More in La Crosse, WI
Our Great River Road trip continues with more good stuff in La Crosse. After our paddleboat cruise we visited a bluff that overlooks the city (and into two more states), we saw some really big beers, and visited some sites in Wisconsin that used to be Minnesota’s.
To start at the beginning of this series, visit GRR: La Crosse to St. Paul
Grandad Bluff
A short thirteen-minute drive from our hotel, Grandad Bluff is considered “the most scenic view in the state.” This 600-ft high bluff overlooks the city of La Crosse, and the view of the Mississippi River Valley includes three states: Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa. On a clear day without the fire haze in early August of 2025, it would have been even more fantastic!
Information at the Shelter House
There is lots of good information near the Shelter House including a panel that explains Wisconsin’s “Driftless” area and a statue of the woman who literally saved this bluff.
Be sure to click on the fall photo below of the UW-La Crosse students with Grandad Bluff in the background. The student who shot that one has more photos of college life at UWL’s gorgeous campus at the website!
“This statue [below] is dedicated to Ellen Hixon, the widow of Gideon C. Hixon, who was responsible for saving Grandad Bluff and Hixon Forest after a developer began turning it into a rock quarry. In 1909, Ellen began a public campaign to raise $15,000 to buy the bluff. She raised $3,000 before donating the final $12,000 herself.” ~ READ MORE
Time for a Break
After we were finished oohing and aahing at the views, we headed back down the steep and curvy Bliss Road. About halfway down, we stopped at the Alpine Inn for a delicious Bloody Mary and a pretty awful burger. Had we stopped at the beverages, this would have been a great afternoon on their screened-in deck, and had we timed it better, there may have been music. There’s always next time!
An Addition to our Itinerary
To get to our next stop, google directed us over the I90 ALT bridge. Since I first caught a glimpse of this bridge from Riverside Park, it has been calling my name. I thought it was odd that google didn’t give us a “Welcome to [another state]” prompt halfway across the bridge like with other bridges over the Mississippi, but I didn’t think much of it. The first exit and first turn brought us back close to the river and UNDER the bridge!
I parked rather precariously, knowing it wouldn’t take long to snap a few pictures. A dog came running out, but only to say hello and his owner was friendly and wasn’t carrying a gun, so we were good. Steel staircases allowed a walk ON the bridge, but we decided against it. We still had lots to do today!
A Friendly Swap (approved by Congress)
As our paddleboat passed by Pettibone Park earlier this morning (on what we thought was the Minnesota side) our tour guide pointed out its wonderful pavilion and said the park is actually on an island… in Wisconsin. Originally called Barron Island in Minnesota, Alonzo Barron wanted to develop an island city in 1857. Because the island was so wet and marshy, he was never able to complete his mission.
Albert W. Pettibone was a lumber merchant and one of the leading businessmen in La Crosse in the mid-1850s. In the spring of 1862 he was elected Mayor of La Crosse and was re-elected two more times. He and his wife moved away after the Civil War ended, but they eventually returned to La Crosse for the rest of their lives.
In 1901 Pettibone purchased Barron Island, dredged and added fill to create Pettibone Park, and donated the entire island as a natural park for the use of the citizens of La Crosse. It remained in the state of Minnesota until 1918, when an act of Congress transferred the island to the state of Wisconsin. It was annexed by the city of La Crosse in 1919.
Originally the main channel of Mississippi River divided the states that bordered it. But since there was another channel of the Mississippi on the western side of Barron Island, technically it was pretty easy to alter the border – especially since Minnesota had their eye on Latsch Island in Wisconsin. A friendly swap and a 1918 act of Congress made Pettibone’s dream a reality!
Pettibone Park
So now you know why we had to visit Pettibone Park and see this wonderful park and its pavilion! On our way in we made a stop to check out its beach and beach house, and a place to rent canoes and kayaks. We wound our way back through a portion of its 230 acres with lovely picnic/play/camping areas and plenty of green space, trees, and (Mississippi) water all around.
We made our way to the Pettibone Pavilion, which was just awesome! Built in 1902, there were enough picnic tables for a family reunion and wonderful views of the park and the Mississippi. When we were about to leave, I heard the La Crosse Queen making her way downriver, and I was able to get a picture out in front of the gazebo.
World’s Largest Six-pack
“In 1969 the G. Heileman Brewery [currently City Brewing Company], built six 54-foot-tall storage tanks at its plant in La Crosse, Wisconsin. Whether by design or a bolt of beer-fueled inspiration, the tanks were painted a year later to resemble cans of Heileman’s Old Style Lager, and the sextet was proclaimed the “World’s Largest Six Pack.” Images of the sixer traveled the globe on postcards sold in the Heileman gift shop, which was part of the brewery tour.” ~ READ MORE about the changes to the six pack over the years.
Friendship Gardens
Riverside International Friendship Gardens are a collection of public gardens which celebrate La Crosse’s sister-city relationships with communities in China, Germany, France, Russia, Norway, Ireland and Cameroon. These gardens are part of La Crosse’s Riverside Park – which is just in front of our hotel!
Right on the bank of the La Crosse River where it converges with the Mississippi and Black Rivers (by where our paddleboat was docked), this lovely park was pretty sweet! Click on the link just above and then click on the Gardens tab for some information about each country’s garden and its inspiration for this park.
“La Crosse has eight sister cities around the world: Bantry, Ireland; Dubna, Russia; Epinal, France; Førde, Norway; Friedberg, Germany; Luoyang, China; Kumbo, Cameroon; and Junglinster, Luxembourg. These relationships promote cultural exchange, with examples including high school exchanges, musical performances, and the creation of international friendship gardens that feature architecture and styles from these partner cities.”
What a Great Day!
Although we had hoped to do a tasting at the Pearl Street Brewery and/or the 608 Brewing Company, they weren’t open yet. We headed back to our hotel to put our feet up for a bit and make a plan. After much consideration, we decided on the Turtle Stack Brewery since it was just across the parking lot (and yummy!). After a “Number 4” (Oat Brown Ale) (or two), we were starting to get a little hungry.
When we asked our bartender what her favorite restaurants were in La Crosse, we decided to walk across a couple more parking lots to the Charmant Hotel to check out their rooftop terrace and enjoy a great finish to another perfect day in La Crosse! The wood-fired pizza was fantastic! In the third photo you can see we don’t have far to walk to our hotel – the white building across a couple more parking lots.
After dinner I wasn’t quite ready to call it a day, so I walked down by the river one more time – this time for a fantastic sunset! There’s the lovely I90 ALT bridge again! I love vacations!
Next up: Sunfish Capital of the World!
Happy trails,
Barb
