What's more fun than a fair!?!? Spend a night (or two or three) at the Otter Creek Inn and then travel ten minutes north for the Northern Wisconsin State Fair July 10 - 14, 2013. Carnival rides, free grandstand entertainment, over 10,000 animal and competitive exhibits and fair food!  Big name...

Unique gems and minerals, flourescent minerals and rock collections on display, plus jewelery, agates, geodes, fossils, petrified wood, rock art, carvings and crystals. 9 AM - 5 PM April 20 (9 AM - 5 PM) and April 21 (10 AM - 4 PM)  2013. Eau Claire County Expo Center, 715-456-0664,...

Mudchug is an extreme 5K race through miliatry grade obstacles and muddy terrain. Run, climb, and swim your way against the clock to the finish line. Register at www.mudchug.com Doc's Bunkhouse, Eau Claire, WI.

Enjoy the country music of Wynonna? She's performing at the Eau Claire Regional Arts Center & State Theatre on April 26 in Eau Claire, WI. Tickets $49 and $59. 715-832-2787, www.eauclairearts.com

Take a stroll in downtown Eau Claire and view the "Sculpture Tour Eau Claire". A free event, the tour will run through Mary 31, 2013. Vote for your favorite! This is an exhibit of 31 sculptures in a wide array of subjects and materials on continual exhibit until May 31. Brochures are...

Don't forget - this is the time of year to see all the Victorian type Christmas decorations during your stay at the Otter Creek Inn.  Every guest room has its' own Christmas tree. There are nine Christmas trees throughout the Inn - each uniquely decorated. View the many decorations handmade by...

Noon - 5 PM Saturday December 1, 2012. Come downtown for Christmastime fun. Sleigh rides, hot cocoa, window displays at local businesses and Christmas crafts. Free admission. 212 S. Barstow St, Eau Cliare 715-839-4914

Explore Wisconsin Wine Country at River Bend Vineyard & Winery. Just in time for Thanksgiving and Christmas - a Cranberry Blush. Tasting Room Open thru December 23rd. Open Wed - Saturday 11 AM until 7 PM and Sunday Noon until 5 PM. 715-720-9463 or visit www.riverbendvineyard.com

1 - 6 PM. Tour six beautifully decorated Eau Claire area homes (including the Otter Creek Inn!) where Chippewa Valley Symphony Orchestra musicians will be performing. This event benefits the Orchestra. Call 715-832-6366 Tickets $20.00 and are available at Festival Foods, Avalon Floral, Gloria...

This interactive show brings the world's best known suspects to life and invites the audience to help solve the mystery. Audience members receive game cards to play along. Each show will be different. Tickets $20 adults. The Oxford, 1814 Oxford Avenue, Eau Claire, WI 715-839-8877

The Thundermen celebrate 50 years of playing good old rock-n-roll in the Eau Claire area. Meet at the Moose Lodge at 3606 Curvue Road, Eau Claire for a night of fun and dancing. Free!

11 am - 3 PM - Free - Meet at the Phoenix Park pavilion at 11 AM for a family friendly bike ride (11 miles), highlighting Eau Claire's wonderful trail systems. The ride will end at The Livery for special deals on New Belgium Brewery beer with proceeds going to benefit the Wisconsin Bike Fed; food...

WHYS Radio's 5th Annual Bludgrass Festival, Saturday August 25, 2012 Noon - 9 PM. 10 bluegrass bands unite for this family friendly music event celebrating Eau Claire's community radio WHYS 96.3FM. Stoop Singers, The East Hill Bluegrass Band, The Roe Family Singers, U.K.E., & Mother Banjo...

9pm Sat. Aug. 18, Night Sky Public Observing. The Chippewa Valley Astronomical Society (CVAS) hosts public observing at Hobbs Observatory in the Beaver Creek Reserve every clear Saturday through October. Observing starts approximately one hour after sunset. Beaver Creek Reserve, Augusta, WI.

10am Sat. Aug. 11 US Open Chainsaw Sculpture Championship. The top chainsaw artists from around the world will be competing for prizes as they turn simple logs into stunning works of art. Family activities will be available throughout the weekend.

9am-6pm Sat. Aug. 11, 2012 Chippewa Valley Sustainable Future Festival: Enough for All Forever = Come learn about how to live sustainably, why sustainability is important, and how you can decrease your environmental footprint. "Enough for all forever", at the Eau Claire County Expo...

Imagine a small park overtaken by a day-long firestorm of creativity and positive community energy, culminating in yards and yards of sidewalk space displaying amazing chalk artwork. An all day event in Wilson Park downtown Eau Claire. Free Admission. August 4, 2012.

Summer Fest is a community festival held in Downtown Eau Claire, with several ancillary events under the Summer Fest umbrella. Barstow is filled with classic cars, a strongman competition, children's activities, live music, stage performances, food vendors and downtown merchants. 10 AM - 10 PM....

Direct from Nashville, Sarah Lou Richards returns to the patio at Autumn Harvest Winery on Saturday July 28 from 4 - 7 PM. Free to 21+. Sarah is a singer/song writer originally from Wisconsin now living in Nashville. www.autumnharvestwinery.com

What's more down home than a county fair? The Dunn County Fair starts 07/25/12 and runs through 07/29/12. A carnival, fair food, Truck and Tractor pull, two stages, 4-H projects and animals. Be part of it.

Pick your favorite!  July 19 - 22 the Rock Fest is being held in Cadott, WI and July 19 - 21 County Jam is being held in Eau Claire, WI: two of the largest musical festivals in Wisconsin. Rock Festers will be able to hear Shindwon, Godsmack, Iron Maiden and Def Leppard; while Country Jammers...

Mid-Winter "Do Not Disturb" Special Reserve Two Consecutive Evenings & Get 50% off the Second Night! Valid for a stay between now and February 29th  Here's the required details to qualify for the special: *Must be two consecutive nights...

It's that time of year - the Christmas decorations are down, the holidays have passed, and winter looms ahead.  There aren't too many official holidays on the calendar at this time of year - so you need to create your own reason for a little break from work and worry!  When it's cold out...

'Tis the Season!  The Christmas Decorations are in place at the Otter Creek Inn and will remain in place until about the middle of January 2012.  We get several calls each year asking when the decorations will be in place and when they will be taken down. There are NINE Christmas trees...

Beaver Creek Reserve (only a 15 minute drive from the Otter Creek Inn) will be conducting a two-day workshop where you can make your own snowshoes! Register by Nov 11 to attend the Dec 3-4 workshop near Fall Creek, WI. The workshop will run from 9:30 am until 3:30 pm. $165  Learn more at...

It's that time of year!!  If Halloween is one of your favorite holidays, start your haunting early!  Ghouls and ghosts delight in this dark carnival of fright. Loaded with haunted houses, amusement park rides, creepy merchants of the macabre, a human freak show, haunted hayride, an...

Enjoy a setup gathering at Wilson Park from 5 - 7 PM helping people get dead. Trash your gear with dirt, blood and brains then enjoy the crawl downtown.  Many bars will have zombie-exclusive drink speicals.  Stops include: Clancy's, The Mousetrap, Pizza Plus/Bottle & Barrel, The...

Ferguson's Orchard grows most apple varieties plus pumpkins! Their Country Store is full of many varieties of bagged or bag-your-own apples, a gift shop with jellies, honey & other goodies, cold pasteurized apple cider and delicious hand-dipped caramel apples made from their own apples. Visit...

The 12th Annual Clearwater Beer Festival is taking place on Saturday September 10 from 3 - 7 PM at the Altoona Hobbs Sports Center in Altoona, WI.  The festival is located just a mile from the Otter Creek Inn.  Sample some of the 200+ craft beers, chat with the brewers, and enjoy Irish...

The 9th annual Oktoberfest will be held in Chippewa Falls, WI on September 16 - 18.  There will be lots of beer, music, beer, entertainment, beer, a sauerkraut eating contest, and did we mention beer? Admission $8 daily at the gate. www.chippewachamber.org/oktoberfest.asp

The 29th Annual Festival in the Pines will be held on Saturday August 27 (9 AM - 6 PM) and Sunday August 28 (10 AM - 5 PM) in beautiful Carson Park in Eau Claire, Wisconsin - just three miles from the Otter Creek Inn! The Festival in the Pines has traditionally been a place to gather with friends...

Sometimes it's great just to have a slow-paced day ambling through a park.  But imagine if the sidewalk in that park becomes the canvas for chalk art!  That's exactly what is happening on Saturday August 6 at Wilson Park in downtown Eau Claire, WI.  As VolumeOne reports "a...

The Northern Wisconsin State Fair is being held in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin on July 13 through July 17, 2011.  The fair is located just 12 miles north of the Otter Creek Inn and a great way to spend a lazy summer afternoon or evening.  All your fair favorites are to be found - including...