Just a quick note .
I did ALOT of driving during this episode and created some stories about these locations in post production whilst editing this episode. The images here in this post are obviously created with AI, but I kinda like them 🙂
As always, thanks for stopping by!
Chasing charming villages on the way to Door County
Some travel plans look perfect on paper. A few scenic stops. A couple of picturesque villages. A relaxed drive through beautiful countryside.
And sometimes… the reality of that plan turns out a little different than expected. That was the case on my way toward Door County, Wisconsin.
A Morning Outside Green Bay
The morning started in a rather unusual hotel just outside Green Bay. One of those places where you wake up, look around the room, and wonder why there is a hot tub sitting in the corner like a piece of misplaced furniture. Not exactly the highlight of the trip.
But the day ahead looked promising.
My plan was simple. Instead of rushing straight to Door County, I decided to take my time driving north and explore a few small communities along the way. A little research the night before led me to pick out five places that sounded interesting. So I made my own little route. A scenic detour before the main destination.
The Romance of the Word “Village”
One of the words that kept appearing in the travel descriptions for these places was village. Now, if you’re like me, that word can spark a pretty vivid image. When I hear the word village, I start picturing something out of Europe. Maybe a small cobblestone square, a church tower rising above a cluster of old buildings, cafés spilling out onto narrow streets.
Something like Rothenburg in Germany. Or a quiet little town in Switzerland. Or one of those postcard-perfect places you stumble across while wandering through France.
But as I quickly learned that day… The word village can mean a lot of different things.
Letting the GPS Decide
Instead of carefully planning specific landmarks to visit, I simply entered the name of each town into the GPS and let it guide me. No courthouse address. No historic district pinned on a map. Just the name of the town. Which meant that whatever the navigation system decided was the center of that location… that is exactly where I ended up.
Sometimes that worked out beautifully. Other times… Well, let’s just say I found myself parked in front of places like police stations, municipal buildings, or intersections that didn’t quite match the romantic image I had in my head. But that’s part of the adventure of traveling this way. You don’t always land exactly where you expected.
The Road Was the Real Highlight
Even though the stops themselves weren’t always what I imagined, the drive between them was actually quite beautiful. Rolling countryside. Tree-lined rural roads. Quiet farms scattered across the landscape.
At times it reminded me of the back roads where I grew up in Pennsylvania. The kind of roads where you slow down a little, roll the windows down, and just enjoy the scenery. And I couldn’t help thinking how incredible this area must look during the fall when those trees are bursting with color.
Sometimes the destination isn’t the star of the show. Sometimes the road itself steals the spotlight.
A Little Honesty From the Editing Room
While editing this episode later on, I realized something. I had a great idea for this day. But I didn’t quite capture it the way I hoped. The footage was a little scattered. The storytelling wasn’t as strong as it could have been. And the towns I visited didn’t quite reveal themselves on camera the way they might have in person.
So the editing process became a bit like cleaning up a spill on aisle nine. Trying to piece together the story from what I had. But that’s part of the creative process too.
Not every travel day becomes a perfect episode. And sometimes those imperfect days end up being the most honest ones.
Heading Toward Door County
Even though the scenic village tour didn’t unfold exactly as planned, the journey still carried me closer to the place I was really excited about.
Door County. A stretch of Wisconsin known for its waterfront towns, scenic drives, and charming coastal communities along Lake Michigan. And that would be the next chapter of this journey.
Watch the Episode
This story comes from Episode 37 of my 50 at 60 journey, where I leave the Green Bay area and begin making my way toward Door County, Wisconsin.
Along the way I attempt a self-guided tour through several small “villages” I discovered during my late-night travel research. The results are a little unpredictable… but the journey itself turns out to be part of the story.
You can watch the full episode below.
