Waupaca - June, 2024

My first big adventure in the ARRRV!

My original plan was to spend my first week at a county park close to Madison so I could settle in and adjust. That didn't even last until it started. A few weeks before moving in, my parrothead trop rock friend Christopher Dale mentioned he was playing in Waupaca, so we worked out plans where I could visit.

I found a nice little campground just outside of Waupaca, the Waupaca Smore Fun Campground. It was in a really nice location just 3 miles of very easy biking from the city where Christopher was playing. I got to the site and set up camp. The next 3 days would be busy and fun-filled after working during the days.

Wednesday there was a concert at a nice venue right on the water. I met up with Christopher and his hosts for dinner. Afterwards we headed to the concert and caught Copper Box. Overall, a very enjoyable evening.

On Thursday, Christopher Dale was playing a Unity in he Community block party. The location was great, just across the street from his hosts, who became my new Waupaca friends, Henry and Lorinda. The block party was sponsored by the Waupaca Piggly Wiggly who provided and grilled brats - thanks! There were tons of brats, so as we lingered and socialized after the concert we had a steady supply of brats (as well as Spotted Cows) to keep us going. A wonderful early-summer evening!

Friday marked my first week living in the ARRRV. Christopher was nice enough to deliver lunch from the really awesome Sulten Belly restaurant. He raved about their sandwiches, and they did not disappoint. After I finished working, it was time to head out for a night on the town in Waupaca. It was National Old Fashioned Day, and Brandy Old Fashioneds with Fish Fries are kind of the thing to do in Wisconsin on Friday nights. Our first stop was Simpson's Supper Club for our first round of Old Fashioneds. Then we went to a classier cocktail bar, for more old fashioneds of course. After that, Henry had to leave for another engagement. Our next was a total Wisconsin dive bar, complete with another old fashioned and a PBR. After that, we returned to Simpson's for our fish fry. The final stop was another cocktail bar, with an entire page of different old fashioneds on their menu. Finally, time to call it a night and bike home so that I could depart Waupaca the next morning.