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October 29, 2026
From historic lighthouses and goats on the roof to a spectacular fish boil and Wisconsin’s most photogenic winding road, here’s how to explore Door County.
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Imagine a place with American flags outside every home, local apples, cherries and cheese, lighthouses, small towns, bingo games, beautiful waterfronts, amazing sunsets, long winding roads and boat rides.
Isn’t this the place we’d all love to imagine ourselves in, the American backroads dream?
Then welcome to Door County, Wisconsin, the northern tip of the Badger State, a little piece of heaven that is well known to folks in the Wisconsin, Illinois and Michigan area, but was all new to this California boy.
When it was first pitched to me, Door County was referred to as the Cape Cod of the Midwest, and after spending three days exploring this beautiful stretch of Wisconsin, I can see why.
For our latest episode of Photowalks, Ruth Stroud (read her RuthTalksFood Wisconsin writeups here) and I headed north to explore the Door County peninsula, with Green Bay on one side and Lake Michigan on the other.
We spent three days visiting small towns, meeting locals and discovering why this corner of Wisconsin is such a popular road trip destination with midwesterners. My takeaway: those of us in other regions need to check out this gem of an area too!
Here’s our itinerary, complete with addresses, links and photography tips.
Sturgeon Bay — The Gateway to Door County
Most visits begin in Sturgeon Bay, the largest community on the peninsula, with roughly 10,000 residents.
It’s a working waterfront town with maritime history, restaurants and easy access to the rest of Door County. It’s a working waterfront town with maritime history, restaurants and easy access to the rest of Door County. There’s the cute downtown with fudge shops, clothing stores, cafes and game stores, two historic lighthouses and a place to park your big boat.
Door County Maritime Museum
Address: 120 N. Madison Avenue, Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235
Website: Door County Maritime Museum
Door County has 11 lighthouses, and there’s a reason for that.
The peninsula’s location along busy Great Lakes shipping routes made navigation especially important. The Door County Maritime Museum explains the region’s maritime history, from early trade to shipbuilding and modern shipping.
The museum also features a faux lighthouse tower with panoramic views and exhibits about life on the Great Lakes.
It’s a terrific first stop before heading north to see the real lighthouses.
Scaturo’s Baking Co. & Cafe
Address: 19 Green Bay Road, Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235
Website: Scaturo’s Baking Co. & Cafe
We liked Scaturo’s so much that we visited three times during our stay.
Breakfast, lunch, sandwiches and baked goods — we kept returning.
Wisconsin is America’s Dairyland, after all, and yes, the cheese really tastes better here. It’s as if my taste buds in California had been attuned to cheap cheese all these years, and for the first time, I got to see what real cheese tasted like. So naturally, my local favorite was the farm to table grilled cheese sandwich, which gave me the perfect opportunity to demonstrate the famous Wisconsin cheese pull.
Wisconsin is known for its cheese curds, but a gooey grilled cheese sandwich can be just as photogenic.
And don’t overlook the bakery, especially the cherry treats.
Where We Stayed: Best Western Maritime Inn
Address: 1001 N. 14th Avenue, Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235
Website: Best Western Maritime Inn
We used the Best Western Maritime Inn as our home base for exploring Door County. It was convenient for the road trip, with a swimming pool, breakfast buffet and easy access to the peninsula.
Instead of changing hotels every night, we returned to Sturgeon Bay after our adventures.
Disclosure: Best Western hosted and supported our Photowalks stay.
Charming Towns, Orchards and Lighthouses
Now it’s time to head north.
This is where Door County starts to feel like a classic American road trip, with small towns, waterfront scenery and orchards around nearly every turn.
Bailey’s Harbor and the Orchards
Location: Baileys Harbor, WI 54202
Visitor information: Destination Door County
Baileys Harbor is a beautiful waterfront community on the Lake Michigan side of the peninsula. It’s also a convenient starting point for exploring the nearby countryside and Cana Island Lighthouse.
Door County produces most of Wisconsin’s cherries, and apples are another major local crop. Cherry season is generally early summer, while apple season arrives in the fall.
We visited during apple season and sampled fresh, tangy varieties grown in the area. Whether you’re visiting an orchard or stopping at a roadside market, sampling the local fruit is part of the Door County experience. During our time there, we tasted at least 20 different varieties of local apples, and each one had a unique flavor.
Cana Island Lighthouse
Address: 8800 E. Cana Island Road, Baileys Harbor, WI 54202
Website: Cana Island Lighthouse
This was one of my favorite stops of the entire trip.
Cana Island Lighthouse, built in 1869, stands on a small island just off the Lake Michigan shoreline. And getting there is part of the adventure.
Depending on water levels, you can walk across the rocky causeway or ride a tractor-drawn wagon for free.
Once on the island, you can explore the historic lighthouse grounds and climb 97 steps to the top of the tower when it’s open. I made the climb. Ruth wasn’t quite as enthusiastic.
But the view was worth it.
I also used an Insta360 camera with the “invisible selfie stick” to capture myself with the entire lighthouse in the frame. With the Insta360, you have to process the images in software afterwards, which magically erases the selfie stick.
Planning note: Lighthouse tours are seasonal, generally May through October. Check the website for admission, tower-climbing hours and causeway conditions.
Al Johnson’s Swedish Restaurant — Goats on the Roof!
Address: 10698 N. Bay Shore Drive, Sister Bay, WI 54234
Website: Al Johnson’s Swedish Restaurant
One of Door County’s most famous attractions isn’t a lighthouse, it’s a restaurant with goats on the roof.
Al Johnson’s Swedish Restaurant is famous for its grass-covered roof, where live goats graze during the warmer months. The tradition began as a birthday prank in the 1970s and became one of Door County’s best-known attractions.
The restaurant is also famous for Swedish pancakes, Swedish meatballs and an unforgettable hot chocolate. Mine arrived with a mountain of whipped cream so enormous I wasn’t sure how to drink it.
A neighboring diner suggested eating the cream like an ice cream cone. It worked, although I ended up with whipped cream on my nose, as expected.
This is a terrific stop for families, and one of those quirky roadside attractions that makes traveling so memorable.
Planning note: The goats are seasonal and weather-dependent, generally appearing from late May into October.
Wisconsin’s Winding Road and the Famous Fish Boil
The Old Post Office Restaurant — A Traditional Door County Fish Boil
Address: 10040 Water Street (Highway 42), Ephraim, WI 54211
Website: Old Post Office Restaurant
Fish boil information: Reservations and details
You can’t visit Door County without experiencing a traditional fish boil.
It’s part dinner, part outdoor theater.
Many local restaurants have them during the season. We attended the fish boil at the Old Post Office Restaurant in Ephraim, where the boil master, a man nicknamed “Torch” showed us how the tradition works.
First, a huge kettle of water is heated over a wood fire. Then come potatoes, onions and freshly caught local whitefish. The seasoning is simple: salt.
But the real show comes at the end.
The boil master throws kerosene onto the fire, producing a spectacular burst of flames as the kettle boils over. It’s loud, dramatic and incredibly photogenic and the intent is to burn away the fish oils and produce a better tasting, cleaner fish.
Our boil master told us he performs roughly 400 fish boils during the season, even in pouring rain.
And the fish we ate had been caught just the day before.
The perfect ending was a slice of Door County cherry pie à la mode as cherries are king in Door County.
Photo tip: When the boil master announces the big moment, have your phone ready. Shoot vertically to capture the full height of the flames. Nighttime makes the fire especially dramatic, although daytime offers easier exposure.
And don’t stop shooting when the flames die down. One of the best photographs comes afterward, when the baskets of cooked fish are lifted from the kettle.
Planning note: The restaurant operates seasonally, generally May through October. Fish boils require advance planning. Call 920-854-4034 for reservations and arrive about 30 minutes early to watch the preparations.
The Famous Highway 42 Winding Road
Location: Highway 42, between Timberline Road and Porte des Morts Drive, north of Gills Rock, WI
Visitor information: Door County Coastal Byway — Curvy Highway 42
This may be my favorite backroad photography location of the year–well, maybe tied with the row of huge sunflowers in North Dakota. It’s been a great year.
Near the northern tip of the Door County peninsula, just before the Washington Island ferry terminal, Highway 42 twists through a series of dramatic curves.
It’s one of the most photographed stretches of road in the state. And here’s the secret to getting a great shot.
Don’t use your smartphone’s wide-angle lens, which would be the obvious first choice, but it’s the worst one. Look through the camera, and the windy road doesn’t seem so windy. For that to happen, you need to Zoom in.
The telephoto lens compresses the curves, making them appear closer together and emphasizing the road’s unusual shape.
Experiment with 2x, 3x and 4x to see which works best. I liked what I got at 4x on the iPhone 18 Pro Max.
Safety tip: You can easily find a safe place to pull over and photograph the road from outside the travel lanes.
When Is the Best Time to Visit Door County?
Summer: Cherry season, waterfront activities and busy small towns.
Fall: Apple orchards, autumn colors and beautiful drives along the peninsula. An especially appealing season for photography.
Spring and winter: Quieter visits, but some attractions and restaurants operate seasonally.
If you’re coming primarily for photography, I’d urge fall, when the trees change color and Highway 42 becomes even more spectacular. We were there in early October, when the leaves were just starting to hit their peak.
Watch the Door County Episode of Photowalks
Come along for our full Wisconsin road trip, featuring lighthouses, goats on the roof, the traditional fish boil, the famous winding road and smartphone photography tips.
Watch Photowalks on YouTube and Scripps News.
Want better vacation photos? Visit PhotowalksTV.com to subscribe to the free newsletter and download Jeff’s Best 101 Photo Travel Smartphone Tips.
