rocky scenery along the way.
And the hills and meadows. Can you make out the cows feeding on the hillside?
Another hilly view...
Here was a deserted building along the way... used to be part of rent-a-bike shop!
We crossed several bridges and streams...
Along the way, the weather changed a bit. Check out the growing clouds...
We couldn't miss Western Wisconsin's largest railroad turntable.
Here the intrepid travelers are looking over the amazing sight!
A closer look...
After the turntable, it was off to find restroom facilities in the Kendall Train Depot which also houses a small train museum. Dave and Laura reminisced about their railroad trip from Neenah to Fond du Lac as youngsters when Mom & Dad took them before the trains stopped routing through the Fox River Valley. The same Chicago & Northwestern RR engines and cars ran on the Elroy-Sparta Trail in the old days. Also featured amazing photos of the 1902 Flood and the destruction it caused. The railroad tunnels that run through the coulees need to have giant garage doors installed on them because otherwise they freeze up in winter.
Then it was time for lunch at Cindy's Corner Bar -- which wasn't on the corner. Most enjoyed the daily special of a generous turkey/ham club sandwich with "Munchers." (Munchers are basically tater tots with cheese injected into them -- good plan to avoid in the future!)
After lunch Dan and Laura stayed in Kendall to walk the trail the other way and find some of the tunnels. Matt, Grandma, and Dave drove back to the B & B to collect Matt & Sarah's belongings because they needed to head back to Waseca for evening softball games and work on Tuesday.
They met up with Joyce, Sarah, and Lenora in Cashton where the girls had been in search of Amish goods. After good-byes to Matt & Sarah, Dave, Joyce, Grandma, and Lenora took in an afternoon of sightseeing as they traveled back through Elroy scoping out the Valley Inn as their dinner destination.
