Happenings in Bluff Country

Explore La Crosse is excited to announce the 51st Wisconsin State High School Ski & Snowboard Championships on the beautiful slopes of Mt. La Crosse in La Crosse this weekend, February 14 – 16, 2026.

This second-to-none event is entering its 33rd consecutive year in La Crosse with over 400 of Wisconsin’s top high school athletes featured in ski & snowboard racing, making this the largest high school race in the United States! Athletes, teams, friends, and family attending this event will bring the total attendance to over 2,500* for the three-day championship event.

Although in-person attendance seems impressive, the fun isn’t just staying local. The live webcast and archived video of races takes this championship to the world-class level. Over 15,650 views of last year’s championships have been accrued by fans from all over the world! The live webcast and strong attendance showcases the area and is ideal for local businesses to receive tremendous foot traffic. To view the live streaming of the State Championships and for more information,  click here.

*Please expect an influx of skiers, snowboarders, a

By Charlene Corson Selbee

Next time you are traveling through Chatfield, Minn., include time in your itinerary to get to know the gateway to Bluff Country or plan your next Bluff Country outing to Chatfield.

Chatfield is located minutes south of Rochester, nestled along the Root River on US Highway 52 in the heart of the “Chosen Valley.”  Home to over 3,000 people and the only stoplight in the county, heck, it’s the only stoplight on 52 from the Twin Cities to Iowa. The town will lure you in with its small-town charm.

Parks and Tupers Goose

Enjoy over 64 acres dedicated to parkland, including a variety of parks.  From Mill Creek with fishing, volleyball, and walking trails to Groen Park that offers a picnic shelter and play equipment, to the city park with large shade trees, picnic tables, restrooms, and play equipment, there is a park for everyone to relax or play in.

Hillside Nursery

On your way into or out of Chatfield, or stop twice at Hillside Nursery, just three miles north of Chatfield, which began as a dream in 1998 for Gerry and Sandy Gathje has grown into a picturesque garden center with an amazing atmosphere filled with fun and unexpected treasures. Beginning the first week in May, the Little Farm Petting Zoo is open for snuggling with bunnies and kittens or playing with the farm animals. It is a garden center, so don’t forget to purchase a selection of healthy plants for your flower beds and your vegetable garden. Don’t forget to check out the garden shop for a wide selection of garden art and garden tools. They also offer special events and workshops throughout the spring, summer, and fall including the annual open house, Kids Day, Mother’s Day Celebration, Music on the Farm, and Plant a Vegetable Patch.

Chosen Valley Golf Club

Are you looking for a challenging golf course? Look no further than the 9-hole golf course nestled in the “Chosen Valley” of Southeastern Minnesota.  The course is open to the public and conveniently located along US Highway 52, the CVGC offers scenic views and rolling terrain, making for challenging play at a reasonable price for golfers of every skill level. The course plays 2,933 yards from the deepest tees for a par of 35.

Chatfield Growers and Makers Market

Shop local with a visit to the Chatfield Area Growers & Makers Market. The market is open May through October on Thursdays from 3 – 6 p.m. The market is located on Fourth Street between the City Park and the Chatfield Center for the Arts. Visitors will find a wide selection of locally grown produce, freshly baked goods and bread, canned goods, pork and beef products, homemade soaps and lotions, bracelets, and much more.

Kappers’ Big Red Barn

This may be your favorite stop thanks to the variety of flavors of ice cream at Kappers’ Big Red Barn. The family-run micro-dairy, tucked into a picturesque valley in Chatfield, has been in operation since 2004.  In addition to the ice cream, Grade A milk is produced, processed, and packaged in glass half-gallon bottles on the Farm. Don’t forget to pick up a package of squeaky cheese curds.

Chatfield Center for the Arts

The Chatfield Center for the Arts (CCA) is a vibrant cultural hub located in Chatfield, Minnesota.  It serves as a community gathering place that celebrates the arts through a diverse range of performances, exhibitions and educational programs.  Housed in a beautifully restored building, the center offers welcoming space for artists and audiences alike, fostering creativity and engagement. Originally built in 1916 to serve as an institution of learning for the children of Chatfield, the historic property now houses programming in the visual and performing arts to inspire and connect future generations. The Center is comprised of the fully renovated 658-seat potter auditorium and an adjoining 2-story former school that features convertible performance spaces, multipurpose rooms, and visual art studios in the making.

Chatfield OHV Trail

Chatfield OHV Trail located in southeastern Minnesota, this 19-mile trail was developed by a group of neighbors with a passion for ATVs. The trail is entirely on private land and leads riders through backdrops of field, forest, pasture and woods. Please respect the private landowners and stay on the marked trails.

Oakenwald Terrace Bed & Breakfast

Are you planning to stay overnight?  This pristine 1897 home has thrilled those who have toured it for many years. The three-story, twenty-one-room Victorian mansion encompasses over 10,000 square feet and is overflowing with antiques and collectibles. Oakenwald is a museum of sorts, so allow time to explore and feast your eyes on the wonderful woodwork and evident craftsmanship. Oakenwald Terrace is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

All six suites are large, comfortable and have their own private bath.

Chatfield Music Lending Library and the Chatfield Brass Band

Founded by Jim Perkins in 1969, the Chatfield Brass Band has maintained a rich tradition of community concerts, with members ranging in age from 16 to 85, hailing from 15 communities throughout SE Minnesota.  The band performs in an eight-week “Music in the Park” summer concert series in the Chatfield Band Shell, centrally located in the city park.  The Chatfield Brass Band, Inc. also operates the Chatfield Music Lending Library, a cataloged collection of band, orchestra, and sheet music that they lend to the public.  The music lending library gives bands a unique opportunity to perform classic band literature that may be out of print and unavailable elsewhere.

Lost Creek Hiking Trail

Do you need to stretch your legs? The Lost Creek Hiking Trail is a 10.7-mile out-and-back trail that offers a moderately challenging hiking experience. The trail offers a well-maintained and well-marked path, suitable for both hiking or running.  You will see a variety of landscapes, including farmland, forests, prairies, and stream crossings- providing a scenic hiking experience.

Visit Vesterheim, the National Norwegian-American Museum and Folk Art School, on Free Second Saturday, February 14, for free museum admission and crafts for the whole family. Hearts and other symbols abound on folk art in Vesterheim’s collection. The museum is open from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. to explore and discover hearts on objects throughout the galleries, and visitors can make patterned paper Valentines using texture boards and crayons.

Stop by to see the new exhibit, “Red River Girl: From Telemark to the Buffalo,” which explores the stories of the Thortvedt family, who immigrated from Fyresdal, Telemark, to Glyndon, Minnesota. The exhibit is illustrated with drawings, paintings, photographs, letters, and journals that Levi Thortvedt and his daughter Orabel created to record their community’s history.

Vesterheim offers free admission and family activities every month on Free Second Saturdays, supported in part by a generous gift to the Vesterheim Annual Fund from Bill and Kathi Wild and The Depot Outlet. Vesterheim, the National Norwegian-American Museum and Folk Art School, welcomes people of all ages and backgrounds to engage in the conversation of the American immigrant journey through the lens of the Norwegian-American experience. Vesterheim offers innovative and interactive exhibits, classes, and programs, both at the dynamic campus and park in scenic Decorah, Iowa, and online at vesterheim.org and Vesterheim social media. For more information on exhibits, classes, programs, tours, membership opportunities, and ways to donate and volunteer, connect at vesterheim.org, 563-382-9681, and Vesterheim, 520 W. Water St., P.O. Box 379, Decorah, IA, 52101-0379.

(Lanesboro, Minn.) The Commonweal Theatre Company announces its 37^th season with a set of five marvelous plays: Lauren Gunderson’s ode to friendship The Half-Life of Marie Curie; Paul Slade Smith’s screwball comedy The Angel Next Door; Josh Tobiessen’s small-town comedy Lone Star Spirits; William Shakespeare’s legendary classic King Lear; and Mark Shanahan’s merry and mysterious mash-up A Sherlock Carol.

Season passes and single tickets are on sale at www.CommonwealTheatre.org or by calling the box office (800) 657-7025. All performances are at the Commonweal Theatre, 208 Parkway Ave N., in downtown Lanesboro, MN.

The first play of the season is Lauren Gunderson’s captivating The Half-Life of Marie Curie. Chemist and physicist Marie Curie is about to accept a second Nobel prize for her pioneering work in radioactivity when a public scandal forces her to seek refuge. She retreats to the seaside home of engineer and suffragist Hertha Ayrton. There, the two friends explore what it means to be mothers, wives, scientists, and thought leaders in a changing world on the verge of war. With her sharp wit, crackling dialogue, and deep empathy, playwright Lauren Gunderson (Silent Sky and Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley) illuminates the indomitable power of friendship between two extraordinary women. Jaclyn June Johnson will direct fellow company members Laurie Roberts (Marie Curie) and Stela Burdt (Hertha Ayrton). This ode to friendship will run from April 5 through July 5.

Next up is the glamorous and goofy comedy The Angel Next Door by Paul Slade Smith (who wrote last season’s smash-hit political comedy The Outsider). Audiences will be transported to an opulent Newport mansion in 1948, where playwrights, actors, and a star-struck novelist gather to work on their next Broadway hit. (Never mind the housekeeper who wants them gone.) “The Angel Next Door is a glittering, effervescent hit romantic comedy. It’s an elegant, sweet-dry glass of champagne, bubbling over with non-stop laughs, merriment, glamor, and high-spirited hijinks. It’s hard to think of more fun you could have at the theatre right now, or really, more fun anywhere” (BroadwayWorld). Charlie Oates (professor Emeritus University of California, San Diego) will direct Commonweal company members Hal Cropp, Tim Sailer, and Adrienne Sweeney, along with some beloved guest artists from the region. The fizzy screwball comedy runs from May 17 through September 6.

The third offering of the 2025 season is Josh Tobiessen’s small-town comedy Lone Star Spirits. A trip home gets wildly out of hand when Marley introduces her fiancé to her estranged father. Hoping for a quick visit, she ends up stranded in a liquor store with her football-hero ex, a single mom desperate for a girls’ night out, and the ghost of a bear-wrestling pioneer who founded their tiny Texas town. This fast-paced comedy with hairpin turns takes a sympathetic look at those who stay and those who leave their hometowns—and the ghosts that haunt folks either way. “A very fine coming-home story, reconciliation story and small-town-hero story—another spunky, funny work by Josh Tobiessen” (The New York Times). Adrienne Sweeney will direct fellow company members Lizzy Andretta, Cody Beyer, Alex Schlesinger, and Jeremy van Meter. The spirited fun runs from July 12 through October 25.

Next, the Commonweal will embark on a legendary classic by William Shakespeare: King Lear. As age overtakes Lear, he divides his kingdom amongst his daughters. Misjudging their loyalty, he finds himself stripped of all that defined him. Now this once-revered king is trapped in an emotional hurricane ravaging his head, home, and heart. Amanda Rafuse has adapted the script and returns to direct (recent Commonweal credits include Ugly Lies the Bone and Bernhardt/Hamlet). Producing Artistic Director Hal Cropp will play Lear, founding company member Eric Bunge will play Gloucester, and a host of company members will join them. The epic drama plays from September 13 through November 2.

Finally, the holiday offering to round out the 2025 season will be Mark Shanahan’s delightful caper: A Sherlock Carol. The worlds of Charles Dickens and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle collide in the ultimate Christmas crossover. When a fully grown and not-so-Tiny Tim asks Sherlock Holmes to investigate the peculiar death of Ebenezer Scrooge, the Great Detective must use his tools of deduction to crack the case. But it’s a dark and gloomy Christmas Eve, and the holiday is haunted by the spirits of the past, present, and future. Michael Bigelow Dixon (Alice in Winter Wonderland, Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure, and On the Verge) returns to direct, with Jeremy van Meter playing the Scrooge-like Sherlock. The merry and mysterious mash-up runs from November 8 through December 21.

COUNTY FREE NIGHTS
THE HALF-LIFE OF MARIE CURIE – Thursday, April 10
THE ANGEL NEXT DOOR – Thursday, May 22
LONE STAR SPIRITS – Thursday, July 17
KING LEAR – Thursday, September 18
A SHERLOCK CAROL – Thursday, November 13

All County Free Night performances begin at 7:30 pm. While admission is free of charge to residents and employees of Fillmore and Houston Counties, seating is limited and reservations are strongly recommended to be made at least two weeks in advance. There is a limit of four tickets per household. To claim tickets, call the box office: (800) 657-7025.

County Free Nights at the Commonweal Theatre are made possible with support from Houston Dental Clinic, POET, Merchants Bank Lanesboro, and Nethercut Schieber PLLP

“PAY WHAT YOU CAN” PERFORMANCES

Additionally, the Commonweal offers “Pay What You Can” performances on the following dates: 

THE HALF-LIFE OF MARIE CURIE – Friday, April 18
THE ANGEL NEXT DOOR – Thursday, May 29
LONE STAR SPIRITS – Thursday, July 24
KING LEAR – Thursday, September 25
A SHERLOCK CAROL – Thursday, November 20

For these performances, anyone may choose to pay any amount for their tickets. There are no county restrictions. Single adult tickets are normally $38. The “Pay What You Can” program has been supported by the Mayo Clinic Community Foundation.

For more information about the 2025 season, visit www.CommonwealTheatre.org. To check availability and to reserve tickets, contact the box office at (800) 657-7025.

ABOUT THE COMMONWEAL THEATRE COMPANY

Since 1989, the professional artists of the Commonweal have brought to life soulful stories told with honesty and creativity. Located in the heart of southeast Minnesota’s bluff country, Lanesboro (pop. 720) is home to the company’s theatre in its historic downtown. Under the leadership of producing artistic director Hal Cropp, the company boasts a distinctive organizational model with resident ensemble members (who have come from all over the country to make their home in the area) fulfilling the day-to-day artistic and operational needs of the company as artist/administrators.

For more information, visit www.commonwealtheatre.org.

DECORAH, Iowa — The schedule of classes through September 2025 at Vesterheim at Folk Art School has been released and registration is open at vesterheim.org/folk-art-school! Each year, Vesterheim Folk Art School offers a wide variety of classes and programs for all ages, both in person and online, including forging, Norwegian language, family and afterschool programs, fiber arts, rosemaling, jewelry making, woodworking, knifemaking, cooking, and much more!

A highlight this summer will be classes taught by Norwegian weaving instructor Marta Kløve Juuhl from Indre Arna, a village near Bergen. She will teach “Åkle Weaving on a Warp-Weighted Loom” from July 19-23. This technique creates beautiful textiles with banded designs, traditional to western Norway. Then from July 28-August 1, she will teach “Varafell Weaving on a Warp-Weighted Loom,” a traditional Viking-age technique.

Juuhl has 27 years of experience teaching weaving and art, and she was a textile curator at Osterøy Museum for 10 years. She has maintained her own weaving studio since 1989 with notable commissions throughout Norway. She has written two textile books and her articles have been featured in several publications.

With the completion of the new Vesterheim Folk Art School forging studio at 418 W. Water St., the year 2025 begins an exciting new chapter in metalworking and forging education in Decorah. More information will be shared soon about a dedication event, but class registration is open now. Classes include “Forging Fundamentals,” “Forged Tool Making,” “Laminated Knife Blades,” “Viking-Style Padlock,” and more! There will even be an afterschool Forging Klubb for youth ages 15-18.

Andrew Ellingsen, Director of Folk Art Education at Vesterheim, said, “We are excited to see the traditional Scandinavian handcrafts of metalworking and forging move into their new home – their own safe studio! We can’t wait to welcome beginner and experienced metalworkers and share these historic handcrafts.”

Another 2025 highlight for Vesterheim Folk Art School is the launch of a new model for folk art instruction – on-demand classes, which include a kit of materials in the mail and online access to a set of video tutorials taught by one of Vesterheim’s master instructors.

Ellingsen said, “Designed to be classes to take anywhere at any time, we hope that the addition of on-demand classes can make Vesterheim’s programming available to folks who have had schedule conflicts in the past.” The first two on-demand classes are “Norwegian Language for Travelers” with Dr. Maren Anderson Johnson, and “First Cuts: Scandinavian Flat-Plane Figure Carving” with Vesterheim Gold Medalist Charles Banks.

“We have already filmed additional courses and are excited about the possibilities this new model offers!” Ellingsen added. On-demand classes at Vesterheim are supported in part by the Harlan and Connie Sanderson Endowment.

Vesterheim Folk Art School offers several ways to provide financial access for all. Vesterheim offers a 60% discount for in-person class tuition on a space-available standby basis to any legal year-round resident living within 50 miles of Vesterheim. There are also need-based scholarships supported by gifts to Vesterheim’s annual fund. Find information at vesterheim.org/folk-art-school.

Vesterheim, the National Norwegian-American Museum and Folk Art School, welcomes people of all ages and backgrounds to engage in the conversation of the American immigrant journey through the lens of the Norwegian-American experience, and to participate in the continual evolution of traditional folk art as it meets new influences. Vesterheim offers innovative and interactive exhibits, classes, and programs, both at the dynamic campus and park in scenic Decorah, Iowa, and online at vesterheim.org and Vesterheim social media. For more information on exhibits, classes, programs, tours, membership opportunities, and ways to donate and volunteer, connect at vesterheim.org, (563) 382-9681, and Vesterheim, 502 W. Water St., P.O. Box 379, Decorah, IA, 52101-0379.

The Nordic Fest Board of Directors is excited to announce the 2025 Nordic Fest theme — Commemorating Crossings 1825-2025.

With this year’s theme, Nordic Fest joins international, national, and local organizations, including Vesterheim – the National Norwegian-American Museum and Folk Art School, in commemorating the 200th Anniversary of Norwegian Emigration in 2025.

On July 4, 1825, a group of 52 Norwegians set sail from Stavanger, Norway on the sloop ship Restauration to make the first organized migration from Norway to North America. Since the Restauration was a type of vessel called a sloop, the immigrants onboard became known as “Sloopers.” More than 800,000 Norwegians have followed since then, in search of new opportunities. In North America today, nearly five million people claim Norwegian ancestry. The Nordic Fest Board looks forward to commemorating the 200th anniversary and celebrating the strong ties that continue between Norway and North America.

Nordic Fest Board President Cole Steffen shares, “Norwegian heritage is strong in the Decorah community and we are excited to be able to commemorate the 200th anniversary of that first crossing, and the crossings that followed, at this year’s Nordic Fest. We look forward to seeing local businesses, organizations, and groups incorporate this special theme into Nordic Fest offerings and beyond.”

Businesses, organizations, and groups are encouraged to incorporate the 2025 theme into food specials, window displays, activity offerings, and parade float entries at this year’s festival in July.

Nordic Fest is an annual three-day summer festival held in Decorah, Iowa that celebrates community and the area’s Scandinavian heritage. The 58th annual Nordic Fest will take place July 24-26, 2025. Organized by a board of volunteers, Nordic Fest offers food, activities and entertainment for the whole family. Learn more and get involved at nordicfest.com.