On Sept. 11 we crossed the Mississippi River at La Crosse and arrived back in the east AKA Wisconsin. The Mississippi here has a lot of wide swampy parts beside the main channel.
We spent some time exploring downtown La Crosse. The older buildings have great paint jobs, highlighting the decorative elements. We found a cozy restaurant for lunch.
We then continued on to Token Creek County Park, just outside Madison to spend the night. The park was swarming with monarch butterflies.
The next day we met friends Garvesh and Trisha for lunch. Lots of recent changes in their lives: new baby, new house and tenure for Garvesh. It is all very exciting and we were glad to catch up with Garvesh after a 2-year hiatus and meet Trisha.
After lunch we meandered around downtown Madison and then went to the U. Wisconsin campus.
Downtown Madison is squeezed between 2 lakes. The campus borders Lake Mendota and the student center, which has a deck over the lake, rents kayaks and sailboats. It is at the tail of the arrow on the map.
Madison is not exactly a university town, since it is also the state capitol. But near the campus, it resembles other university towns – lots of pubs and restaurants and lots of references to the university mascot. As you enter campus there seems to be a permanent “food truck rodeo” which is a great idea that adds diversity to the culinary offerings of the campus.
view of HUB and lake 
There is a lovely hiking trail that goes through the campus and along the lake. We planned to hike from the student center to Picnic Point (the head of the arrow). However, it is a much longer walk than it looks on the map. We were still quite far from the point when we decided to head back into town and see the State Capitol.
What can I say: nice building; lovely grounds. it seems like the same architect designed every state capitol.