What was supposed to be a simple miniature golf outing today quickly became a half a day of urban exploration! ....
It was a gorgeous day today so Dave and I decided to go mini-golfing. I've always loved miniature golf - it's the perfect thing to do with friends, with family, or on a date. We wanted to find a good course that was close to Milwaukee that I could blog about when we got home. So I went to OnMilwaukee.com and found this. There were many courses to choose from, and I chose Green Fields Golf Center on Layton Avenue because it sounded fun. Dave and I got Starbucks and then made the short drive to the course. When we got there, though, Mr. Snotty Pants didn't think it looked challenging or adventurous enough (I thought it was perfectly nice), so we decided to find Johnson's Park - I didn't remember the exact address, but I knew it was on 76th Street.
Now, when I think of 76th Street, I think Southridge Mall, so that's where we headed. We drove past the mall one way about ten miles (15 minutes or so) and didn't find it, so we decided to head the other direction. Long story short, we drove so far down 76th St. that we were in the car for over an hour and a half, driving through Wauwatosa and West Allis before ending up clear on the other side of Milwaukee, taking slow 76th St. the whole time. I never turned around because I just knew we'd find the place eventually. I mean, three mini golf courses? Batting cages? And go-karts? AND skee-ball? You can't go wrong!
We finally found the place, and after a half a tank of gas and more than two hours in the car, THIS is what we found:
It was a ghost park! We just laughed and laughed, in complete disbelief that this is what we'd driven so long for. We parked the car and walked around the whole park, hopping fences and managing overgrown foliage as necessary. We snapped pictures and marveled at all the OLD equipment and decoration. It was completely deserted and kind of creepy! We estimated that the place had been closed at least ten years, but the OnMilwaukee.com article was written in 2001 so who knows. It was either bad reporting or this place wasn't such a hot spot when it was open, either. 
After we had our fill of the ghost park, we got back in the car and concluded that the two hour drive was definitely worth it.
It felt like we were in the middle of nowhere out there, and it took us quite awhile to get back downtown, and then on the freeway to get back home. We were hungry by then, so we ate at a small diner near our place in Muskego and then, still wanting to actually miniature golf, decided on the Moorland Golf Center, which is a mere five minutes from our apartment. Go figure! 
Anyway, we had lots of fun, and the place was really, really nice. It has a HUGE driving range, which I plan on visiting soon, and a great mini golf course. A very far cry from Johnson's Park, that's for sure! We played our 18 holes and our game ended in a tie. We got huge $1.50 ice cream cones (can't beat that!) to end our evening.
The Moorland Golf Center is about 20 minutes outside Milwaukee, right off of I-43 South. Definitely worth the short drive. Or maybe 20 minutes just seems really quick to me after so much time in the car today!
The Moorland Golf Center also does really great kids birthday parties too. My son had his birthday party there 2 years ago, and his friends still talk about it :)
Posted by: Michelle | June 02, 2005 at 10:43 AM
That silly Mr. Snotty Pants! Great photos of the ghost town! This was a fun story to read.
Posted by: Mike | June 03, 2005 at 05:41 AM
I grew up around Johnson's Park and when I first read that I thought, "uh-oh, I'm 25 years old and that place has been closed since I was a child, in fact, I cannot even remember a time when it was ever open." It's probably been closed 15-20 years.
Posted by: Laura | May 28, 2006 at 10:51 AM