Day 1129 | Visit EC

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Eau Claire is hot right now. And, although the temperature is the toastiest it has been this year, that's not what I'm talking about. After the Eaux Claires festival last month, the city has been getting some really fantastic press. Here are the two articles I've read in just the last couple of days (along with a little excerpt from each):

A hipster scene booms in Wisconsin
The city of 67,545 is a little Madison and a little Milwaukee, with plenty of outdoor activities, from biking to kayaking, thanks to its location at the confluence of two rivers; a college-town youthfulness that manifests in bars, breweries, and cafes; a growing dining scene with a focus on local foods; and a booming arts scene, thanks to locals like Justin Vernon, of the Grammy Award-winning band Bon Iver, and Nick Meyer, founder of the arts and culture magazine Volume One and a force behind some of the area's music events and festivals.

How Eau Claire became a magnet for artsy millennials in Wisconsin
...the bigger story is how deftly this former factory town has pivoted to embrace the arts, technology and innovation — boosting tourism and attracting new, young transplants in the process.

Read the articles. I promise they're interesting. If you don't already live here, you *might* just get the itch to visit. We've got two empty bedrooms waiting for guests! In case you need a bit more convincing, I've made this list of reasons to come.

5 Reasons to visit Eau Claire

  1. It's beautiful. I hope you've seen some of my photos (see above) as evidence. I promise the river + bridge views are something off of a postcard.
  2. It's inexpensive. Think of $5 cocktails and tons of free outdoor concerts...and that's just a snippet of the cost-savings.
  3. The cool Wisconsin nights + mornings. The summer temperatures do creep up, but what makes it bearable is that the temperature drops at night. Most nights, there's a lovely cool breeze and you can actually sleep with the windows open to cool off the house. All of this is a stark contrast to our DC summers.
  4. There's a ton to do. We've only just scratched the surface on this one but the children's museum, the parks, the festivals, the farmers market, etc. We'll keep you entertained, we promise!
  5. It's where we live. That's reason enough, right?

Oh, there's one more Visit EC tie in: I had my first article posted on the Visit Eau Claire tourism site today. Check it out. Hopefully there will be lots more to share in the future. I had fun writing it.