9-30/10-1-2016
Enjoy the ride to Shawano, plenty to see on the way!
Shawano is located in Shawano County, Barn Quilt Capitol of Wisconsin. The city has a population of 9,305 and has plenty to offer.
Stop by the Chamber of Commerce on Hwy. 22, close to the barn sign above. Read the visitor guide here and/or have them send you one before you come to visit! We got a lot of great info here. The goldfish in the tank at the Chamber has a story of his own. It was originally put into the tank as food but it decided it wasn’t going to be food. Cute fish, also quite large at about 3 inches long!
Since it is hard to see all the barn quilts in one trip, we picked up the book “The Barn Quilts of Shawano County Wisconsin”. It costs $15 and a great memento of our visit. Buy the book here.
Even more behind the scenes story here.
Our first meal in town was lunch at The Launching Pad Bar and Grill, a casual restaurant across from the municipal airport (see video). Under new ownership-2019.
Downtown Shawano
The Shawano Post Office has a mural inside, painted by Eugene Higgins.
A city clock too!
Winters can get cold in Shawano. It’s no surprise the famous Stormy Kromer™ winter hat is sold here. Buy one at Town and Country Cleaners. They are made in Milwaukee.
We also noticed that fudge is popular here, just like on Mackinac island. We got some at Old Glory Candy just off Main St. Lots of old-fashioned favorites here, friendly staff too!
Visit the Veteran’s Memorial on the Courthouse grounds.
Shawano has some beautiful parks to visit as well. Launch your boat or fish at Huckleberry Harbor, on the banks of the Wolf River. See this and other parks on this map you can print. There is a windmill there too. It was repainted in 2015, great job!
Spirit of Shawano Park at the intersection of Main and Green Bay Street greet people with metal sculptures representing various industry in the area.
Another great place is Sturgeon Park. This is the epicenter of Sturgeon spawing in Shawano. They usually spawn in May.
Record-size Sturgeon have been caught here. This Stella, caught in 2012.
The water pouring over the dam, intensified by frequent rains.
On Sundays there is also a great Farmers Market here, we stopped by and found a great variety of items for sale. It’s at Franklin Park.
The market’s first year was 2007 and has been a great success in the community. Learn more about it below.
We took a stroll through the market too, take a look!
Pay a visit to Heritage Park and Sunset Island too. It was not open since the season had ended, but you could still walk the grounds. The Shawano County Historical Society produced a video of the historic village. Hopefully we can make it back in 2017 and be here when it’s open!
We may have been too late to explore this place in further detail, but we were right on time for the Shawano Octoberfest. Lots of music and fall crafts to be had here!
Shawano is also home to Sundrop™ soft drink, we also enjoyed a self-guided tour at Sundrop University™, the factory in town. This vending machine is downtown if you need your Sundrop fix!
We enjoyed dinner about 15 miles north on the Menominee Indian Reservation at the War Bonnet Bar and Grill, they serve Indian Tacos on authentic fry bread, delicious!
A great place to stay if you plan on spending the night here is the Super 8. Comfortable room and great free breakfast!
We had a lot of fun here and plan on returning in 2017.
