Soggy and Foggy in Door County

Since coming back from my big trip with Katrina down to Texas I've been a busy girl, which is why you didn't hear much from me in January.  My general rule is if I don't have time to keep the house clean then I don't have time to write my blog or read other blogs.  Not that my rule has kept me from sitting on the couch watching too much TV at times, mind you.

Harrington Beach selfie

Besides my recent Chicago escapade with an old friend I also dragged my mother with me up to Door County for 2 nights, with a stop along the way to put Pokemon in the gyms and stretch my legs at Harrington Beach State Park.  We were experiencing a winter warm-up that weekend and temps were actually above freezing so fog followed us all the way from Lake Geneva to Egg Harbor.

There isn't much to do in Door County in the winter, not even much shopping because a lot of the boutiques and tourist attractions close for the season.  The Patricia Shoppe in Egg Harbor was still open though, and I left with a bag full of stylish work clothes and a neat hat that was a gift from my mother.  I wanted to take home some of the funky re-purposed vintage jewelry but didn't find anything that spoke to me enough.  Maybe next time, because I've gotten some news that means I'll be up there again very soon and frequently returning...

A few reminders of Christmas are still around, I know these jaunty horses put a smile on our faces.

Everything was shrouded in fog, I'm guessing the warmer air hitting the snow was the cause but I'm no meteorologist.  In case you didn't know, I am currently an Optician and have been for many years, working part time with a very flexible schedule at a small practice.  Being able to go in and do paperwork any time that fits around my wanderings has been one of the reasons I've been able to travel so much over the last few years.

Why am I talking about my career choices today?  Well, I applied for a Sales Representative position with a great eyeglass frame company called Aspex Eyewear and I got the job!  I will be traveling the eastern half of Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan visiting offices with my bags of quality optical goodies.  I officially start next week, so lots of regional traveling on my future agenda.  I'm thinking my other travels might be on the back burner until Memorial Day weekend when Wayne and I go on our first RV trip.  Ironically our plan is for northern Wisconsin and on up to Houghton, Michigan possibly, though we'll be wandering just out of my work territory most likely. Wayne gets a lot of vacation days, and so far it looks like we'll be sticking to the Great Lakes region this year.  I do intend to get on a plane to Newfoundland again at some point this year, and maybe a bigger roadtrip to Washington D.C. with my mother if the timing looks right.

Egg Harbor on a foggy morning at dawn

Still, lots of places for me to stop with my camera while I pursue my new career, and though I've cleaned out my Honda CR-V to make room for my inventory I still have a spot saved for my hiking boots, hiking pole and my copy of the Ice Age Trail handbook.  Yes, I purchased that vehicle this fall knowing that I wanted to branch out into this new evolution in my career in Optical and would need the room and I was preparing for this change when I got that carpal tunnel surgery taken care of as well.  Even though my income will allow for hotel stays I still plan to camp quite a bit because I love sleeping out under the stars and listening to the owls and coyotes sing to me, so I'm hoping some new campgrounds and hiking trails will pop up on the blog.

No tent on this recent trip to Door County though.  My mother and I liked our stay at Bay Point Inn in Egg Harbor so much last spring that we stayed there again this time for a reasonable off season rate.  While she stayed back at the Inn enjoying the quiet of the nearly empty Inn and her cup of tea I headed over to Cave Point County Park.  I found the fog to be a little less intense but the ice formations I've seen in the past were gone due to the unseasonably warm weather.

Wearing my Yak Trax in case the stone was icy!

Keep your eyes open for those fossils while walking out on the dolostone.  Scientists don’t know what animals roamed or swam through ancient Wisconsin because there is a major gap in the fossil record. Almost 400 million years of geological evidence is missing - it's assumed that layers of rock continued to form, of course. But much of this soft rock was probably eroded by water, and then what was left was scraped off by Ice Age glaciers.

I'm looking forward to my next business related visit up to the Door, I've already started a list of new things to see!