De Pere, WI

De Pere had a lot to live up to after our thoroughly enjoyable two weeks in Michigan. The night before arriving we spent the night at a private lake off of a national forest road, which could have been excellent if it weren't for the maddening mosquitos. Unfortunately, that alongside a hazy overcast, made our first day in De Pere a little lackluster.

Continuing to give De Pere a poor reputation was the public bathroom I used along a riverside park; it was the worst bathroom I've ever been in, and I have been in a lot of public bathrooms. Not long after that experience, we discovered that most shops and restaurants were closed (either because it was a Monday or because it was 4th of July).

To counterbalance the off-putting first impression was a pretty riverwalk alongside the Fox River locks and a seemingly-new educational flower garden. From the river trail we saw lots of anglers and nearly an equal number of pelicans. The downtown stretched across both sides of the river, but the west side was clearly superior. There was a fair amount of art, including one of the most beautiful murals I've ever seen, and an actively-marketing community theater.  

To finish off our time there, we had lunch at Nicolet, a diner that did not cater heavily to their vegetarian customers, followed by a walk through St. Norbert College's campus. We spent the remainder of the day driving through nearby Door County, a peninsula surrounded by Lake Michigan and Green Bay. Had we hit De Pere on the right day in the right mood, I'm sure it would have been charming. 

The Good

• Nice riverside park, although the walking trail that we were on was not very long.
• Interesting community summer events being advertised: art walk, farmer's market, food truck rally, music nights, yoga in the park, and sidewalk sales. 
• Cool art around town.
• Near to some very cool places, like Cave Point County Park and Sister Bay on the Door Peninsua.
• Centrally located in the US (meaning easy access to almost everything).
• A good sized town: large enough to support a robust community theater but small enough to walk to everything. 

The Bad

• Nothing particularly stunning. Every time we would come across a pretty spot, it was marred by something slightly off. 
• The river was kind of gross looking. Boating might be fine, but swimming would definitely be off limits. 
• There was a nice looking biking trail next to the river, but a sign warned that bikers and rollerbladers had to pay a fee.
• This is a silly gripe, but I don't like the name De Pere and I can't keep track of the correct pronunciation. 

The Verdict

No. I had intended for us to spend a few days in De Pere, but nothing we saw on day one was compelling enough to bring us back for another visit. 

This was our first true view of De Pere, and it would have made a great first impression if it weren't for the other negative events leading up to this.

A fair number of people out fishing on their holiday. The Fox River feeds into Green Bay, contributing (I presume) to it's name. 

I have mixed feelings about locks. They're cool, but sort of a nuisance. Also, we didn't see any fish ladders built into the dam, so this is likely the only method for fish to get higher upstream.  

The dam mentioned in the previous photo's caption. You can also see a cluster of cormorants and pelicans on a cluster of rocks right in front of it. 

This public garden may have been the prettiest part of De Pere. From what I could tell, there was nothing there to leave a negative aftertaste. 

Downtown was eerily empty.

Not only did it lack people, but it also seemed to have building gaps.

A very cool mural.

What I am dubbing "bee alley." These bee sculptures extended back pretty farm, and were intermixed with some giraffe sculptures and bee-themed print art. I couldn't figure out if there was any connection with the gyro place that was located inside the building (probably not).

Per usual, I found an event listing hung up at a shop front, but this was the only shop we passed that was advertising these community events. 

Conversely, "Shrek the Musical" was being heavily advertised around town.

A new cultural center is being built.

A nice looking college campus, although I couldn't get into any of the buildings to snoop around more. 

The very off-putting fee-to-ride sign.

Now for the best parts of De Pere, which were outside of the city:

The blue waters of Lake Michigan and the sound of light waves echoing in semi-submerged caves at Cave Point County Park.

Despite the gloom and cold water, we had to jump in.

On nice days, goats graze on the thatch roofs of this Swedish-themed shop and restaurant in Sisters Bay.

Despite the looming downpour, there were people enjoying an outdoor beer.