Day 30 - USA Tour - Lake Delton, WI

Overnight: Lake Delton, WI
Sightseeing:
- International Crane Foundation
- Dell Boat Tours Dinner Cruise

Our plan today was to visit the International Crane Foundation (this is crane as in bird, not as in mechanical mulcher) and then visit the Circus World Museum. But, after yesterday’s walking venture, we opted to hold off on the Circus Museum.

We had to go to Wal-Mart first, so got that shopping done, and then we grabbed a burger on our way to see the cranes. The guided tour started at 1 PM and we arrived at 11:30 AM. This left us plenty of time to visit the exhibits and familiarize ourselves with what we were about to experience.

They had scooters available for their guests to use, so I did just that (and we took turns riding it from time-to-time). It was a welcome vehicle given our still sore hips and pegs.

We were both surprised that there are 13 different species of cranes. The most endangered is the Whooping Crane. This International Crane Foundation has been granted the opportunity to preserve the species. From what I can remember, there were only about 22 Whooping Cranes found alive when this foundation began in the 70s. They have been successful in not only preserving many of the endangered cranes throughout the world, but also in preserving the wetlands that are vital to the survival of cranes and other species of animals. This wetland preservation is done globally. Cranes are found mostly in the USA, Japan, China, and South Africa.

They have live birds of all 13 species of cranes. There was only one species (Black Crowned Crane) that we could not view because the female was nesting and the male had gone through surgery the previous day to repair a cracked beak.

This facility has a wetland exhibit area that is open--like a mini-stadium. The audience sits in bleachers and overlooks a pond with wetland. The cranes that inhabit this exhibit are Whooping Cranes. The more aggressive female was imprinted with humans—not a good thing. When she hatched and looked for the first living thing, it was a human instead of another crane. Therefore, she’s too attached to humans. So, she came forth to strut her stuff for us. But, the other crane stayed in the bushes.

Here's a video of the crane in action; she's protecting her territory because we were in the viewing area. So, she parades back and forth letting us know to stay out of her clubhouse!



Here's a picture of a suit that the caretakers wear when chicks hatch now. Notice that the arm is the head of a crane.



Also, some of the cranes raised at this facility are led by glider plane to Florida to winter and then they come back to the facility on their own in the summer.

These photos show one crane with fluffy feathers on his backside, and the other crane has a ruffled neck because he is posturing trying to scare someone/something away.





The wings of the cranes are cut lop-sided so if they tried to fly, they can’t. Most of the birds are kept in a special enclosure. It’s like a wheel with a hub. The hub is where the birds go inside to get feed, and they can rest inside to get out of the sun or the snow. Each chain-linked enclosure is pie-shaped outward from the hub with the tip of the pie shape attaching to the hub. There is netting across the top of the enclosure to keep out other critters, like raccoons. Some birds are kept in the open, like the Whooping Crane and the Wattled Crane; in these open areas, the cranes fenced area is surrounded with an electrical fence to keep out raccoons and the like.

We took the extended tour and I think we left there about 3 PM. It was another eye-opening lesson on critters and their habitats.

Our guide told us that it was really rare to be able to see cranes in the wild like we did because they were Sandhill Cranes and they roll in the dirt of the area that they inhabit; thereby, making them blend in with their surroundings.

We returned to the RV and rested before our next activity.

For my birthday and Father’s Day celebration, we took a sunset dinner cruise up the Upper Dells of the Wisconsin River. We got out our handy-dandy road map which seemed to do no good at locating this attraction. We finally called the place and were directed to a parking lot further away from the one that we were already settled into. Another Bah Humbug experience. We had only planned to arrive 30 minutes early (to give ourselves walking time); but at the last minute, we decided to arrive an hour prior to departure. It was a good thing, as when we arrived, we had 10 minutes to spare before boarding.

It was a delightful cruise. The Dells are very pretty with their shale walls, as you can see from the attached pictures.





But, the really spectacular event was a stop at Witch’s Gulch. It was about a quarter-mile walk back to the end of the gulch. I had fleeting thoughts of skipping it because of all the walking we had done over the previous two days. But, I couldn’t bring myself to miss out on the adventure. And, I am sure glad I persevered. After we began the walk, I did have a bit of trouble breathing because the thick, moist air kicked up my asthma. I found myself having to stop frequently to catch my breath, and, therefore, we were the last back onto the boat. But, they didn’t leave us!

Unfortunately, my camera settings were all haywire and I didn’t get any “good” pictures to share. The mist within the gulch seemed to play havoc with my camera.
But here’s a YouTube glimpse posted by someone else.



The passageway was very narrow in several spots. You were lulled into peaceful thoughts by the water rushing under your feet in near the back of the gulch. It was an experience not to be missed.



When we got back on board, we were served buffet style. The cook had prepared the steaks on the grill at the back of the boat while we were in the gulch. The meal was very tasty and you can see our menu in this picture; we opted not to have the lobster tail in addition to the steaks because of Dave’s gout and my distaste of seafood. So, they gave us 2 steaks instead. Yumm.



Throughout the cruise, we were serenaded by guitar playing deck hand. He was pretty good and kept the bunch lively. There was another woman on the boat celebrating her birthday. So, we had the Happy Birthday song sung to Tammi and Pammie (they had to make it rhyme!).

The sunset was very pretty, but nothing like those beautiful Florida or Caribbean sunsets. Nevertheless, it was romantic and we cuddled on our way back to the dock. Oh, maybe we were cuddling because of the cold air. Yea, that was it!



We purchased the photos that are always taken when you embark. Even though they are expensive, they are nice to have as the years tick by and you look back on your adventures. Besides, these turned out pretty good for ol’ codgers. We met a nice couple on the boat and enjoyed talking with them after we docked. We bid each other adieu and Dave and I headed back to our RV for a restful, peaceful night.