Northern Kettle Moraine/Greater Milwaukee Home > Area Travel Info > Northern Kettle Moraine/Greater Milwaukee
Let's start with the city of Milwaukee and work our way north. Milwaukee is a gem among urban landscapes. It rests on the shores of Lake Michigan and each year throws a summer-long bash kicking off with Summerfest, the world's largest outdoor musical festival, and extending into the late summer with ethnic festivals. The Milwaukee Art Museum, with its Calatrava-designed addition that looks as though it could take flight, is literally an icon for the city's vibrant arts community. Brewery tours, charter fishing, and outings to the Harley-Davidson headquarters are on the must-do list for lots of visitors.
Just outside the city, you're transported to historic towns, with artists galore, and small villages that speak to a simpler time. Further north, there's the Horicon Marsh, a birding mecca much like the everglades, and home to blue herons, egrets and nearly 300 other species of birds.
Biking, hiking and fishing are plentiful in the adjacent Kettle Moraine area, named for its unique glacial features including deep kettles, glacial hills, tumbled moraines and lakes. Visitors also come to explore prairie restoration sites, grasslands and hardwood forests. The Ice Age National Scenic Trail covers more than 30 miles, the length of the forest, with stretches ideal for moderate to serious hikers.
Cities within the Northern Kettle Moraine/Greater Milwaukee region:
