Welcome to Outdoor Wednesday! Our lovely hostess is Susan @ http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/ please visit her for more great Outdoor Photos and stories.
Pepin, Wisconsin is the birthplace of Laura Ingalls Wilder and the inspiration for her first book Little House in the Big Woods. When I was a little girl, my Mom read us the whole series of Laura Ingalls Wilder books. Maybe because it was the first one she read to us , or maybe because we lived in Wisconsin ,Little House in the Big Woods is the one I remember the most. The picture above was taken by my hubby or I last summer on one of our little daytime jaunts. Lake Pepin was named after the Pepin brothers who were French traders and the first to settle this area.
On a beautiful summer day you will see scenes like this. Pepin was popular with wealthy Chicago socialites and Mark Twain was a frequent visitor. Lake Pepin is part of the mighty Mississippi and was once a steamboat boom town. 
But Pepin's biggest claim to fame is the fact that Laura Ingalls Wilder was born here. Above is a reconstructed log cabin you can visit. The cabin sits in the original spot where Charles Ingalls built his.
In September, Pepin is home to Laura Ingall Wilder Days. If you go, you will see scenes like this.
And little girls competing for the Laura title. Some come with their families from all over the country.
And one is picked the lucky look'alike.
You might take in some tasty outdoor cooking.
How about a fiddle contest.
And at the end of the day, you can see beautiful scenes like this. The beauty of the sunset overlooking beautiful Lake Pepin. If you want more info, check out http://www.pepinwisconsin.com/I hope you enjoyed our little jaunt. Cindy
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Cindy...I'm just going to have to head up your way! You have so many interesting places to visit nearby!! Do you suppose this is the REAL Silver Lake? Hope you are having a good week!...Debbie
ReplyDeleteCynthia,
ReplyDeleteI just love this post! I spent many a day as a young girl curled up with a Laura Ingalls Wilder book. I read them all~never watched the TV series, I loved the real thing! It is awesome now to see pictures of Lake Pepin! How beautiful! I would love to go in September.
Thanks so much for sharing. So nice to know another Little House fan!! :-)
xoxo
Jane
love your outdoor photos, I love the Little House on the Prairie books, they were my daughters favorites
ReplyDeleteOh Cindy, I just loved this post!
ReplyDeleteI too was a huge Laura Ingalls Wilder fan! I remember reading all of the Little House books; sometimes falling asleep at night with the book next to my pillow.
I grew up in St. Louis, but my next door neighbors had a split rail spence. Suburbia did not squash my imagination. I often could be found in makeshift pioneer outfits, sporting a sunbonnet and "playing" Little House on the PRAIRIE; afterall, St. Louis is the Gateway to the Midwest!
My husband and I were television series fans. I think it is so sweet that my 6'4" 280lb fire fighter husband will readily admit to loving Little House on the Prairie and wants our children to love it as well. Lord knows there's much worse on television these days!
Now I really do live on the prairie (or at least much closer to it (still suburbia)!
Blessings to you from Kansas,
Valerie
P.S. I am going to have to show this too my husband. We stopped at one of her many childhood homes (I think in South Dakota) and my husband wants to do them all. (We have Mansfield, MO not that far away)
ReplyDeleteI think that my kids will absolutely love this when they get older!
I haven't checked out the Pepin link yet, but are you close at all to Prairie Du Chien or farther up north towards the boundary waters?
Hi Cindy! I loved this post about Lake Pepin and Laura Ingalls Wilder. Wonderful. The photos are so great! Have a wonderful Wednesday!!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great time. I absolutely love to spend a day enjoying all the outdoor fun and festivities. Beautiful spot. Thanks for the pics, I loved it. Hugs, Marty
ReplyDeleteHi Cindy, Great Post! I can't wait for summer. It's been awhile since I have been there - I'll have to take Jacob this summer. I too loved the "Little House" books. I still have mine:) ~ Robyn
ReplyDeleteHello...I first want to thank you so much for your visit..and your nice comment. Of course I have told you before that I love your beautiful red blog..AND the apples. I just wanted to tell you that my husband tells me he is related to Laura Ingalls. We have all of her books etc. I guess his family collects things to do with her. I am new in the family so I don't know much about it. I wonder if it is true as this Ingalls family is not from any place near a Prairie. :) They are water people and own an Island off the coast of Maine..so...but..she is certainly a wonderful person to be related to IF it were true. I loved her books and never missed the television show. Thanks for the wonderful and informative post.
ReplyDeleteHi Cindy! This is a beautiful lake and the story is very interesting. I am glad they hold all those festivities and how neat if your hubby is really related to the Ingalls.
ReplyDeleteHappy Outdoor Wednesday Cindy! I loved the Laua Ingalls Wilder books too...what a teat to get a peek at the area! Thanks for sharing your photos.~ Susan
ReplyDeleteGirl!
ReplyDeleteIf you only knew how big of a fan I am of the "Little House" series, both book and the tv series produced by Michael Landon. In fact, I saw the same set of books I purchased over 20 years ago on a post from Manuella at "The Pleasures of Homemaking" and I just had a cow thinking"Wow! Someone else loves the same exact books."
I know there are just sooooo many women and girls out there who just love those books. As a child, I could not wait to get to the library in order to check out the next book in the series.
Someone needs to produce the series again. And while there will be many of us who will dearly miss Melissa Gilbert and Michael Landon and Karen Grassel, there could be a new set of characters who can create the same characters with just as big if not bigger of a following. What a wonderful series.
Wonderful, wonderful post. Thank you Dear Friend!
Hugs. Karen
Hello Cindy, Pepin, Wisconsin is beautiful and full of history, I loved this post, Happy outdoor wednesday, Kathy. Beautiful sunset too.
ReplyDeleteHi Cindy...this was a wonderful post...it brought with it a lot to see and a lot of history too...thanks so much for sharing. It is doubtful I'll ever make it there in person so it is nice to visit through your blog. I loved the Little House TV series...;-) Bo
ReplyDeleteHi Cindy,
ReplyDeleteI love Little House and watch it every chance I get. I still cry over episodes I've seen dozens of times! I wish we could go back to the days when life was simpler, most everyone had faith in God, and everyone followed the Golden Rule. If you have a chance stop over at Ruth Anne's http://sugarpiefarmhouse.blogspot.com click on BLOG and scroll down to a post called Snowbound in the right sidebar. She has a wonderful post about the house that Laura and Almanzo shared. Thank you for sharing this tour with us! Hugs, Loretta
I love "Little House" so much! I am going to be sure and tell a friend's daughter about this. She has a Little House website because she loves it so much. You always take us on the best tours! Love it!
ReplyDeleteXO,
Sheila :-)
I've heard of this alot but have never been there. I might have to check this out this Sept. I could not imagine being that lady cooking those chickens though--she looked so HOT!
ReplyDeleteHi Cindy,
ReplyDeleteI love your post!
I too am a "little House" fan as is my grandaughter. We have all the books and still watch the shows. Thanks for sharing.
Elizabeth
WOW it certainly looks a fabulous day out. Love the photos and the history lesson. take care, Judith
ReplyDeleteI love all of the pictures! How fun to be thought of Laura Ingalls Wilder's look-alike! And those roasting chickens, yum!
ReplyDeleteWhen we made the move from MO to MN in 1974 we loaded our station wagon with four children and our dog .... the drive up was not an inspiring one ~ until we got to Lake Pepin and spent time admiring it's beauty. What an introduction to our new home!
ReplyDeleteI love these pictures. It did remind of of Little House on the Prarie moments, whihch used to be my all time favorite show wehn I was a kid. It was also the inspiration for my post about Grace and the silver serving spoons (you can search on my blog, if interested).
ReplyDeleteThanks for dropping by today!
Beautiful pictures. Love the Little House books. Looks like a great place to visit. Thank you Cindy, for sharing this. laurie
ReplyDeleteLove Laura and the little house books. I live between the site of the little house on the prairie and where she and Almanzo lived most of their married life (and where she wrote the books). I've not been to Lake Pepin but may have to remedy that next year.
ReplyDeleteI love all the pics and the history behind it.I'm not sure if I am on the right post,but I love your TT.And those finds,you and your mom found.Wow.The flatware and the napkins are awesome.Especially those precious little napkins.Good find there Mom....Ann
ReplyDeleteHoping that Little House fans will stuff the ballot box for Laura Ingalls in this children's book popularity poll! http://tinyurl.com/l5okyg
ReplyDeleteHi, I've always wanted to see this. My cousin told me she camps in this area. Now I see why. They tell me that the little place by Sleepy Eye Mn is just a little shack. I should investigate that too. As always, loved the pics.
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