Start Exploring the La Crosse Region

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Holmen | La Crescent | La Crosse | Onalaska | Town of Campell | West Salem
Whether you are looking for a vacation or just a long weekend, the La Crosse Region offers something for everyone. Plan your stay in the Driftless Region; nestled between the bluffs and along the grand Mississippi River. With indoor and outdoor activities, arts and culture, and a vast variety of places to eat and stay, you’re bound to enjoy the area from sun up to sundown.

Centrally located on I-90 between Minneapolis-St. Paul, Des Moines, Chicago, and Milwaukee, the La Crosse Region is just a road trip away. Bring your family and friends for a weekend filled with a plethora of activities!
• Grandad Bluff: Swing by Grandad Bluff for an expansive, aerial view of the La Crosse, Coulee Region. Wisconsin Trails magazine readers voted Grandad Bluff as “the most scenic view in the state!”
• Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe: Drive South of Grandad Bluff to the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, a spiritual destination for visitors around the world. Located deep within 100 acres of the Mississippi River Valley and among the bluffs, visitors are captivated by the chapels, statues, gardens and devotional areas.
• Lake Onalaska: Afterwards, head North and make your way to Onalaska, WI to visit the Sunny the Sunfish sculpture and overlook Lake Onalaska. Don’t forget to explore the many local eateries during the landmark tours!

For more activity focused travelers, the region provides creative, indoor and outdoor outlets!
• Make & Take: Get crafty at Creative Canvas and Board in Downtown La Crosse. The fun and inspiring art studio offers Sip & Paint canvas painting, Board Design classes, Graffiti workshops, and pottery projects.
• Escape: Make a memory to last a lifetime at La Crosse Escape Room! The themed escape rooms require groups to crack codes, follow clues, solve puzzles and escape within a time limit. Will you make it out in time?
• Outdoor Rec: Get active outdoors with one of our many trail and river opportunities. Interested in paddling the waterways? Rent a kayak or canoe and take the family on a gentle ride through the wetland courses or enjoy a moderate to strenuous kayaking adventure along the Mississippi, Black or La Crosse Rivers.
• Bluff Trails: Set out on your adventure hiking or on your mountain bike to explore over 100 miles of maintained paths such as Lueth Park, Upper Hixon, Lower Hixon Forest, and other Wisconsin State Trails.

Planning a corporate gathering? Check out one of our many event centers. Offering tours, festivals, lodging, award-winning restaurants, and excellent nightlife, the region will suit your needs.
• La Crosse, WI: The La Crosse Center offers thousands of square feet of rooms to fit the needs of your group. Located in downtown La Crosse, it is conveniently central to hotels and restaurants within walking distance and is currently being renovated. Be one of the first events to enjoy the fresh space in early 2021!
• Onalaska, WI: Home to the Omni Center, Onalaska also offers expansive space and arenas for your next event. A large shopping district, restaurants and accommodations are nearby ensuring, Onalaska is sure to meet your event’s needs.
• La Crescent, MN: New to the scene in La Crescent, MN is the La Crescent Area Event Center. With a short commute to Downtown La Crosse, and with three meeting rooms, the event center offers private meeting spaces, a restaurant and bar on-site, cozy lodging options at the adjacent Best Western Plus and much more.
• Coulee Region: Looking for a smaller, affordable meeting space? Don’t forget to ask local hotels, restaurants, and organizations for their meeting accommodations as well.

With the six municipalities in the La Crosse Region, there is adventure and accommodation appropriate for every traveler’s needs. Explore the location that is second to none with incredible views, local hospitality, and unique adventure. Explore La Crosse.

An Afternoon with Castlerock Museum’s Founder

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An Afternoon with Castlerock Museum’s Founder

On Saturday, November 9th at 2pm, there will be a special program at Castlerock Museum in Alma, Wisconsin with Gary Schlosstein, the museum’s founder. Gary first started collecting when he was 10 years old with a Civil War Musket that he bought at an antique store for three dollars. This passion for collecting historical artifacts eventually led him to establish Castlerock Museum and its world class collection of ancient and medieval arms and armor.
The program will open with Gary taking visitors on a walk around the museum, sharing stories of how and where many of the artifacts were found, along with who used them and how they ended up here in Alma. This will include a look at several new pieces added over the past year.
Afterwards, the group will adjourn to the museum theater, where Gary will share some exciting news about the museum’s plans to expand. This expansion will include a large two story tower with an elevator to improve handicap access and a new display gallery covering American military history from the colonial period through possibly as late as World War II.  As a teaser, there will be several early American firearms on display including one of the first “U.S.” marked muskets used in the Revolutionary War.
Admission is $6 for adults and $4 for students. Museum members are FREE. The museum will open at 1:00pm for visitors that would like to look around beforehand.

Contact:
William Jon Wolcott
Executive Director
Castlerock Museum
608-685-4231

2019 Graphic Design Exhibition Featuring UW-La Crosse Students

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2019 Graphic Design Exhibition Featuring UW-La Crosse Students Opening at Fannin Counseling & Art Therapy, Friday, November 15.

La Crosse, WI—Fannin Counseling & Art Therapy (129 6th St S, La Crosse, across from the Cathedral of St. Joseph the Workman) announces a new exhibition: 2019 UW-La Crosse Graphic Design Exhibition, opening Friday, November 15, 2019, and running through December 13, 2019.

UW-La Crosse Students were given freedom to create something unique for the show, producing works ranging from dramatic movie posters to a Pop Art shoe collection, with some graphic design students investigating design with practical marketing-focused projects.

UW- La Crosse Artists include Connor Givens, Jaden Hering, Grace Hintze, Natalie Reams, Brett Gluth, Hannah Ottevaere, Phillip Vircks, Amelia Sutherland, Benjamin Christensen, and Lillian Myhre.

What: 2019 UW-La Crosse Graphic Design Exhibition
When: Opening Friday, November 15, 2019 | 5 – 8 p.m.
Running November 15, 2019 – December 13, 2019
Where: Fannin Counseling & Art Therapy – 129 6th St S, La Crosse, WI 54601

Gallery Hours:
Opening Friday, November 15, 2019 | 5 – 8 p.m.
Saturdays 10 a.m. – Noon, or by request
Closing Friday, December 13, 2019 | 5-7 p.m.

About UW-La Crosse’s College of Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities School of Visual and Performing Arts
The Department of Art provides a creative educational environment that encourages intellectual development, visual literacy, and artistic production and fosters the development of graduates who are active citizens and advocates for the arts.

About Fannin Counseling & Art Therapy
Fannin Counseling & Art Therapy provides services to individuals of all ages and backgrounds, offering traditional counseling services related to anxiety, depression, and grief, and specializing in the practice of art therapy.

For more information on individual and group counseling, visit fannincounseling.com.

Trick or Treat So Others Can Eat

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HOLMEN, WI- Trick or Treat So Others Can Eat is a community-wide food drive that takes place in Holmen on Halloween Night 2019 between 5:30-7:30pm. Over 200 volunteers go door-to-door collecting non-perishable items in 55 Holmen School District neighborhoods. Items collected are taken to Holmen Lutheran Church for sorting and distribution to local families in need of assistance.

Begun in 2001, this annual community-wide tradition involves students and teachers from the Holmen School District, local churches and business, individual supporters– and the many households throughout Holmen who have come to enjoy this as an
important addition to the usual trick-or-treat festivities by donating food or collecting and sorting donations on Halloween night. In 2018, over 11,500 food and personal care items were collected in one night; 90 Holmen area families were assisted in the distribution event that followed. Area food pantries received distributions, too.

How can the community help? Prepare a bag of non-perishable food items to donate, have it ready for volunteers to pick up on Halloween night. Donations can also be dropped off any time at the Holmen Festival or Dollar Tree stores. Monetary
donations will also be accepted.

Watch for fun YouTube video updates: https://www.facebook.com/Trick-or-Treat-So-Others-Can-Eat-Holmen-122511948631862/

“You Are Still Alive”

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La Crosse, WI—William Stobb will be reading from his new poetry collection You Are Still Alive (2019, 42 Miles Press) Friday, November 8 at Fannin Counseling & Art Therapy. William Stobb is the author of five previous collections, including the National Poetry Series selection, Nervous Systems, and Absentia, both from Penguin Books, and a chapbook of desert fragments, Artifact Eleven, (2011 Black Rock Press) reflecting on the work of land artist, Michael Heizer.

Stobb’s short stories, essays and poems appear regularly in journals and magazines. His short story “All the Bodies” was awarded the 2018 Zona Gale Award from the Council for Wisconsin Writers, honoring the best short story published by a Wisconsin writer each year. Stobb works as Associate Editor for the literary magazine, Conduit, a leading publisher of contemporary poetry, and its book publishing arm, Conduit Books & Ephemera. Part of the Creative Writing faculty at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, Stobb regularly teaches Composition and Creative Writing courses.

As part of the reading, five handwritten original prints of the opening poem “A Message from Your Mode” will be made available to the attendees to bid on with proceeds benefiting the Mississippi Valley Writers’ Guild.

Poets Luke Brekke and Kelly Sexton who is the author of Vodka-Mountain will open the night.

What: “You Are Still Alive” Poetry Reading by William Stobb

When: Friday, November 8, 2019 | 6pm

Where: Fannin Counseling & Art Therapy

129 6th St S, La Crosse, WI 54601

Art Opening “Life is Art” Works by Connie Minowa

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Art Opening

Life Is Art: Works by Connie Minowa

Fannin Counseling & Art Therapy, Friday, October 11, 2019 

La Crosse, WI—Fannin Counseling & Art Therapy (129 6th St S, La Crosse, across from the Cathedral of St. Joseph the Workman) announces a new exhibition: Life Is Art: Works by Connie Minowa, opening Friday, October 11, and running through November 8, 2019.

Life Is Art is a body of work that represents Connie Minowa as an artist. The work is based in storytelling about our spiritual and emotional journey, defining beauty and awe in nature, and exploring abstract and impressionist realms to symbolize states of being.

About Connie Minowa

A graduate of the Minneapolis College of Art & Design, Connie’s passion started at an early age, focusing on the arts and humanities in her early years. Themes of her paintings and jewelry include the natural environment, philosophy, and the human conditions of love, loss, hope, and gratitude. Her work focuses on the deep emotional and spiritual realms of human existence in two-dimensional form. “Even though I work intentionally, from life, tradition, and innovation, I feel creatively at my best when I focus on a heart/mind to hand communication guided by the unconscious and the energies that be.”

Connie has been featured on National Public Radio, Minnesota Parent, and the Wall Street Journal. When not creating in the studio, Connie is with family or working on environmental health and sustainability issues through her own non-profit organization, the Earthology Institute and Retreat Center, and can be found working as a live painter and performer with the internationally known band Cloud Cult. Learn more about Connie at https://www.connieminowa.com/.

What: Life Is Art: Works by Connie Minowa
When: Opening Friday, October 11, 2019 | 5 – 8 p.m.
Running October 11 – November 8, 2019
Where: Fannin Counseling & Art Therapy – 129 6th St S, La Crosse, WI 54601
Gallery Hours: Friday 5 – 7 p.m. & Saturdays 10 a.m. – Noon, or by request

Proceeds from the show will be donated to the Earthology Institute.

About Earthology Institute
Using advocacy, science, and the arts, Earthology Institute provides resources and an action network that disseminates critical, forward thinking and practical tools for the advancement of human health, sustainability, and the environment. http://earthologyinstitute.orgspring.org/

Earthology Institute advocates positive environmental change with a focus on sustainability, environmental toxins, human health, ecological integrity, proactive and positive living in the 21st century, advocacy through the arts, and tools for green living.

About Fannin Counseling & Art Therapy
Fannin Counseling & Art Therapy provides services to individuals of all ages and backgrounds, offering traditional counseling services related to anxiety, depression, and grief, and specializing in the practice of art therapy.

For more information on individual and group counseling, visit fannincounseling.com. 

Melissa Fannin, MA, LPC, ATR
Fannin Counseling & Art Therapy
129 6th St S
La Crosse, WI 54601
info@fannincounseling.com
608-480-1676
www.fannincounseling.com

From Forest to Furniture at Castlerock

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On Sunday, September 29th from 12-4pm, Castlerock Museum in Alma, Wisconsin will hold its sixth annual From Forest to Furniture event. During the event, five area woodworkers will demonstrate how medieval furniture was made using hand tools. This year’s projects include an oak chest, a 17th century sloped lid desk box, an early oak carved panel, and some early style staked saw benches.

Tom Latane is a blacksmith and woodworker with a shop in Pepin, Wisconsin, where he focuses on pre-industrial technology. Derek Olson is an award winning woodworker from LaCrosse, Wisconsin, focused on hand tool techniques. Paul Nyborg is an experienced blacksmith and woodworker. Michael Fasold of Minneapolis, Minnesota is devoted to the craft of blacksmithing, but fosters interests in other mediums such as wood to nurture his adoration for traditional handwork methods. Will Reser is also from Minneapolis and focuses on blacksmithing and hand tool wood working.

Admission is $6 for adults and $4 for students. Children four and under are free. Members receive a 50% discount. Contact the museum at 608-685-4231 or info@castlerockmuseum.com for more details.

Crooked Pint Ale House Announces Free Lucys for a Year Giveaway Next Thursday!

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The new Crooked Pint Ale House in Onalaska is off to a great start since opening in late August.  To keep the grand opening celebration going, the restaurant will give out Free Lucys for a Year booklets on Thursday, September 26 to the first 75 guests through the door that day.

Crooked Pint is famous for its wide array of award-winning Juicy Lucys, like the Beer Cheese Lucy and the Peanut Butter and Bacon Lucy.  In fact, Crooked Pint was named USA Today’s Reader’s Choice Award for Best Juicy Lucy in the state of Minnesota (Minnesota is widely recognized as the place where Lucys were first created) and also won for Best Hot Dish. 

The Free Lucys for a Year booklets consist of one coupon good for a free lucy each month for one year starting in October of 2019.

Crooked Pint is located at 9348 WI-16, Onalaska, WI 54650 in the Crosseroads Shopping Center.  The restaurant will open at its normal weekday time of 11am on Thursday.

Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month

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UW-La Crosse and the wider La Crosse community will celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, Sept. 15-Oct. 15. From an evening of classic Latin American music to an exploration of the Hispanic world at the Children’s Museum of La Crosse, the month provides something for everyone.
All events are free and open to the public.
Event schedule
La Crosse Area Hispanic Heritage Month Community Reception
6:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 16, room 123, Brophy Center, Viterbo University
An evening of presentations by community organizations, sponsors and UWL and Viterbo University faculty and students. Preview of collaboration projects, conferences and workshops for the development of the Hispanic and Latinx communities in the La Crosse region. Hosted by Viterbo University Latin American Studies Program. Please RSVP with your organization and name by sending an email to Dr. Omar Granados at ogranados@uwlax.edu
“Exploring the Américas through Children’s and Young Adult Books”
5 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 19, room 150, Murphy Library, UWL 
A talk by Julie Kline, associate director of the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies (CLACS), UW-Milwaukee. Kline worked with the national Consortium of Latin American Studies Programs (CLASP) to initiate the Américas Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature, and served as award coordinator between 1993 and 2011.
“The History of the Cuban Refugee Community of La Crosse”
6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 1, La Crosse Public Library (auditorium)
A panel discussion with UWL and Viterbo scholars, La Crosse Public Library Archivists and Cuban refugees on the history and social implications of the 1980 Cuban exodus to the La Crosse area and the Fort McCoy Refugee Camp program. The panel is part of the program for La Crosse Public Library’s Archives Month and accompanies the photo and artifact exhibit “The Lost Voices of Mariel: The Cuban Refugee Program at Fort McCoy,” curated by the Department of Global Cultures and Languages and on display at the La Crosse Public library through October 2019.
In Concert: Duo Aldebaran
7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 4, Annett Recital Hall, Center for the Arts, UWL 
An evening with the classics of Latin American Music. Duo Aldebaran is a Mexican-American collaboration between flutist Krista Jobson (USA) and guitarist Héctor Javier Rodriguez (Mexico). Krista Jobson is associate professor of Flute at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley. She serves as co-principal Flute of the Valley Symphony Orchestra (McAllen, TX), and as principal flute of The Trade Winds Recording Ensemble for Carl Fischer Music (Tampa, FL). Héctor Javier Rodriguez is director of the Guitar Ensemble and lecturer of Applied Guitar at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley. He is a prize winner in the University of Texas-Pan American Guitar Competition, Leo Brouwer Prize winner at Festival Internacional de Guitarra del Noreste in Saltillo, Mexico and recipient of the Ocelotl Award by Universidad Autonóma de Coahuila, for Best Artistic Project.
Una exploración del mundo hispano/An Exploration of the Hispanic World
10 a.m.-1 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 13, Children’s Museum of La Crosse

Join the UWL Spanish Club and the Spanish Honor Society Sigma Delta Pi in this interactive exploration of the different cultures of the Spanish-speaking world. Authentic games, prizes and fun bilingual activities designed for young children and their parents to learn more about what we celebrate during Hispanic Heritage Month.

Hispanic Heritage Month at UWL is organized by the Institute for Latin American and Latino Studies (ILLAS), and the Department of Global Cultures and Languages. Events are made possible with the support from the Office of the Dean of the College of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities. For more information, contact Omar Granados, associate professor of Global Cultures and Languages,  at ogranados@uwlax.edu  or 608.785.5243.

5 Things You Need to Know Before You Go: Oktoberfest

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SEPTEMBER 28–30, 2023

La Crosse, Wisconsin

Welcome to the lively world of Oktoberfest in La Crosse, Wisconsin! As the autumn leaves begin to paint the landscape with vibrant hues, our charming Midwestern city comes alive with a celebration of German culture like no other. Before you don your lederhosen or dirndl and head to the Oktoberfest Grounds, there are essential insights you’ll want to have in your stein-hoisting arsenal. Join us as we uncover five things you need to know before you embark on your Oktoberfest adventure in the La Crosse Region. Prost!

1. The Tapping of the Golden Keg

A longstanding Oktoberfest tradition, this Oktoberfest experience is held on Friday morning – the day before the Maple Leaf Parade — but it ends up being a highlight for many. Craft Beer Night is held the evening before the Tapping of the Golden Keg and Frothbite Beer & Bites Festival tickets will be going on sale that night, so if you can handle both of these events, along with the Maple Leaf Parade on Saturday, you are a true Oktoberfest professional and deserve your own button.

2. The Maple Leaf Parade

Take snacks, some chairs and some drinks, and then stake out a location. Let the kids run wild and play catch along the parade route before it starts. Event organizers estimate 100,000 people come to watch this two-mile parade along this stretch of La Crosse. It is the big draw of this celebration, and it does provide fun over several hours. Great marching bands and floats ensure there is plenty of music, clapping and laughing.

3. The Torchlight Parade

This is another must for families. It is held on the North Side of La Crosse, and marks the official opening of the fest. If you have never attended a parade at night, you must experience it. Listen to marching bands as its players and instruments go by all decked out in glow sticks. The floats are creatively lit up, as well as some of the houses along the route. Once the parade is over, head to Copeland Park & Events Center for the After Glow Bash. Admittance is free!

4. Tickets & Experiences

Be sure to purchase your GA $20 ticket online or at the ticket window before entering the grounds. Once you enter the legendary grounds, stop by for the Lederhosen games like Stein races, stein holdings, barrel roll, grain toss, Schokolade essen and a scavenger hunt, and enjoy the carnival all weekend long! Don’t fret there’s also live music all weekend long to dance and enjoy your beer with.

5. Longest-running Oktoberfest in the Midwest.

Some come for the epic parades, others for the biergarten. If you’re German or just looking for an excuse to wear some lederhosen—we’re happy you’re here. So, raise a stein and prost to 62 years of gemütlichkeit and cheer—it’s what makes us das beste!

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OKTOBERFEST GUIDE >