Unscripted Experiences: Week 7 - Drummond, WI
Learning to Fillet Fish, Exploring Duluth, Finding a Unique Bike Park, and Finally Setting Up Starlink.
Welcome to Unscripted Experiences. We are a family of four that has decided to go off script. We sold our house, got rid of most of our possessions, and have decided to travel full time in an RV.
Over the summer we will be traveling through Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota, and eventually to South Dakota.
In Week 7, we traveled a little further south into Wisconsin to the town of Drummond.
Let’s dive in…
Filleting Fish
We stayed at Drummond Lake Campground. As as you might imagine based on the name… it was right on Drummond Lake.
So after we were set up, Heather and the kids headed down to the dock to go fishing.
I stayed at the camper because the Euro final game was on and I wanted to catch the ending. (Spain v England).
After the game wrapped up, I ventured down to check on the kids and Heather…
And found that they had made a new friend.
One with a boat.
Tammy offered to take Heather and the kids out on the boat fishing.
Again, I stayed behind to make dinner so that hungry kids would have something to eat when they got home.
With dinner prepped and ready, I waited…
And waited…
And waited…
Finally I texted Heather to see what her plans was.
Turns out they had a successful trip, and they were brining Tammy home for dinner because she promised to show the kids how to filet the fish they caught.
Sure enough, after we ate and Tammy shared stories… we got down to business.
Tammy demonstrated how to filet the fish and the kids were quick to jump in and give it a try.
Ultimately we ended up with about a dozen fish filets that we fried and ate for dinner the next night.
Time for Starlink
So I mentioned that I watched the final of the Euros on Sunday when we arrived…
That required internet to stream…
The first thing that I do when we arrive at a campground is to check the Verizon data speeds.
And while I noted that the internet here was slow… I thought it would be sufficient to work.
Streaming the soccer game seemed to back that up.
But when I woke up on Monday morning to start work… internet was non-existent.
I walked up to the local library (just up the hill) but they weren’t open on Monday.
So with a call happening in an hour, Heather and I scrambled to set up our Starlink dish.
With a relatively wooded site, we were nervous that there’d be too many obstructions to get a great signal.
But ANYTHING would have been better than the NOTHING that I was getting on my Verizon hot spot.
Fortunately, the campsite pointed north and there was enough of a break in the trees that we actually got a decent connection.
Bike Park
On Monday, Heather took the kids down to Cable, WI to grab some supplies and groceries.
They also stumbled across the Cable bike park.
A really unique park with a paved bike track and three paths cut out of the woods.
All with hills, bumps, tables, jumps, and all you could ask for.
Not to mention the starting hill.
The kids loved it. Henry in particular had a great time riding his bike through the wooded paths.
He even took me back to the bike park before we left so I could watch him tear through the hills and bumps.
The Duluth Aquarium & Maritime Museum
Staying in Drummond, we were about an hour and fifteen minutes away from Duluth, Minnesota.
So on Thursday, Heather took the kids and spent the day up in Duluth.
They started with exploring the Duluth Aquarium where the big electric eel stole the show. The kids were also able to explore a water table built to mimic the great lakes.
Next they explored the Maritime Museum. Here the ability to control and operate a lock was the primary attraction.
A really cool set up. There were two large LED TV screens that showed a boat coming in with voice guidance to direct the kids which buttons to push and which levers to pull.
They finished up with dinner at Culivers and a quick store run.
Nature Camps
Henry and Taylor got the chance to do a couple Junior Naturalists programs through the Cable Nature History Museum while we were staying in Drummond.
Well, Taylor got to do two and Henry was allowed to join in on the second one.
These programs allowed Henry and Taylor to meet some new kids and to learn a little bit about the natural wildlife of Wisconsin.
These are the types of learning experiences that we value.
Both kids loved the programs and had a ton of fun.
After Friday’s program we ate a little picnic lunch outside of the Hayward Library.
Preview of Week 8
We adjusted our plans to accommodate a week in Eau Claire for a PESI staff picnic and get together. I got the chance to work in the PESI offices while Heather and the kids explored Eau Claire. Here’s what we got into…
Eau Claire Children’s Museum
Staying in a hotel (with a pool!)
Playing with barn kittens!
Flashbacks to working full time
PESI picnic
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