Trip Tips: Things to do in the Northwoods

Things to do: Bike the Heart of Vilas County Trail System, which stretches for 45 miles between Manitowish Waters and St. Germain, passing through Boulder Junction and Sayner. The route is paved and mostly follows off-road trail, with some sections on low-traffic roads. Start at the trailhead at the junction of County highways M and N for a 16-mile trip to Sayner and back. 

The 18-mile, crushed granite Bearskin State Trail follows an old railway corridor from Minocqua south past Harshaw, passing through classic Northwoods scenery including skinny red pines and mirror-calm lakes. Cyclists age 16 and older need a state trail pass ($25/year, $5/day). 

The 35,000-acre Turtle-Flambeau Flowage has miles of lakes and rivers for paddling, boating, fishing and camping. The eastern fifth is designated as a quiet area, with less boat traffic making for a pristine wilderness experience. Launch from Murray’s Landing off Highway 51 near Manitowish. Bring a compass — it’s easy to lose your bearings among the seemingly endless shorelines and islands. First-come, first-served free camping is allowed at designated sites — all with fire rings and primitive toilets, some with picnic tables. Permits are not required. 

Hawk's Nest Canoe Outfitters offers canoe, kayak, tube and raft rentals out of Eagle River and Manitowish Waters for trips on the Wisconsin River and Turtle-Flambeau.

The Smith Rapids Covered Bridge was built in 1991 over the south fork of the Flambeau River on Rustic Road 105 (Forest Road 148) in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest.

Also on the south fork of the Flambeau River is the Round Lake Logging Dam, which was built in 1876 to facilitate spring log drives to mills downstream. The dam was restored in the ‘90s and is the last existing log driving dam in the upper Great Lakes region. A half-mile interpretive trail loops over the dam, which is off Forest Road 535 east of Fifield in Price County.

The Raven Trail system in the Northern Highland-American Legion State Forest includes four trail loops ranging from 1.5 to 5 miles open to hiking and biking (except on the nature trail). The trails wind through a hemlock glen, old white pines and past three lakes. Find the trailhead on Woodruff Road south of County Highway J east of Minocqua.

Northwoods Zip Line, 7849 Highway 51, Minocqua, has a full roster of outdoor adventures for thrill seekers, from zip lining and an aerial ropes course to kayaking and ATV tours. 

The Min-Aqua Bats are one of the oldest water-ski show teams in the country. They put on free shows at the Aqua Bowl, 422 W. Park Ave., Minocqua, at 7 p.m. Sunday, Wednesday and Friday, mid-June to the Friday before Labor Day.

Watch men and women chop, saw, climb and run on logs at a Fred Scheers Lumberjack Show, 1126 1st Ave., Woodruff. Shows are at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Wednesday and Friday, June 20-Aug. 19 (with select shows through Sept. 3). Tickets are $13.95 for adults, $10.95 for seniors, $8.95 for kids 4-11 and free for kids 3 and under. 

Rhinelander has embraced the lore of the hodag, a mythical green beast conjured up by local prankster Eugene Shepard in 1893. Snap a photo with recreations of the creature throughout town, including in front of the Chamber of Commerce building at 450 W. Kemp St.

The Oneida County Courthouse in Rhinelander features a Tiffany-glass dome constructed in 1911 and is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Head to Lake Tomahawk at 7:30 p.m. Mondays for snowshoe baseball, a summer tradition that is just what it sounds like: locals playing baseball while wearing snowshoes. Homemade pies for sale from local service groups make the evening even more special. 

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Where to eat and drink: Once a stop for the Hiawatha dropping off tourists for the lodges of the Northwoods, Jacobi’s is now a quaint supper club on Hazelhurst’s Lower Kaubashine Lake. 

Norwood Pines, 10171 Highway 70, Minocqua, offers superb views of Patricia Lake alongside classic supper club fare and a dash of spookiness. The restaurant purportedly has a resident ghost, Edgar, who committed suicide upstairs when the second floor was a hotel.

Gangster lore is on display at Little Bohemia, 142 Highway 51, Manitowish Waters, where a shootout between FBI agents and gangsters including John Dillinger and Baby Face Nelson in 1934 lives on in infamy in the bullet holes still present in the restaurant’s windows, walls and upstairs bedrooms. History isn’t the only draw, though. Supper club food and views of Little Star Lake are as appealing.

Born of a tavern dating to the late 1800s, Soda Pops, 125 S. Railroad St., Eagle River, transitioned to a soda fountain at the onset of Prohibition in 1919. The old-school restaurant serves up hamburgers, hot dogs, salads, sandwiches and, of course, ice cream.

Milwaukee native Christie Smith and husband Tyler opened Rocky Reef Brewing Co., 1101 1st Ave., Woodruff, in 2015, naming it for the Northwoods street where Christie’s grandparents have a cottage. In two years the couple has brewed a stellar lineup of beers, from refreshing ales to hoppy IPAs.

Tribute Brewing, 1106 N. Bluebird Road, Eagle River, has an equally impressive beer lineup, including bestseller Blueberry Train Wheat. 

The Lower Unit Bar at Greer’s Pier offers a dose of tiki bar at a prime location on a channel between Spider Lake and Manitowish Lake, part of the boat-friendly chain of 10 lakes.

Where to stay: Campgrounds, many on lakes, abound in the Northern Highland-American Legion State Forest and Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest. Crystal Lake in the state forest west of Sayner is one of the best (and most popular). Luna-White Deer between two lakes east of Eagle River is a good option in the national forest.

Swinging beds on screened-in porches are a landmark at Black’s Cliff Resort, 10223 Lower Kaubashine Road, Hazelhurst. Two- to four-bedroom cabins line Lower Kaubashine Lake for an idyllic Northwoods family getaway.

After Baby Face Nelson escaped Little Bohemia in the infamous shootout in 1934, he holed up in a cabin, now Cabin 5 at Dillman’s Bay Resort, 3305 Sand Lake Lodge Lane, Lac du Flambeau.

Families return to Holiday Acres, 4060 South Shore Drive, Rhinelander, year after year for lovely cottages and lodges on beautiful Lake Thompson.