I’ve been wanting to stay here for 3 years and have been obsessively checking the website since I first saw a picture of the Glass Cabin in the woods. (The first time I went to book Candlewood Cabins was only booking a year in advance and reservations would open in January). Well, they were so overwhelmed it crashed the website! I was so close! I had the cabin in my cart and then nothing. I guess it wasn't meant to be at that time. Now they have opened reservations for two years in advance and have fixed all those website issues from being so popular! I will tell you; it was worth the wait. I had one of those nights where it's 3 a.m. and I just couldn't sleep. I was trying to come up with an anniversary present for my husband and since travel is always on our minds, it popped into my head that I should check to see if there were any openings. There happened to be one for Easter weekend for two nights! Jackpot! I quickly reserved the Woodland House. This is a one-bedroom cabin with a kitchen, bathroom, and shower and patio on the first floor, a spiral staircase and a bedroom with 3 walls of windows overlooking the trees, a fireplace, and a wrap- around patio on the second floor. It is stunning as the pictures show! I’m so excited we finally got the chance to experience this gem tucked away in Wisconsin.
We arrived from the Chicago area around 4pm on a Friday. After settling in we decided to run into town to grab a late lunch since we hadn’t eaten anything yet. Not knowing what time everything shut down in town we had also stopped and grabbed groceries to cook at the cabin.
We drove through town and on Google maps we found a restaurant called RC Tacos. It looked like more of a carry out place but we sat down to eat. Were we ever glad we did! Chris and I both had their special, the Mexican bowl, his with chicken and mine with pork. I can’t tell you how DELICIOUS this meal was. Real authentic Mexican made fresh. Mmmmmmm! This little gem of a restaurant opened in September 2020 during the pandemic. They will hopefully be able to open the upstairs for indoor dining soon. If you have a chance go see Blanca and get whatever is on special!
We returned to the cabin and spent the night playing uno, watching the sunset, and just enjoying the quiet. One thing you should note is there is no tv here and although there is wi-fi we found if we tried to connect more than two devices, we did not get service. Also, they will tell you on their website that if you do not have Verizon you won’t get reception in the area. We do have Verizon and even our service was spotty.
Saturday morning, we awoke to sunlight streaming in through the windows. We made a quick breakfast of eggs (and my leftover Mexican bowl) and headed into town to go get coffee. There is a coffee maker at the house (not a Keurig) but you need to bring your own coffee. We just didn’t bring items for coffee and I like exploring the local businesses. The local coffee shop is Kelly’s Coffee House. A cute adorable little store with lots of different options. I love a good latte and got a Crème de Menth – just like my favorite Thin Mint Girl Scout Cookie in a cup! Right next door is a cute shop called Court & Main. It is a furniture store but they had some cute gifts and décor too!
After coffee it was off to Wild Hills Winery for a tasting. We called ahead to make a reservation the day before.
The winery was formerly Weggy Winery so you may see signs for that, but all signs lead to Wild Hills Winery and new owners Colleen and Aaron. I’m not a wine connoisseur by any means but this I can tell you; these wines are fantastic. We ended up buying 6 bottles and have already shared with friends that agree. My husband was willing to make another 3 hour trip up to get more wine! Thank goodness they ship though! They have big plans for the winery and I can’t wait to come back again to see how they continue to progress. After the wine tasting they allow you to walk the vineyard. 70 acers of gorgeous hills. On a beautiful 60-degree day it was a stunning and relaxing stroll. The winery also sells local products. We picked up some sangria jam and a bourbon maple syrup that is like dessert. Really, it’s so good I don’t want to share it with my children (although we know I already have).
Back at the cabin I thought I could get some work done. I seem to have this fantasy that if I just had a weekend away in the woods I would get so much done. Alas I have found this is just simply not true. The woods and the weather called to me and we headed out for another hike. We came back and sat around the fire pit, drank our new favorite wine, ate dinner, made our gourmet s’mores (chocolate raspberry, peanut butter cup, and mint!), and star gazed.
We didn’t pack much. The house really has everything you would need except food. The refrigerator is the cutest! Our house even had a wine opener and roasting sticks. Wood is available to buy for $10 (cash) and you get a small tub of wood. Do not bring your own firewood. Here are some things that I would recommend you pack, however there is a Wal-Mart close by should you need anything.
· Toiletries including, shampoo, conditioner & soap
· Towels if you plan to do any offsite swimming activities
· Water bottles/holders if you plan on hiking
· Thermacell for bugs if sitting outside at night
· Coffee, sugar, creamer, etc.
· Foil was in our cabin, but pack anyway, along with olive oil spray for pans.
This area is known as Driftless Wisconsin and includes southwestern Wisconsin, southeastern Minnesota, northeastern Iowa and the northwest corner of Illinois. In the summer months there is kayaking and river tubing nearby also. I wanted to go up to Sparta, Wisconsin (because my husband’s family is from Sparta, Greece) but it was an hour and a half north and we just didn’t want to be away from the cabin that long. That is the beautiful thing about this location, you can be as active as you want or as idle as you’d like.
It was a relaxing weekend, worth the wait. I love finding little hidden gems like this! Let me know if you book and share your stories with me!
.png)