Gravity Hill - Shullsburg, Wisconsin

The south western part of Wisconsin is an anything goes in the way of topography. High plateaus of clear skylines and drifting fields of amber evoke an almost Nebraska-isk sentiment; miles of black fertile soil and pig shit in every direction. Then the Earth can give way to canyons of sandstone and ruggedly cut ravines and flood-prone, no-name creeks; river bottoms with their mangled and tortured tree limbs invite imagination.

Shullsburg is a tight knit community on such a plateau. Solid, conservative, five generation farmers drive Dodge pick-ups through a tidy downtown of sturdy, red bricked buildings. Everyone offers a friendly wave; strangers are greeted with a welcoming conversation about the weather at the local filling station. But one gets the feeling, with street names like Judgment, Truth, Justice and Reckoning that the residents like their town just the way it is and don’t mind in the least that when you’re done visiting, you just as soon keep moving along.

South of town, just below the mud, lies a mineral deposit that has brought wayward travelers off the beaten path for years:    Gravity Hill.

It was no different for me.

Drive south of town on Hwy U, past the Shullsburg Regional Airport with its one grass runway and then, according to the barkeep at the Green Street Tavern about “1000 feet or so”, past Rennick Road. Locals have painted a large ‘GH’ in the south bound lane.

Stop. Put your car in neutral and witness as an unseen force pulls your car backwards up the hill.

No joke.

Enough said.

When you’re done, stop in at the Shullsburg Creamery in town.

*the south bound lane offers a far better experience, the northbound lane is a little more bumpy and thus the car does not travel nearly as fast or smooth up the hill.