There’s an abundance of lovely towns on Lake Superior, but when you’re looking for small-town quaintness without sacrificing amazing views, a cozy beach, and a great cup of coffee, Cornucopia Wisconsin is your lakeside answer to quaint adventure.
“There is no WiFi in the forest,
-Anonymous
but I promise you will find a better connection.”
What does quaint adventure even mean? I’m glad you asked! Gather around whippersnappers, and let’s unpack this fun set of new vocabulary words and put them to good use.
The word quaint at its core means pleasant, and of course, we all know what adventure means (although the definition varies from person to person), so putting those two words together creates a whole new category of potential embarkments: Quaint Adventure. For those who love to get out of town and experience something new but either need a break from the speediness of life or aren’t much for thrill-seeking.
No matter what your adventuring style is, though, there’s something for everyone to do when you’re searching for unique things to do on Lake Superior!
A quaint adventure can have an itinerary or be completely spontaneous; it’s up to you when you’re searching for things to do near Lake Superior! There isn’t necessarily a ‘wrong way‘ to go about having a quaint adventure.
When my Husband and I set off on a quaint adventure of our own, we typically start with a small town we haven’t been to (Cornucopia WI for example), and we start with a local coffee shop and go from there! Going about an adventure this way can take a lot of pressure off intense planning and accidentally getting your hopes up. During our outings like this, we’ve actually come across a lot of fun events, shops, and cafes we may not have experienced if we had buried ourselves in travel plans and itineraries. Don’t get me wrong, though; we both love to plan a weekend getaway or an out-of-state trip. But sometimes, it’s a nice breath of fresh air to step away from the planning board and just go out for a nice dawdle.
If you’re curious how you can start up your own Quaint Adventure, such as ours during our time in Cornucopia WI, here’s a simple formula you can go off of:
Simple + No Expectations = Quaint Adventure
A fairly straightforward formula for a lovely potential adventure! When you go into anything with no or low expectations, in my own experience, it makes for a more memorable time. Because you aren’t expecting to see that neat piece of street art or discover a delicious local coffee shop, the experience becomes more wholesome and in the moment rather than a build-up of what you were expecting that place or experience to be. No preconceived ideas leave room for organic reactions and experiences. And that, to me, is a beautiful recipe for an awesome time!
Where is Cornucopia WI
During my and my Husband’s weekend getaway stay at The Pilot House Inn in Bayfield, we decided to go for a dawdle in Cornucopia. The drive was very minimal and beautiful! Below, I’ll list the driving time between Cornucopia WI, and a few other surrounding cities near Lake Superior.
Cornucopia –> Bayfield: 26 Minutes
Cornucopia –> Washburn: 24 Minutes
Cornucopia –> Ashland: 33 Minutes
Cornucopia –> Superior: 1 Hour and 8 Minutes
Cornucopia –> Duluth: 1 Hour and 17 Minutes
Embrace the Coffee Break in Cornucopia Wisconsin
Cornucopia Coffee and Sweet Shoppe, otherwise adorably known as Corny Coffee, is a darling caffeine experience when you’re coming around Cornucopia WI. With that sweet small-town feeling, like you’ve stepped inside a cozy-looking coffee shop you’d see in a Hallmark Original Movie, while still getting the quality of a ‘big town‘ cup of joe/tea, Corny Coffee is a great place to get your drink of choice while experiencing things to do on Lake Superior.
The inside of Corny Coffee is full of local artwork, dazzling decor and items for sale, and mix-matched chairs and tables, giving that classic, colorful, eclectic feel. When you cross the threshold of Corny Coffee, you’re embraced by a homeyness that’s perfectly captured by the welcoming atmosphere and the incredibly kind baristas running the caffeinated ship.
We ended up having the sweetest conversation with the two lovely baristas who were working while we visited Cornucopia WI! There was a painted rock on the counter by the cash register, and turning it over, we saw it was a painted rock from Wausau, Wisconsin, which isn’t far from our own stomping grounds. What a small world! The baristas were so kind in getting into a fun Wisconsin-fashioned conversation about the painted rocks, the different places we’ve all lived, and what we love about visiting/living on Lake Superior.
I guess it just goes to show that when you open yourself up to a little conversation, it can lead to a fun and memorable experience!
Cornucopia Coffee and Sweet Shoppe offers a variety of breakfast items, wraps/sandwiches, as well as different coffee and tea orders. To get more information on events they’re holding and menu items, I encourage you to check out their Facebook Page and support them!
“People need art in their houses.
– Ezra Croft
THey don’t need Bed Bath and Beyond dentist-office art.
They need weird stuff.”
Take a Hike! | Siskiwit Falls
Tucked into the cozy town of Cornucopia WI is a hiking trail we embarked on by the inspiring name of Siskiwit Falls Trail. This trail is perfect for anyone who wants to experience a beautiful view without getting blisters on their heels.
Another element of a Quaint Adventure can be taking time out from the business of everyday life and taking a nice walk through the beauty of nature around you. Walking through the woods can be so therapeutic; a perfect way to clear your mind of clutter and allow affirmations of gratitude to filter in. It might sound a little hooky at first, but trust me, once you’re out there on the trail, you’ll be picking up what I’m putting down here.
Check out more about our Siskiwit Falls exploration and the gorgeous sights here!
Relax & Unwind | Cornucopia Beach
If bumming around on the beach sounds like the perfect quaint adventure to you, then you’re in luck! Cornucopia Wisconsin has a lovely beach with plenty of sandy room, a few pieces of playground equipment, a sailboat marina, and a large walkable pier to get an even further view of the stunning Lake Superior.
We visited Cornucopia WI, during the middle of October, which may not scream ‘beach day‘, but we actually had a lot of fun, and the weather was lovely! Plus, on a nice autumn day, you may find that you get the beach all to yourself, as was the case with us.
You might be curious about what one could do on a beach during the Fall, and that’s a fair question, as beaches are usually harbored for hot summer days. But there’s a surprising number of things to do on Lake Superior during the fall season!
- Visiting
- Walking Down the Shoreline
- Photography
- Skipping Rocks
- People Watching
- Reading
- Writing/Drawing
- Meditating
- Have a Picnic
- Play Yard Games
- Draw in the Sand
- Bird Watching
When you take swimming out of the equation (unless it’s an unusually warm Fall day or you’ve got thick skin!) and you open your mind up to thinking outside the box of what a beach day can be, you may be surprised by how many fun memories you can make on the beach during Autumn!
You can experience all of the community fun and small-town likeness of Cornucopia Wisconsin during Cornucopia Day, which takes place every year on the second weekend of August!
You can make your way through the Flea Market, observe the town Parade and the ambitious 5k Race, and while you’re there, get yourself a tasty Midwestern treat like Fish on a Stick!
According to the Cornucopia Wisconsin website, all of the proceeds go to the South Shore Area Ambulance and the Cornucopia Fire Department. We love a good cause!
When one is exploring things to do near Lake Superior, you’re bound to come across a few Marinas! Walking through these Marianas can be a lovely time to gaze at the different sailboats, admire or laugh to yourself about the names of the boats, and in the case of Cornucopia WI’s Mariana, you can see some old-timey boats!
A few paces away from the Mariana, there are a few vintage boats on display. Where you can imagine what it was like to be a fisherman back in the day or what it would have been like to travel from far away into Cornucopia WI. There’s a lot of history to be learned and embraced by reading the plaques near the Mariana and by the pier.
Any adventure is an adventure to be grateful for, especially when that adventure is on Lake Superior! But I do hope you enjoyed reading about the coziness of curating a Quanit Adventure for yourself and your journey pals, and that it inspires you to give this style of adventure a whirl.
If you liked this peek into Cornucopia Wisconsin, please check out our other fun things to do near Lake Superior and all of the amazing local businesses, artists, authors, and more that there are to explore while you’re on Lake Superior!
