Destination Driftless: Growing down at Justin Trails

As we drove through the rolling hills of Western Wisconsin, I thought about the cozy little cabin we had reserved for the next couple of days. Justin Trails, in Sparta, Wisconsin, is known for its outdoor recreational activities but we were in the midst of a record-breaking cold-spell. Our cross-country skiis seemed destined to go unused. We bundled up as we carried stuff into our cabin. It was 25 feet away. It was -10 degrees.

The cabin was really toasty and welcoming when we walked in. I am not usually a bed & breakfast person, preferring the anonymity of a hotel. When I go away for a few days, I love the idea of holing up in a spot and reading and watching movies for hours on end. My husband is the opposite. He wants to go outside and do things.

Inevitably, I realize that his plan is more fun (most of the time) and we end up having a great time in the woods, on the trails, sometimes getting wet and cold but then warming up inside somewhere.

The proprieters at Justin Trails, Don and Donna, were definitely quirky. When I saw our cabin and took in the huge snow hill and the pet llamas, I decided eccentric was the best word for it.
I later learned that their property had been in the family for generations as a working farm which endeared me to it. Also, Martin Sheen had stayed in the cabins. Apparently, after Donna showed him to his cabin, another guest said, "Do you know you have a famous person staying here?!" Donna said, "Nobody told me they were famous."

The thing about staying close to home and picking a spot that has both a nice indoor and outdoor space is there is time to enjoy so much. We didn't spend a lot of time driving and once we unloaded the car, all of our free time descended on us for the next two days.

Snow tubing was a blast.

The snow was covered in a layer of ice so we went flying down the hill at about 30 miles per hour.

A huge bonus to this place was they accepted dogs. Our dog went racing around the property, running as fast as he could behind our snow tubes, wandering ahead of us on the ski trails.

To speak truly, few adult persons can see nature. Most persons do not see the sun. At least they have a very superficial seeing. The sun illuminates only the eye of the man, but shines into the eye and heart of the child. The lover of nature is he whose inward and outward senses are still truly adjusted to each other; who has retained the spirit of infancy even into the era of manhood. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

We took a lot of breaks inside. I took a deep breath each time we plunged outdoors again. Returning to a toasty fire in a little cabin was all the more beautiful.