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🗺️ Farm Day Trips guide
Things to Do Near the Lavender Farm of Lake Pepin & Stockholm, Wisconsin
Lavender Bluff Farm near Stockholm usually peaks the second weekend of July, and Pepin's Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum is open May through October.
8 places · updated October 17, 2026
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Updated October 17
🪻 In season now
Lavender Bluff Farm · Maiden Rock Cidery & Orchard · AtoZ Produce and Bakery · The Stone Barn
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Lake Pepin is the broad, lake-like stretch of the Mississippi between Wisconsin and Minnesota, lined with tall bluffs on both shores. On the Wisconsin side, Highway 35, the Great River Road, links a string of small river towns. Stockholm, founded by Swedish settlers, has fewer than 80 residents, a stone pier on the lake, and a cluster of shops and a pie bakery. Pepin, six miles downriver, is where Laura Ingalls Wilder was born, and Nelson and Wabasha sit at the lake's south end.
Lavender Bluff Farm is just outside Stockholm on Highway 35, with a farm shop, kombucha bar, picnic lunches and summer farm tours. Its earliest plants flower in late June and the bloom is usually at full force around the second weekend of July, when a $15 farm pass covers U-pick. After lavender season, the orchards on the bluffs take over with apple picking into fall, and the bluffs along the lake turn color in October.
The lavender farms
- Lavender Bluff FarmLavender farm · Stockholm
Late June, peaking around the second weekend of July
Open Friday-Sunday 10 AM-4 PM; $15 farm pass (bought ahead) for u-pick in bloom season; owner-led tours Saturdays and Sundays July-October.
Best time to visit
May is warbler month at Frontenac State Park across the lake, and May 1 opens the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum in Pepin for the season (daily through October 31). Lavender Bluff Farm's yoga mornings run on select Saturdays June through September. The farm's earliest lavender blooms in late June and is usually in full force around the second weekend of July, the best time for U-pick. From July through October the farm adds Saturday and Sunday tours and Friday high tea. Apple picking at Maiden Rock Cidery & Orchard starts in late summer and runs into fall, when the bluffs color up along Highway 35. Winter is for bald eagles: the National Eagle Center in Wabasha is open daily year-round, and Hok-Si-La's day-use park stays open all year.
Places to see nearby parks, trails, beaches and landmarks
- Stockholm Village Park🏞️ Park · Stockholm · about 1 mi, 3 min drive
The village's park on the Lake Pepin shore, with a 700-foot stone pier reaching into the Mississippi. A short walk from the shops and bakery.
- Stockholm Institute🏛️ Museum · Stockholm · about 1 mi, 3 min drive
A volunteer-run museum of Stockholm's Swedish settler history on Spring Street, with family research files and a traditional Swedish pole fence, the gardesgard.
- Maiden Rock Bluff State Natural Area🌲 Preserve · Stockholm · about 3 mi, 8 min drive
A 263-acre preserve on a 400-foot bluff that runs nearly a mile above Lake Pepin; raptors, including bald and golden eagles, use the cliff. Reach it via County J, County E and Long Lane north of Stockholm.
free
- Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum🏛️ Museum · Pepin · about 6 mi, 10 min drive
A self-guided museum on Third Street in Pepin about the author of the Little House books, who was born nearby in 1867.
May 1–October 31, daily 10 a.m.–5 p.m.; last tour 4:30 p.m.
- Little House Wayside🏛️ Historic site · Pepin · about 9 mi, 15 min drive
A replica of the Little House in the Big Woods cabin on three acres at the site of Laura's birth, about seven miles northwest of Pepin on County Road CC. Picnic tables, no running water.
Open year-round; best kept up in the warm months
- National Eagle Center🏛️ Museum · Wabasha, MN · about 19 mi, 30 min drive
Meet the center's resident ambassador eagles up close and catch a daily program, just across the river from Nelson.
Daily 10 a.m.–4 p.m.
- Hok-Si-La Park🏞️ Park · Lake City, MN · about 31 mi, 45 min drive
A 252-acre city park on the Minnesota shore of Lake Pepin, a mile north of Lake City, with an unguarded swimming beach and hiking trails.
Day use year-round; camping May to mid-October
- Frontenac State Park🌳 State park · Frontenac, MN · about 32 mi, 45 min drive
Bluff-top Minnesota park with the highest bird count of any state park in the state, more than 260 species; in May, birders can tally 20 or more warbler species in a day. A trail leads through oak and maple woods to the In-Yan-Teopa lookout over the lake.
Where to stop: farms, food and stays
- Maiden Rock Cidery & OrchardCidery (21+) · Stockholm
A bluff-top orchard above Lake Pepin with 30-plus apple varieties to pick and a tasting room pouring small-batch ciders (21+ to taste).
- Stockholm Pie & General StoreBakery · Stockholm
The village's well-known pie shop for sweet and savory pies and a sit-down lunch; order whole pies ahead.
- Harbor View CafeRestaurant · Pepin
A scratch-kitchen restaurant by the Pepin marina since 1980, open Thursday through Sunday; first come, first served.
- Villa Bellezza WineryWinery or vineyard (21+) · Pepin
A Mediterranean-style winery on the Great River Road with an Italian restaurant and a piazza for dinner after a day on the lake.
- AtoZ Produce and BakeryVegetable farm · Stockholm
Tuesday-night pizza on the farm in season, topped with its own produce; bring a blanket and pack out your trash.
- The Stone BarnFamily fun farm · Nelson
Wood-fired pizza around an old stone barn near Nelson, with hiking trails and goats.
- Nelson Cheese FactoryFarm market · Nelson
A former cheese factory selling cheese, meats and picnic supplies, with sandwiches and ice cream on the patio.
A one-day plan
- 10:00 AMLavender Bluff Farm
Cut a U-pick bouquet with a farm pass bought ahead, then browse the farm store and kombucha bar; about 1 hour 15 minutes (shop open Fri–Sun 10–4).
- 11:30 AMMaiden Rock Bluff State Natural Area · about 8 min drive
Walk out to the bluff top for the view down Lake Pepin; about 1 hour.
- 12:45 PMStockholm Pie & General Store · about 8 min drive
Lunch and a slice of pie in the village; about 45 minutes.
- 1:40 PMStockholm Village Park · about 3 min drive
Walk the stone pier out into the lake; about 20 minutes.
- 2:15 PMLaura Ingalls Wilder Museum · about 10 min drive
Self-guided tour in Pepin; about 45 minutes.
- 3:15 PMLittle House Wayside · about 15 min drive
See the replica cabin at Laura's birthplace in the hills; about 30 minutes.
- 4:15 PMMaiden Rock Cidery & Orchard · about 20 min drive
In late summer and fall, pick apples and pick up jam or apple salsa (closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays); about 45 minutes.
- 5:30 PMVilla Bellezza Winery · about 15 min drive
Dinner on the piazza in Pepin; plan a designated driver if you taste.
Tips
- Buy Lavender Bluff's $15 farm pass before you go if you want to U-pick; the farm store alone (Fri–Sun 10–4) needs no pass.
- Dogs are not allowed at Lavender Bluff Farm; only registered service animals.
- Lavender can't be cut in the rain or before it blooms, so check the farm's social pages for bloom updates before a July trip.
- To reach the Minnesota side, cross at Wabasha–Nelson or Red Wing; there is no bridge in the middle of the lake. The BNSF crossing on Highway 25 in Nelson is closed October 26–30, 2026.
- Maiden Rock Bluff has no fee and no developed facilities, and the DNR notes natural-area lots are generally not plowed in winter; wear sturdy shoes.
Checked in October 2026 against official park, tourism and business websites. How we check listings
Questions
When does the lavender bloom at Lavender Bluff Farm?
The earliest plants usually begin flowering in late June, and the bloom is typically in full force around the second weekend of July.
Can I pick lavender at Lavender Bluff Farm?
Yes, during bloom. A $15 farm pass bought in advance covers parking, admission, a bouquet you cut and a glass of lavender lemonade.
Are dogs allowed at Lavender Bluff Farm?
No. Pets are not allowed on the farm; registered service animals are the exception.
Is the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum open year-round?
No. It is open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from May 1 through October 31 and closed November through April. The replica cabin at the Little House Wayside can be seen year-round.
🪪 Collect a stamp at every stop
The free Lavender Passport keeps a stamp for each farm and stop you visit, in real life and in the Lavender Farm Simulator. At the farm, play Field Quest to collect plant varieties as you walk, climb the leaderboards and unlock sponsor rewards.
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