"Kringle by the Lake to Bluffs on the River"

Eastern terminus: Racine County, at Highway 32 in downtown Racine

Western terminus: Grant County, at Highway 35 & U.S. Highway 151, just short of Dubuque, Iowa

Mileage: about 158 miles

Counties along the way: Racine, Walworth, Rock, Green, Lafayette, Grant

Sample towns along the way: Racine, Burlington, Elkhorn, Delavan, Janesville, Brodhead, Monroe, Shullsburg, Hazel Green, East Dubuque

Bypass alternates at: Burlington (under construction), Janesville, Monroe

Quickie Summary: State “Trunk” Highway 11 is a key "coast to coast" highway across southern Wisconsin. From Racine's impressive harbor on Lake Michigan to the bluffs overlooking Dubuque, Iowa, Highway 11 weaves through and around key towns and a variety of sights.

The Drive (East To West): Highway 11 begins in Racine (pop. 81,855), just a few hundred yards from Lake Michigan along Highway 32. Racine calls itself the Belle City and is Wisconsin's fifth-largest. The French may have named the city (Racine is French for "root", after the Root River which flows into Lake Michigan here), but Danish immigrants left the tastiest mark on the city; Racine is known as the "Kringle Capital of the World". Famous locales like Lehmann's, O&H, and the Larsen Bakery (just north of Highway 11 along 3311 Washington Avenue - Highway 20 - near Hayes Street, in an area known as Kringleville or Little Denmark) crank out millions of the tasty iced and filled pastries every year and ship them worldwide. You, however, can stop in for a fresh one right there. They're best that way.

Racine's industrial and entrepreneurial history now spans three centuries. Home to major companies like J.I. Case and S.C. Johnson, it's where the garbage disposal was invented in 1927; In-Sink-Erator still calls Racine home. It's also where malted milk was invented in 1887 by William Horlick, who now has a high school named after him (they do not have a malted milk stand, however, according to my limited research.)

Many cities the size of Racine host minor-league baseball, but Racine hosts minor-league football. The Racine Raiders of the North American Football League are one of the most respected minor-league football organizations in the country and have been around for over 50 years. The Raiders have sent players to the NFL over the years, although unfortunately most of them went to the Vikings. They play at Horlick Field, on the north side of town. The 2010 season begins on June 25.

	Highway 11's eastern terminus (or, its western beginning) is at Highway 32, which runs along Lake Michigan - which is just beyond the hill after the intersection - from Illinois to Port Washington. This is the eastern end of the journey from the Mississippi River at Dubuque, Iowa.
Highway 11's western start runs through south side Racine neighborhoods, past Kringle Bakeries on its way to Burlington, Delavan, Janesville, Monroe, Dubuque and more. A lot lies ahead!

Other things to see in Racine include the Johnson Wax Golden Rondelle (1525 Howe Street), built in 1964 for the New York World's Fair; the Wind Point Lighthouse (4725 Lighthouse Drive, Wind Point), one of the oldest (1880) and tallest (108 feet) lighthouses on the Great Lakes; and the Racine Zoo (2131 N. Main Street, about 1.5 miles north of downtown and 4 miles north of Highway 11), which offers an impressive array of animals - over 76 species - overlooks the lake, and offers its "Animal Crackers Jazz Series" on Wednesday and Selected Sunday evenings.

A good link to Racine's sites can be found at http://racine.wi.net/tourfp.php3, as well as the Racine County Convention & Visitors Bureau.

Meanwhile, as Durand Avenue, Highway 11 works its way west through Racine's south side residential neighborhoods and heads for the western - I guess you could call it suburb - of Sturtevant (pop. 5,451). Primarily known for its Amtrak station along the Hiawatha line between Milwaukee and Chicago, Sturtevant is emerging from a crossroads town to a developing city.

A few miles west of Racine and Sturtevant, you intersect with I-94/U.S. Highway 41. You may see small-craft planes taking off or landing at nearby Sylvania Airport, or head south slightly to the University of Lawsonomy. What's that, you ask? Lawsonomy is the outgrowth of the writings of William Alfred Lawson (1869-1954), whose philosophy, Lawsonomy, is "defined as the knowledge of life and everything pertaining hereto. Lawson was a professional baseball player, avaiation pioneer and author of a slew of books. While his credibility has been called into question by many and the University exists primarily on the Internet, the closest thing Lawsonomy has to an existing location is just south of Highway 11 along the Interstate.

Heading west through some of the most fertile farm fields in the nation, you approach the town where the hyper, deep-voiced echoes of "Sunday! Sunday! Sunday!" beckon. That's because it's close to the widely-known Great Lakes Dragaway, Union Grove, Wisconsin! Union Grove (pop. 4,322) is a pleasant little town along Highway 11, where you intersect with U.S. Highway 45. The Dragaway, due to all its hard-to-forget radio commercials over the years, is how most people know Union Grove.

Further west through Racine County, you pass about two miles north of the funniest-named park in Wisconsin, the Bong Recreation Area. Originally slated to be an air force base in the 1950s, the plans were abandoned and the area became a massive state recreation area filled with options of things to do. To get there, head south from Highway 11 on Highway 75 at the small crossroads of Kansasville. For simplicity's sake, you can just follow the soon-to-be-disappointed hippie vans misinterpreting what Bong Recreation Area means. The park-that-was-almost-an-air-force-base's namesake is Richard Ira Bong (yes, "Dick Bong"), the United States' highest-scoring air ace and Medal of Honor recipient during World War II. Along with the recreation area, Bong has one of the bridges from Superior to Duluth (the one carrying U.S. 2) named after him, as well as a bridge in Townsville, Australia, an Air and Operations Center on Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii, and even a theatre in Misawa, Japan.

The last main city in Racine County is Burlington (pop. 10,485), known as "Chocolate City USA" for its Nestle plant. Its motto, "The town with the tall tales", is one you'll have to ask locals about. Just outside Burlington is the unincorporated community of Voree, which holds the headquarters of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite). Highway 83 intersects with Highway 11 here -- watch for it on the new bypass being constructed. Burlington is also not shy about pointing out it's the hometown of All-Pro quarterback Tony Romo, even though he does play for the Dallas Cowboys. Fortunately, Jessica Simpson helped ensure that he wouldn't stand in the way of the Packers' (relative) success in the 2007 playoffs.

West of Burlington, Highway 11 is pretty open through farm fields and then some of the Kettle Moraine hills to Walworth County's county seat, Elkhorn (pop. 7,305), a city named during the founding years by Colonel Sam Phoenix, who spied some elk antlers in a tree. Elkhorn features a nice town square and Highway 11 serves as the main east-west street through town. Along the square, where Highway 67 meets up, Highway 11 ducks south and west around the Walworth County Courthouse and past a series of downtown buildings, including the facade of the First National Bank. Yes, it's just the facade; the bank itself is gone, but you're feel to step through the doorway into the grassy little park. It would be funny, however, if some pens were chained to a park bench in there somewhere for that true bank feel.

	The First National Bank building in Elkhorn. It's doesn't go very deep.
Around Elkhorn's town square, Highway 11 winds past the county courthouse and a line of downtown businesses.

The proximity of I-43 means for a brief stretch Highway 11 is less of a main road from Elkhorn west to Delavan (pop. 7,956), so enjoy the ride. Now, a key theme along Highway 11 might be chocolate: not only is Burlington "Chocolate City USA", but in Delevan they make those delicious Andes Candies. Delavan is the native home of Gary Berghoff (Radar O’Reilly on M*A*S*H) and historically a circus town: it's the original home to P.T. Barnum’s "Greatest Show On Earth" (P.T. stood for Phineas Taylor, in case you were curious) and from 1847-1895 about 26 circuses made their headquarters here. A 12-year-old runaway named Harry Houdini stayed in a livery stable in Delavan's Park Hotel, along Highway 11 on the west side of town. Also on the west side of Delavan lies the site for Wisconsin's first School for the Deaf, the market for which is right on Highway 11 just past County X, the former Highway 15 route.

	A brick main street and active storefronts make downtown Delavan, home of Andes Candies, six Frank Lloyd Wright structures and historically a circus town, a fun stop along Highway 11.
Speaking of, the giraffe indicates a monument that highlights Delavan's circus history. The plaque tells you more, so make sure you stop and read the thing.

From Delavan, Highway 11 traverses some forested areas before hitting the relatively wide-open farmland past Highway 89 and Rock County. You'll pass, as I noticed, a farm called Happy Holstein Heaven, which claims to be the home of "happy cows", a claim Californians will want to debate using their cheese commercials. But who cares what they think?

It's a fast ride to Janesville (pop. 60,483), the "City of Parks". Major companies founded in Janesville include Parker Pen and Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance, neither of which are in the city anymore. Janesville does host playground equipment maker Swing N Slide, now a subsidiary of Playcore, Inc., Blain's Farm & Fleet (a store you see many times on the State Trunk Tour), and Gray's Brewing Company, of which more will be divulged shortly. It's the home of Senator Russ Feingold, Representative Paul Ryan, race car driver Stan Fox, even WNBA Houston Comets player Mistie Williams, daughter of Chubby Checker. Janesville hosted Wisconsin's first state fair in 1851 on a site just south of downtown, which still holds a series of impressive, expansive older homes. Janesville is the county seat of Rock County and the largest on the Rock River, with the exception of Rockford, Illinois.

Left: Highway 11's city route into Janesville - as Racine Street, in salute of the road's eastern origin - goes past a number of lovely parks and it descends toward the Rock River and downtown. Right: In the downtown area, featuring Rock County's tallest buildings (okay, so they're not THAT tall), city routes for Highway 11 and U.S. 14 criss-cross with U.S. 51 and Highway 26, which originates just west of the river.

***BYPASS ALERT***
Highway 11 traditionally went through the heart of Janesville. Today, officially Highway 11 heads around the south end of Janesville by following I-39/90 south about two miles and then runs around the southwest side of town, meeting up with the traditional Highway 11 just west of the city. It saves a good 5-10 minutes, so if time is a factor, by all means, use it. If you want the full Janesville experience, read on below:

Following Highway 11's traditional route through Janesville, stay on the route past the I-39/90 interchange into town. You come in on Racine Street, past Palmer Park and into the downtown area. After crossing the Rock River, the "traditional" Highway 11 turns northwest on Franklin Street, along what was also former U.S. Highway 14, as indicated by "City" U.S. 14 signs that have been up since the 1950s. At Court Street, you jog to the right briefly into the main downtown area (demarcated by actual multi-story buildings) before jogging back west (doing a U-turn) along Milwaukee Street for the ride westerly out of town. For a little while, streets are one-way. After crossing U.S. Highway 51 (which connects to Highway 26 to the north a few blocks away), The former Highway 11 is a two-way street as Court Street. Near the western edge of town lies Gray's Brewing (2424 W. Court Street, still along old Highway 11), crafter of numerous award-winning brews. They've even been making cream sodas since 1856.

Left: Highway 11 and U.S. 14 both used to follow this stretch of Franklin Street to downtown Janesville. The U.S. 14 sign is an original from the 1950s, so this shot is probably exactly how this street looked then, if you change the car and clothing styles. Center: Janesville hosted the first Wisconsin State Fair in October, 1851. No word on how much cream puffs cost back then.Right: St. Lawrence Avenue, which parallels the river, overlooks downtown and lovely old mansions line the street for a good distance.

Left: Perched high above the Rock River, overlooking downtown in front of the Rock County Courthouse, Janesville remembers fallen Civil War soldiers with this commemoration. Center and Right: Gray's Brewing has been at it since 1856, making cream sodas and a variety of craft beers. They ship beer to various establishments across the state and beyond.

Once Highway 11's new, bypass route and the original route come together again west of Janesville, it becomes the primary highway along the southern tier of Wisconsin. The land starts to have more hills and a series of towns come along... some of which Highway 11 skirts, others it's the main street through. For example, 11 skims the edge of Footville (pop. 788), which bills itself as "Friendly Footville". Footville holds the distinction of being the first community in the United States to have a lighted baseball diamond, which it built in 1931. It would be four more years before the first night game was played in Major League Baseball.

Continuing the "ville" theme - after Janesville and Footville - Highway 11 reaches Orfordville (pop. 1,272). where the town center is just south along Highway 213, once part of Highway 13 from Beloit to Superior.

Left: As you can see in many towns where railroads once dominated, tracks can sometimes simply disappear as they approach former train and freight stations. An active line still serves Orfordville, but many of the spurs are no longer used. Center: This rather nice throwback scene features a 1930s-era Studebaker pickup in a typical '30s setting - a gas station. Today, the building is a pottery studio; no word on whether the pickup runs or if the gas is still a 1930s-era 15 cents per gallon. Right: The Orfordville Public Library, along the small downtown strip on Highway 213, just blocks south of Highway 11.

Past Orfordville, Highway 11 enters Green County and runs through the heart of Brodhead (pop. 3,180). At this point you're about halfway between Lake Michigan and the Mississippi River, as indicated by an old Native American historic marker on what's called Half-Way Tree. What is now Highway 11 was once part of a long, "coast-to-coast" foot trail going back many hundreds of years. Another, current trail, begins in Brodhead: the Sugar River Trail is a limestone-surfaced rail-to-trail conversion that runs from Brodhead to New Glarus, 23 miles away. Designated as a National Recreation Trail by the National Park Service, the Sugar River features replics of covered bridges, plenty of cool rock outcroppings to look at, and abundant wildlife, including over 100 species of birds. The Sugar River itself has proved quite an asset to the community over time: around 1900, "pearling" in the Sugar River proved lucrative as dealers bought and sold thousands of dollars' worth of pearls from the river. The river's flow also allowed Brodhead to be one of the first towns in the nation to generate electricity from water power.

Brodhead has a nicely developed town for a city its size and offers a look back in its Historical Depot Museum, which features a caboose and locomotive on display as well as sundry artifacts of the old days. Located in the old Wells Fargo Depot, the adjacent rail line remains active through town.

Just past Broadhead, Highway 81 comes in from Beloit and joins Highway 11 for an increasingly hilly and scenic ride. The road begins to widen into a 4-lane expressway as you approach Green County's seat, Monroe.

***BYPASS ALERT***
Highway 11 officially runs around the north side of Monroe on a freeway bypass built in the late 1970s. You can follow it for time's sake, but Monroe is worth the time if you wish to follow the traditional route, as we will. To get into the city, exit the bypass at Highway 59, and turn left (south) into town. Follow the signs to downtown; 9th Street to 8th Street will lead you west out of downtown when you're done and back to Highway 11. See the interactive Monroe map for navigation help.

Monroe (pop. 10,843) is the hub of Green County and the "Swiss Cheese Capital of the USA." Monroe High School's team nickname is the Cheesemakers, after all. The Swiss influence is everywhere, from the flags dotting the surrounding landscape to the architecture downtown to the fact that The Swiss Colony is headquartered here. Downtown Monroe offers a charming and rather bustling downtown square. Surrounding the impressive, Romanesque Green County Courthouse, are shops offering everything from boutique clothing to electronics. A stop in Baumgartner's on the square (1023 16th Ave., 608-325-6157) is a must! Baumgartner's opened in 1931 lays claim to the title of Wisconsin's oldest cheese store. and lets you sample more cheese and beer products made in the area, including a Limburger with mustard and onion served on rye bread. In the name of humanity, the dish is served with a mint on the side. The State Trunk Tour contributed $1 to the famous ceiling, check it out here!

The Green County Courthouse in Monroe, surrounded by a bustling town square. Highway 11 used to come straight through town on 9th Street; today, it officially runs on a freeway bypass. Check out a winter view of the courthouse here.

Monroe also features medical center The Monroe Clinic and truck customization company Monroe Truck Equipment, which did a project for the movie The Transformers a few years back. It serves as the trailhead city for the popular Cheese Country Trail, which runs 47 miles from Monroe to Mineral Point, paralleling Highway 11 for quite a while west of town. It's also a major stop along the Badger State Trail, which runs from Madison through Monroe to Freeport, Illinois - which means it's not all in the Badger State.

State Trunk Tour Fact: Monroe is the only place in North America where limburger cheese is currently produced. Wisconsin law makes it tough: it's actually illegal to produce this cheese without a master cheesemaker's certification.

Another good stop is the Minhas Craft Brewery, (1208 14th Ave., 608-325-3191), located just south and west of the town center. Converted from the Huber Brewery in 2007, it is the second oldest continuously operating brewery in the U.S, brewing beer in one form or another since 1845 - three years before Wisconsin entered statehood. They were recently purchased by Mountain Crest Brewing Company, a Canadian outfit planning to expand the Monroe facility (read about it in a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel story here). As it stands now, the brewery continues to brew Huber's traditional beers: Premium (which won the Bronze in the 2002 World Beer Championships) Bock and Light, as well as a great old non-Huber-but-totally-Wisconsin throwback: Rhinelander Beer. Although Rhinelander's original brewery shut down in 1967, Minhas has continued its recipe and now brews the beer in Monroe. The popular Canadian beer Mountain Creek is now brewed here - a result of the Mountain Crest investment - as are a few malt liquors. Tours are available at 11am, 1pm and 3pm Thursday through Saturday. The State Trunk Tour has yet to tour the new facility since their new tap room, the Lazy Mutt Lounge (formerly the Founder's Tap Room) opened. There will, however, be descriptions and pictures soon! However, there is a gift shop and they've kept historical pictures to browse, along with other memorabilia highlighting the area's brewing history.

	The bypass around Monroe is a brief freeway segment. Highway 81 departs for points northwest while Highway 11 continues its push toward Dubuque.
The rest of Highway 11 west of Monroe features a lot of rolling hills, exposed rock formations and historical mining towns.

Heading west out of Monroe, Highway 81 ditches 11 and meanders northwest; meanwhile 11 heads westerly, past the Browntown-Cadiz Springs Recreation Area and a funny little street called Smock Valley Road, past Browntown (pop. 252) itself into Lafayette County.

Just into Lafayette County, the Pecatonica River runs along Highway 11 for a while - as does the Cheese Country Trail still - into South Wayne (pop. 484), originally called "Collins" but changed after realizing another Collins, Wisconsin existed. They want to change the name to "Wayne" in honor of Revolutionary War Hero "Mad" Anthony Wayne, but since there was a community already called "Wayne" in northeastern Wisconsin, the town changed its named to "South Wayne". Ironically, the township surrounding is called "Wayne". Complicated, no? Next up is Gratiot (pop. 252), where you briefly look up with Highway 78. For bikers, hikers, ATV riders and snowmobilers, this is where the Cheese Country Trail stops paralleling Highway 11 and starts heading northwest to Mineral Point. Several bars and establishments, including a nice park, serve those recreational riders and State Trunk Tourers.

	The Cheese Country Trail parallels Highway 11 pretty closely from Monroe to Gratiot. Features include railroad trestles (somewhat visible in this shot) and abundant wildlife, along with the occasional sound of trucks rumbling by on the nearby highway.
Gratiot, where 252 residents and several watering holes host Cheese Country Trail recreationalists and State Trunk Tourers using Highway 78 and/or 11. This view is northbound on 78 looking toward the intersection with Highway 11.

A wider, flatter stretch greets you west of Gratiot, although the area's hilly topography is visible on either side for miles. On a clear day, Platteville Mound (which features a massive "M" - in fact, the world's largest - on its southwest slope) can be seen... and it's at least 15 miles away. Here, you intersect with the southern start of Highway 23, which runs north through the Driftless Area to the Dells and then east to Sheboygan. Two major State Trunk Tour routes intersect in what is essentially the middle of nowhere. But, it doesn't stay that way for long.

Just outside Shullsburg, some moos chill out in a stream and enjoy some soft, tender grasses. They didn't mind getting their picture taken, although I did feel bad when I had my burger later on...

The next town up is Shullsburg (pop. 1,246), an old lead mining town that has preserved its older buildings well. The Badger Mine and Museum (279 W. Estey Street, 608-965-4860) features exhibits on lead mining, cheesemaking and lets you tour a more recent mine. The Brewster Hotel sign is an interesting artifact: check out the bullet holes from a 1927 robbery by Chicago mobsters. Plenty of food, stores, scenery, history and quaintness await.

	Looking down Water Street in Shullsburg, now a National Historic Landmark. Filled with antique shops, boutiques, historic guest rooms and places to imbibe in food and beverage.
A dense cluster of downtown buildings and some narrow streets and pathways give Shullsburg a cozy feel, especially with the surrounding hills.

	Shullsburg's old high school is an attractive stone building and an excellent example of why their high school team name is the "Miners".
The area around Shullsburg along this stretch of Highway 11 is the heart of Wisconsin's Lead Mining Region, which is probably why the state chose to put the commemoration marker here.

Highway 11 grazes past Shullsburg, which is why turning off at County U or Water Street is a good idea. The Shullsburg Creamery is right along Water Street; also recommended is Frank's Place, in salute of Ol' Blue Eyes himself. Elsewhere in the state, you'll see trucks hauling Shullsburg Cheese products all over.

Evidence of the lead mining past is notable not just on highway markers, but in place names. Remember this as you go through the Town of New Diggings and the village of Lead Mine. Next up is Benton (pop. 998), which bills itself as the "Mining Capital of Wisconsin." Highly respected pioneer priest Father Samuel Mazzuchelli, who came to the area from Italy in the 1830s, is buried in Benton. He was declared Venerable by Pope John Paul II in 1993, and possible Sainthood is pending, which would make his gravesite in Benton a national shrine. Benton was originally called Cottonwood Hill in salute of the dominant local tree.

Left: On a clear day, Platteville Mound is visible to the north, on the horizon past the farm fields. It's 15-20 miles away. (Click on the picture for a larger view). Right: Hazel Green Industrial Park along Highway 11, which hopefully is in the early, early stages of its future growth.

Right into Grant County, Highway 11 meets up with Highway 80 and heads south into Hazel Green (pop. 1,183), which calls itself the "Point of Beginning." Hazel Green hosts a number of bed & breakfasts and antique stores and served, in the 1800s, as lodging for land surveyors. In downtown Hazel Green, Highway 11 breaks west, with Sinsinawa Mound, a dominant local landform, visible just to the south.

	Sinsinawa (not to be confused with how a little kid pronounces "Cincinatti") Mound.
High bluffs and steep hills as you approach the Mississippi River means some cool, dramatic rock cuts, like this one on Highway 11 just east of its western terminus near Dubuque.

You can sense the approaching Mississippi River as the landforms get increasingly hilly. Highway 11 comes to end as it crosses Highway 35 and then intersects with U.S. Highway 61 & 151, fresh into Wisconsin from Dubuque. Highway 11 officially ends as a Wisconsin Welcome Area rest stop, which is not a bad place to stop and rest (the view of Dubuque, Iowa from the hill is quite nice) before heading elsewhere.

Left: Highway 11 ends as it approaches U.S. 61 & 151, just in from Dubuque, Iowa. A rest stop is ahead; Dubuque and the Ole Miss are less than one mile south on the freeway. Highways 35, 61 and 151 offer much adventure heading northbound. Right: Where you've been: looking east along Highway 11 back towards Hazel Green, with Sinsinawa Mound visible in the distance.

Points of Interest Quick Links:

Racine
Racine Zoo
Bong Recreation Area
Burlington
Elkhorn
Delavan
Janesville
Gray's Brewing
Monroe
Baumgartner's
Minhas Craft Brewery
Shullsburg
Badger Mine & Museum
Sinsinawa Mound

Best Western
Janesville
3900 Milton Ave.
Janesville, WI 53546
(608) 756-4511
Link to hotel and reservations