Top 10 Things That Rock About Madison Winters

By Erin Bannen on March 8, 2012

I’m a born and raised Wisconsinite, the kind that laughs in the face of blizzards and eats fried cheese curds like it’s my job. We Wisconsinites have been waiting for the first real snow storm of the season for about 4 months now. We’ve woken up, seen two inches on the ground, and scoffed.

But today, today, my friends, it happened. It is pouring snow outside and it’s paired with that wicked wind that makes snowflakes feel like needle points. And that’s the way we like it. Why do we love it so much? Especially here at UW-Madison? Oh, let me tell you. Here are the top 10 things that rock about Madison winters.

1. Hot Apple Cider from Steep & Brew, served with a sachet of custom-made “mulling spices” and a fresh cinnamon stick.

Bascom Hill

2. Sledding on Observatory Hill, right by the Lakeshore dorms, using lunch trays as sleds. (At least until they, or your butt, break!) ***Note: if you want a really sweet Observatory Hill sledding experience, find someone in the Hoofer Sailing Club. They’ve got surf boards. Big ones.

3. Reminiscing about high school with Snow Patrol Songs.

4. The view of the Capitol, lit up, covered in snow, and surrounded by wintery trees.

The Wisconsin State Capitol

5. Soups and stews. The garlic lentil soup at Michelangelo’s is incredible, and the beef stew at Cooper’s Tavern is not only local, but has Russian dumplings. DUMPLINGS!

6. Making snow angels all over campus.

7. Sliding instead of walking down Bascom Hill. You feel like you’re going to die, but it’s worth it.

View of Lake Mendota from the Memorial Union

8. I know this sounds nuts, but I love getting Babcock Ice Cream at the Memorial Union and sitting by the windows by the Terrace and watching snow fall on the lake. There’s just something about eating ice cream while it’s snowing that I adore.

9. Making home made snow ice cream! How? Like this.

10. Not being able to sleep, walking out my front door at 3 am, and having it smell like winter. It’s fresh, metallic, cold, and the Wisconsinite in me feels right with the world when it’s there.