Stockholm has an outsize art scene and a charming sense of its Swedish heritage—plus plenty of places to eat, shop, and enjoy the outdoors
The Scene
Stockholm—pop. 82 or 97, depending which highway marker you put your trust in—is a dot-on-the-map settlement bordering the Mississippi as it widens to become Lake Pepin: No gas station, no convenience store, and no ATM, but a B&B and more than a dozen specialty shops. A historical museum, even.
This itty-bitty village is a jewel in the diadem of towns along the Great River Road (aka Highway 35), which rollercoasters along the river—a highway the tripmeisters at Rand McNally rate as one of the 10 most scenic drives in the nation. A near-ghost town not so long ago, Stockholm has been transformed into an artists' colony rich with painters, potters, weavers, and other creative types who live, work, and sell their wares here.
What drew the new wave of immigrants? The guess put forth in town is that, back in the '70s, land here was both cheap and beautiful. One artist ventured a studio, then others of the romantic, back-to-the-land school of thought followed suit.
Backstory
Upriver from Stockholm, a historical marker pinpoints Maiden Rock Bluff, where (as legend has it) a Dakota maiden, forced to abandon her lover and marry another, leapt to her watery death. A second marker downriver commemorates the 1686 site of Fort St. Antoine, which staked claim by French explorers in the name of Louis XIV to "all the land west of the Mississippi no matter how far." The English thought otherwise, though, and took control in 1783.
Fast forward to 1851, when the first immigrants arrived from Karlskoga, Sweden, and founded a settlement they named for a beloved icon of their homeland. They farmed and fished as they'd done back home. Where the Mississippi expands into Lake Pepin, they built a town hall, post office, hotel, and a few of the shops and cottages that still form the community. Cherishing that heritage today, the Swedish flag of blue and yellow flutters above every doorway. Blossoms tumble from sky-blue flowerboxes and blue bicycles glimmer from bike racks around town, beckoning visitors to hop on for a free spin-compliments of a community bike program. Public gardens with inviting benches encourage lingering in the "business district"—a single intersection, truth to tell.
The Digs
Leland Krebs came this way in 1980, looking for a farm where he could raise sheep and chickens. He happened onto the oldest house in Stockholm, built in 1869 by one of the town's founders, Jacob Peterson, anchoring 40 acres of forest and pastureland. In 1985, Krebs quit farming and converted the homestead into a B&B.
Great River Bed & Breakfast is the most beautifully suited-out-and private-B&B I've ever stayed in, and the only place I've slept where doors are never locked. While there are two bedrooms, Krebs rents the house only as a single unit. He checks guests in, invites them to sample a collection of CDs and books that puts Barnes & Noble to shame, then disappears until it's time to start the excellent breakfast coffee—which comes from Great River Coffee Roasters in Pepin, and is served with juice, fruit, and muffins warm from the oven: none of those four-course extravaganzas that send you back to bed.
Krebs studied art history, and his love of and appreciation for fine art shows in his collection of prints and woodcuts. The house is furnished in contemporary Swedish design (think the collectors' originals that IKEA knocks off) accented by antiques, like the ornately carved wooden bedstead in a room spacious enough to accommodate two armchairs before the fireplace, a writing desk, and books stacked in a tower higher than I could reach. The other bedroom contains two butter-yellow twin beds. Follow a path through apple trees to the meadow above the house, where Krebs has placed a bench for contemplation in a spot where deer and turkey wander. Rates start at $175 (for up to two people). Open mid-March through early December. W11976 State Highway 35; (800) 657-4756, greatriverbedandbreakfast.com.
Eats Bogus Creek Café &
Bakery occupies a tiny historic
farmhouse, but in nice weather customers eat at umbrella-shaded tables on the
patio to the sound of trickling water. Proprietor Colleen Flynn, in a pine-green chef's hat, explains the
café's name: Nearby Bogus Creek got its moniker, she says, when a
counterfeiter, fearing an imminent raid by the law, tossed his fake coins and
tools into the stream. Flynn was drawn, like
other arriving artists, by the zeitgeist in this "place people take their time
and relax, where life is simple and where the local talent is phenomenal," she
explains. No fish fries here. Instead, Flynn's creative menu segues from salmon
cakes with poached eggs and fruit for breakfast to a BLAT sandwich (the A is
for avocado), Cuban black bean soup, or a strawberry-spinach salad, followed by
pie à la mode made with local blueberries. Try the Unforgiven Amber Ale, the
Rush River Brewing Company's beer on tap. Open mid-March through December. N2049
Spring Street; (715) 422-5017. If only Bogus Creek was
open in the evening. Fortunately, Gelly's Pub & Eatery is. Gelly's is the latest occupant of a former
Texaco station, and is, as my server noted, "the only place around here open
seven days a week year-round." Here's where you'll find that Friday fish fry,
along with burgers, steak, shrimp, and spaghetti with homemade meat sauce and
garlic bread. W12128 Highway 35; (715) 442-2023. One thing you must do—and
everybody does, so be prepared to wait—is head six miles downstream to Pepin's Harbor
View Café, now owned, in a
seamless transition, by former café staffers Ruth Stoyke and her husband, Chuck
Morrow. She cooks and waits tables while he hosts and bartends, greeting the
50-something foursome driving up from Madison with, "Hi kids, how are you?" No fish fry here either,
believe me. Instead, grilled opah, a pesce stew, and my choice, poached walleye,
served with shrimp and wild rice, sugar snaps, and cranberries. With portions
on the mammoth side, it's useless to save room for dessert, but try anyway. My
favorite is the Georgia walnut pie, served with vanilla ice cream and crème de
cacao. The wine list alone is worth the drive (by-the-glass options, not so
fabulous). There's a cheery din in this unassuming storefront, where you can
spot first-timers by those little black dresses that have no business here.
Open March 14-November 22; closed Tuesday and Wednesday. 314 First St.,
Pepin; (715) 442-3893, harborviewpepin.com. Shop and Gawk There's no shortage of
dawdle-worthy shops in Stockholm. But many close down or keep only limited
hours in winter, so you'll want to call ahead. Don't miss these prime shopping
spots: Abode, a gallery with regional arts and crafts,
showcases paintings, textiles, woodenware, pottery, jewelry, and fine books
bound in Japanese silk, as well as chapbooks of local poetry. "What are you
doing here?" I asked co-owner Steve Grams. His answer: "We came camping every
weekend and we hated to go back to the city every Sunday night. The place gets
in your blood." N2030 Spring Street; (715) 442-2266, abodegallery.com. Green Gables, housed in the Civil War-era Merchants Hotel, is
crammed with home furnishings and collectibles accumulated by owner Deb Hansen
("I'm Danish, but they let me in"), drawn here from Arizona by the love of
water and the vibe. N2037 Spring Street; (715) 442-2113. Out of the Blue Gallery stocks art photography and prints, books, and gift
items. W12117 Highway 35; (715) 442-2583. Clementine proffers live flowers and antique furnishings in the
town's former garage. N2030 Spring Street; (715) 442-2008. The Palate offers kitchenware, edibles, and cooking
classes-cum-dinner parties, often led by Judy Krohn, one of Harbor View Café's
chefs. W12102 Highway 35; (715) 442-6400, thepalate.net. Find local apple products at The Good Apple, along with themed kitchenware and Wisconsin wines
and cheeses. N2030 Spring Street; (715) 442-9077. Or head up the hill to the home orchard, Maiden
Rock Apples, featuring 25
varieties, to smell the blooms or pick your own in season. W12266 King Lane;
(715) 448-3502, maidenrockapples.com. Ingebretsen's av
Stockholm, housed in a sweetly renovated
1878 hardware store, carries Scandinavian crafts from the motherland, including
knitwear, blown glass, Sami jewelry, embroidery, pottery, Christmas ornaments,
and—every grandmother who's ever looked for a special gift will bless
them—Scandinavian costumes sure to be cherished by the owner of any American
Girl doll. No kitschy trolls, no Ole and Lena T-shirts. W12092 Highway 35;
(715) 442-2220. Stockholm Gardens was launched 20 years ago by husband and wife
Harley Cochran and Beth Shide, escapees from Alaska who found this Wisconsin
river town more to their liking. They stock herbs, annuals, perennials, and
trees, as well as garden pots, ornaments, and tools in the farm buildings they
took over. "We built the gardens from scratch," says Shide with a mix of love
and fortitude. The inviting display garden in front is their best
advertisement. Annual open house the first weekend in May. W12014 Highway
35; (715) 442-3200. The Great Outdoors Hike uphill on Spring
Street to the Old Stockholm Cemetery, where peonies and tall cedars guard gravestones carved with Swedish
names. Or grab a blue bike from nearly anywhere in town and pedal to Village
Park, fronting the river, with its
long, concrete pier thrusting into the waves aside a sandy swimming beach. Or
pack your own bike to tour the backcountry roads above the terrain known
locally as Little Switzerland. You'll have to jump the border to take a Lake
Pepin cruise aboard Pearl of
the Lake, an 1800s-style
riverboat. Opens in June. $15 per person. 100 Central Point Rd., Lake City,
Minn.; (651) 345-5188, pearlofthelake.com. Art and More Don't miss the Fresh
Art Tours in May (this year, May
16-18) and October where you can take self-guided tours to 17 local artists'
studios. Pick up a map at any store in town, or visit freshart.org. The annual Stockholm
Art Fair in Village Park (this
year, July 19; stockholmartfair.com) hosts more than 100 juried exhibitors and
draws upwards of 8,000 people. Check out Maiden Rock
Apples' Barn Dance & Barbeque on the first Saturday night of each month, April to October. $5 for adults;
$2.50 for kids under 12. W12266 King Lane; (715) 448-3502,
maidenrockapples.com. Try to catch a pizza
night, held every Tuesday at A to
Z Produce & Bakery, where Ted Fisher and Robbi Bannen stock wood-fired
brick ovens with their organic farm fare to feed crowds of up to 300 people (no
reservations necessary). Bring your own table, lawn chair, drinks, and
utensils. $20-$26 for each pizza. 4-9 p.m. N2956 Anker Lane; (715) 448-4802. Carla Waldemar writes
from the Twin Cities. Interested in this issue? Wisconsin Trails is sold at bookstores, grocery stores, and drugstores in Wisconsin. Can't find it? Contact Circulation Manager, Kelly Ivan at kivan@journalsentinel.com or (414) 647-4764. Or click here for a FREE trial issue!
