It may be late in the season, but, with fall colors in mind, there are still reasons to venture the Door Peninsula. I know, the trees are still full of green, and they’re not sporting an autumnal collage…give it a couple of weeks. Anyways, today, I’m going to simply highlight a town, one on Door County’s lakeside. This demure collection of genuine clapboard houses, which resonates a distinct laid back vibe, is known as Bailey’s Harbor.
It was Labor Day weekend, and our hiking lusts were satiated. Yet, the yearning for food, as the clockhands were far beyond the lunch hour, drove us to seek civilization….
Wait, is that prose a bit over the top? How about this; we were finished hiking and hungry as hell. So, we sought food in the nearest town.
Unfortunately, due to certain circumstances, our pocketbooks were scant for cash, and finding cheap eats, while playing in Door County, is no easy feat. Yet, I knew, as I recalled other visits to Bailey’s Harbor, that a food truck, one set on a grassy plot, would provide an affordable meal.
After eating a gyro,
and going through a tree’s worth of napkins, which were used in an attempt to wipe cucumber sauce from my beard, we galavanted through the town.
This small town has an eclectic assortment of shops.
Buyer beware: one could lose their hide.
Actually, while we didn’t peruse every shop, of the ones we checked out, the shop prices weren’t horrible.
There were also fashionable bars and restaurants,
and buildings that reminded us that the town’s founders, who happened to be lumberjacks and fishermen, left impossible shoes to fill…
Yet their footprints are evident…quite literally.
If I could only use one common word to describe this place, it would be casual.
But, if I were to be a a tad more descript, I’d throw in the words old fashioned.
All in all, our time in Bailey’s Harbor, while brief, was very enjoyable. If you’re wondering, the population of this town would probably be a few hundred. Yet, during peak tourist times, that total is deceiving. This small collection of structures, while docile and sleepy, is somehow vibrant and bustling during the same glance. If you don’t comprehend that, which just might be difficult, you should check it out yourself…
Safe Travels!
Midwestern Escapes 
2 responses to “Traipsing Through Bailey’s Harbor”
This looks like a charming town to visit. I checked out camping in the area, and there are lots of choices! My husband and I don’t like to spend a lot of money eating out. It adds up so fast, and it is soooo much cheaper to eat food from home. Sometimes we bring our own lunch, and other times we’ll buy something like sandwiches and add our own drinks and possibly chips. I’ll have to put this area on my list to visit.
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Thanks, Betty. Yeah, there are tons of lodging all around. Door county is known for a swelling summer population; I forget the exact numbers. It’s something like 30,000 local residents to a couple hundred thousand vacationers on any given weekend. That’s during peak season of course, which has been extended since I was a child.
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