I should warn you…this post required a whole lotta pictures to capture all the HAPPY that we packed into our first day in Door County.  I think the first HAPPY of our trip was discovering this adorable room in a quaint Inn run by friendly staff right in the heart of Fish Creek.

 

 

We stayed at the Cedar Court Inn.  The room was bright and clean and captured that homey feel.

 

 

 

 

One of the highlights (along with the whirlpool tub and fireplace) was this back porch.  Did I mention that they also have a pool???  And a safe place to store my bike in the courtyard!

 

 

 

When you book online, it is hard to know what to expect.  The BOY and I were thrilled with our room, and I highly recommend the Cedar Court Inn!  Because the weather was so amazing, we were able to keep the windows and porch door open most days and used the fire place when we wanted some warmth at night.

 

 

After a quiet night in town, we woke up Saturday morning with the sun streaming through the windows.  I popped out of bed and started getting ready for HAPPY #2…a Bike Ride!

 

 

The BOY hauled my bike all the way up to Door County in the rain and it was my goal to ride every day.  With my broken toe, I am taking a short break from running, so it was easy to focus on biking, especially with Peninsula State Park less than a mile from my door!  It was the perfect morning for a bike ride with the weather in the low 70’s and a strong wind.  I headed north out of town along Route 42 towards the park.

 

 

 

3/4 of a mile later, I arrived at the park entrance…

 

 

And hopped on to the 9.6 mile Sunset Trail.  I actually wasn’t sure how long the trail was when I began, but discovered that this loop, which begins and ends at the front of the park is a combination of two gravel and paved trails that take you through multiple areas of the park with spectacular views!

 

 

2 minutes into the trail and I was feeling more relaxed than I have been in months.  The forest preserve was quiet and still with only a few runners along the trail.

 

  

 

 

The bay views left me speechless!

 

 

Which ya’ll know is hard to do!

 

 

Each morning, I took plenty of pictures of all these spectacular views as I explored different areas of the park.  There are way too many to put into this post, but if you love nature photos (like I do), then I promise you more to come!

 

 

When I made my way back to the Inn, the BOY was waiting for me outside.

 

 

It was on to HAPPY #3…a hike through Whitefish Dunes State Park.

 

 

We discovered the Cave Point trail last summer and decided to try something a little different by hiking here this year.

 

 

 

We started on the beach and walked our way north along the rocks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The wind was strong and the waves were high and harsh.  It wasn’t a great day for swimming, but a beautiful day for hiking.

 

 

 

 

 

We loved the views of the water and playing around in the park!

 

 

 

We worked up quite an appetite leading us to lunch at Wild Tomato aka HAPPY #4.

 

 

This is our favorite restaurant in Door County and it serves some amazing farm fresh pizza with local Wisconsin cheese.  And their beer selection is the best!

 

 

 

We made it home with enough time for a 2 and a half hour nap (enter HAPPY #5), a little time to start a new book (HAPPY #6) before heading off to Gordon’s Lodge for HAPPY #7 Dinner.

 

 

 

We have never been to Gordon’s Lodge before, and I was super excited to check out the sunset.  Sadly, it was too windy to sit outside, but we had a seat by the window with the perfect view of the sun setting over the water.

 

 

I snuck out to the deck to grab a few shots of the sun in between bites of a tasty seafood dinner!

 

 

 

 

Dinner was capped off with 2 delicious mini desserts (crème brulee for the BOY and a fresh cherry cobbler for me).

 

 

 

We managed to make the most of our first day in Door County, packing a lot of my favorite things into one awesome day.  This is why Door County is one of my favorite places to visit and why these trips always leave me feeling so HAPPY!