The Wonewoc Spiritualist Camp traces its history to 1874 and annually attracts people seeking answers, serenity and peace. This photo shows a church gathering in 1963./PHOTO courtesy of Western Wisconsin Camp Association

Who knew Wisconsin was so in tune with the spirits of the dead?

Spring Green author Sara Rath dug into Wisconsin’s long history with spiritualists for her latest novel, “Night Sisters.’’

The book opens and closes at fictional Wocanaga Spiritualist Camp, which Rath says is modeled on a real Western Wisconsin camp. The camp, known to locals as “Spook Hill,’’ is on a steep bluff high above Wonewoc in Juneau County and has been a gathering place for mediums and those who hope to communicate with the dead for more than a century.

On the outside, the Pioneer Store looks much like the original, destroyed by an explosion in 2006./PHOTO by Susan Lampert Smith

ELLISON BAY -- Ah, we’re such tourists.

We go away for a year, or a decade, and we expect nothing about our favorite place should change.

I want the Wampum Shop in Mercer to still have the same rubber tomahawk my parents wouldn’t buy for me when I was a kid. (A decision that likely saved my brother’s scalp).

I expect whitefish livers on the menu at Greunke’s in Bayfield. (Even though I’d never order them.)

Dustin Roosa of Mount Horeb models the UCLA “B” sweatshirt, a great find at the Appleton Jansport outlet.

APPLETON – Think you’re cool because your kid goes to the big UW?

Well, I’m a “Yale mom,” not to mention a Stanford booster.

And my collegiate pride cost far, far less than the tuition you’re paying.

Yes, it’s time for back to school, which means our annual pilgrimage to find slightly wacky collegiate wear at the Jansport Outlet Store, located on the company grounds a few miles west of the Fox River Mall in Appleton.

While people elsewhere might mix an old fashioned with whiskey, every good Wisconsinite knows it’s really made with brandy./PHOTO by Brent Nicastro

MADISON – Doug Griffin can’t recall his first brandy old fashioned.

“No. No, I guess I can’t,’’ he said. “I have enjoyed them very much over the years.”

He won’t forget the 100,000th. Not his personal 100 grand of brandy, mind you. No this was the 100,000th served by the namesake restaurant, The Old Fashioned, which opened in 2005 on the East Side of Madison’s Capitol Square.

Tourists often stop along the knobs on Highway 42, capturing photos of the road as it winds through the beech and maple trees./PHOTO by Neil Stechschulte

NORTHPORT – In a state known for its paved and curvy rural roads, it might be dicey to pick one stretch as the curviest road in Wisconsin.

After all, motorcyclists and sports car hobbyists from all over the flatter parts of the Midwest flock to Wisconsin for its scenic rural drives.

For the fact we’re not completely flat, like much of Illinois, you can thank the glaciers that either missed areas – the hilly Coulee Country near La Crosse comes to mind – or shaped it into eccentric gum drop mounds and deep kettles, like those found in the Kettle Moraine of southeastern Wisconsin.

Do you have an idea about an interesting slice of life in Wisconsin?

Susan Lampert Smith would love to hear from you for ideas about unique places to visit, great people to interview or other topics or things of interest to Wisconsin Natives, whether living at home or abroad.

E-mail Susan Lampert Smith at susan@wisconsinnative.com.

Please keep in mind that WisconsinNative.com is a new web site, so check back often for new columns from Susan -- and explore the other feature stories, photo galleries and blogs on our site