During Memorial Day weekend Julie and I and a couple of friends went up to Port Washington, Wisconsin for a night. We were looking for a place to go that was under a two hour drive and we’ve spent a good deal of time on the Michigan side of the lake so we decided to head to Wisconsin.

1860 Light Station

At the top of Port Washington is the 1860 Port Washington Light Station which was in operation from 1860 until 1903. Oddly enough the Lighthouse Museum was closed on Memorial Day Weekend. So after walking up the hill we were only able to walk around the property. I’m sure the view from atop the lighthouse is grand, but I wouldn’t know.

Port Washington has a decent amount of shops, restaurants and bars. After our hike up to the Lighthouse we stopped by Vines to Cellar Winery for a tasting. There is also a Duluth Trading Company store in the historic Smith Bros. Fish Shanty building at the center of town. There are two quality bars on Franklin Street: Sir James Pub which has a great beer selection and Schooner Pub which has a patio overlooking Port Washington’s harbor.

Before dinner we stopped by Bernie’s Fine Meats for a mix and match of New Glarus beer and then headed over to Rotary Park which sits right across from the harbor.  No one seemed to be bothered that we were drinking beer in the park but then again it’s Wisconsin.  It seemed that we were there the week before everything gets busy.  The port was beginning to fill with boats but there were really no large crowds of people anywhere.