Can't see DeForest?

Can't see DeForest for the trees? Borrow the pink elephant's glasses!

On my way up to Tomah to meet Katrina I kept my eye out for my favorite landmark, the Pink Elephant in DeForest. The first time I saw it I fell in love, took a picture and posted it up at work.  What else would any retro-loving, cat-eye glasses wearing Optician do?  Rumor has it that this elephant was part of a chain of ARCO gas stations in the area, all with pink elephants.  This appears to be the last surviving member of the herd and a Shell station is the proud owner.

DeForest, middle of nowhere just north of Madison, is also home to Ehlenbach's Cheese Chalet and I decided it was time to pay them a visit since it was just a hop over the bridge to the other side of the interstate.  Inside you will find over 100 different kinds of Wisconsin cheeses and Wisconsin-made all beef summer sausages. They also have many gourmet items, candy, domestic wines, Door County coffee and a wide variety of gifts and Wisconsin memorabilia.  My favorite discovery was the cuckoo clocks, but I didn't have an extra $1600 to get one so I kept it simple and bought some cheese.

There's just as much to see on the outside as the inside, including a mural which I'll save for Monday, a mouse climbing the store's sign and Sissy the Cow, who I did not get a picture of but borrowed one from Panoramio.  She is another fiberglass landmark...perhaps she and the Pink Elephant catch glimpses of each other across the interstate and dream of breaking loose and getting together for a chat.  I'm sure there's more than cheese and fiberglass in DeForest, but it'll have to wait for another day.

 





Not that I'm planning on stealing Judy's signature, but I couldn't resist this one time....

Dreaming of heading down the highway with everyone else, perhaps?

THE END!