Something about the week before the Fourth just feels different up here. The boats are out, every restaurant has a wait, the cherries are about two weeks from peak, and six villages are getting ready for one of the best holiday celebrations you will find anywhere in the Midwest.

The water is warm.

The days stretch past 8:30 at night.

Door County is running at full volume right now.

If you are not up here this week, this newsletter might be the push you need.

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This week in The Best of Door County Weekly:

You undoubtedly know the name, Antonio Freeman. If you are a Packers fan, you definitely know it. He spent eight seasons in Green Bay, won a Super Bowl here, made the Pro Bowl, led the NFL in receiving yards in 1998, and was one of the most electrifying receivers of his era.

Wisconsin knows him well. Green Bay and Door County know him even better. The man could catch anything, including one of the most memorable touchdowns in Monday Night Football history.

His son Alex Freeman is on the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team playing in the World Cup. And right now, he might be the most exciting 21-year-old in the tournament.

Alex is a defender, which tells you something about how far the apple can fall from the tree in the best possible way. His father ran routes and caught passes for a living. Alex closes down forwards, wins headers, and launches attacks from the back line. Different sport, different position, same DNA. The same explosiveness Antonio had running down the sideline in Lambeau, Alex has tracking down wingers at SoFi Stadium.

He was not even a lock to make the World Cup roster. A year ago, he was just breaking into the starting lineup at Orlando City in MLS. Then he moved to Villarreal in Spain's La Liga in January, took a risk on a new league and a new country, and earned his spot on the squad through his superior performance.

Today, he is the youngest player on the United States roster and one of the most important.

Through the three group stage matches, he has been everywhere. An assist in the opening 4-1 win over Paraguay. Then, against Australia, with the U.S. leading 1-0, Alex found space at the back post and headed home the second goal to seal a 2-0 victory to clinch Group D. The goal was initially disallowed for offsides. Video review confirmed he was onside by inches. Seattle Stadium literally recorded seismic activity when the call was reversed, and the goal stood.

Antonio was in the stands watching on Father's Day weekend. His phone overheated from the messages. He told reporters it was "10,000 times better" than anything he experienced as a player.

"Watching him score, it was full circle," Antonio said. "For me, it was like the next chapter, another book, and he is going to be able to write his own book from a play like that."

Alex was more measured after the match, the way young players are when they are still taking it all in.

"It was surreal," he said. "I have been working my whole life to get to that moment."

His father played football. He plays futbol. And the thing Antonio kept saying to reporters was that this moment belonged entirely to his son. Not to the Freeman name. Not to the legacy. To Alex.

The U.S. opens the knockout round on July 1 against Bosnia and Herzegovina. If you have not been watching, this is the week to start. And when Alex Freeman comes on the screen, remember he is a Wisconsin kid carrying a Wisconsin name into the biggest sporting event in the world.

Door County does not do the Fourth of July the way everywhere else does. There is no single fireworks show you drive to, watch, and drive home from.

Instead, the celebration is spread across an entire week, with six different villages each putting their own stamp on Independence Day. Fireworks over Green Bay. Fireworks over Lake Michigan. Boat parades, pancake breakfasts, small town parades down Main Street, fish fries, live music, and enough cherry pie to last you until Labor Day.

It is genuinely one of the best places in the country to spend the holiday weekend, and the fact that the celebrations are staggered means you can catch more than one show if you plan it right. Some people build their entire summer trip around it.

I put together a complete town-by-town guide to everything happening this year so you know exactly where to be, when to get there, and what to do with the hours in between the fireworks. Whether you are a first timer trying to figure out where to plant your lawn chair or a regular who wants to shake things up this year, this guide has everything you need.

Read the complete Independence Day in Door County guide here.

There are fancier places to eat in Door County. There are places with better water views, longer wine lists, and more impressive menus. But if you ask me where I actually want to eat on a Friday night in Door County, the answer is always the Northern Grill and Pub in Sister Bay.

It is tucked off Highway 42 on Country Walk Drive, sitting back in the trees just far enough from downtown that many visitors drive right past it. That is their loss and your gain.

The place has been family-owned and operated for nearly 30 years, and it feels like it. The staff knows the regulars and treats everyone like one of them. The side deck on a summer night is one of those Door County experiences that stays with you. When my kids were younger, we spent a lot of time on that deck.

The pizza is the move. It’s my favorite in Door County (sorry Sonnys). It’s hand-tossed, homemade, New York-style, with a crust and sauce that taste like someone actually spent time in the kitchen making them. The homemade sausage topping is the one to get. I usually order a large because the leftovers (if there are any) are just as good the next morning.

Before the pizza arrives, order a Cherry Bomb. My wife knows this is my Door County must. I don’t feel like it’s a true DC weekend until I’ve had the Cherry Bomb. It’s vodka and Door County cherry juice, and it is dangerously easy to drink. It has been the house signature for as long as I can remember, and there is a reason people mention it in every review. It tastes like summer in a glass.

Go on a weeknight if you can. Weekends in July mean a wait, and while the wait is worth it, a quiet Tuesday on that deck with a Cherry Bomb and a hot pizza coming out of the kitchen is about as good as Door County gets.

northerngrill.com

Door County runs six separate fireworks shows over the water across this holiday week.

Here is the full lineup:

Fish Creek gets things started on Thursday, July 2, with fireworks launched from a barge over Fish Creek Harbor at dusk. The best views are from Clark Park and Fish Creek Beach. The village fills up fast, so get there early and walk rather than fighting for parking.

Egg Harbor goes big across two days. On July 3, food and refreshments open at Harbor View Park at 4 p.m., Modern Day Drifters take the stage at 5 p.m., and fireworks light up the harbor at dusk. On July 4, the Independence Day parade steps off down Highway 42 at 1:30 p.m. and is one of the best in Door County. Both days are worth your time.

Baileys Harbor does it the classic small town way on July 4. The fire department pancake breakfast runs from 7:30 to 10 a.m.; the parade kicks off at 10 a.m. along the main drag; arts and crafts and live music fill Kendall Park all day; the Strawberry Fest runs at Town Hall; and fireworks over Lake Michigan launch from Anclam Park at dusk. It is a full day from sunrise to fireworks and one of the most genuinely charming ways to spend the Fourth anywhere in the Midwest.

Gills Rock brings the most intimate celebration of the week on July 4. Food and live music start at 5 p.m. at Mariners Park, a decorated boat regatta hits the harbor at 7:30 p.m., and fireworks follow at dusk. The fish fry benefits the Death's Door Maritime Museum. This is the one for people who want the real small-town feel without the crowds.

Sturgeon Bay celebrates July 4 at Sunset Park with food and drinks starting at 5 p.m., live music building through the evening, and fireworks launched from a barge over the water after dark. A solid choice if you are staying in the southern part of the county and do not want to drive north.

Sister Bay saves the best for last with Freedom Fest on Saturday, July 11. The all-day party at Waterfront Park runs from late morning with bungee trampolines, inflatables, a brat fry, a boat parade, and fireworks over Green Bay at dusk. If you miss the Fourth itself or just want one more show before summer really hits its stride, this is your bonus round.

Here is something worth knowing as you watch fireworks light up the bay this weekend.

Door County takes its name from one of the most dangerous stretches of water in the Great Lakes. The passage between the tip of the Door Peninsula and Washington Island was called Porte des Morts by early French explorers, meaning "Death's Door." The name came from Native American accounts of a failed raid in the early 1600s in which members of the Ho-Chunk tribe attempted to cross the passage to attack the Potawatomi on Washington Island. The crossing went badly. The waters claimed many of them before they ever reached the island.

Those same waters have claimed hundreds of ships over the centuries, earning the passage a reputation that spread across the Great Lakes. Sailors feared it. Settlers named a county after it. And today, visitors drive right past it on the ferry to Washington Island without giving it a second thought.

That is Door County for you. The most beautiful places often have the most dramatic histories.

Door County is sitting in a sweet spot this week. Highs in the mid-70s, low rain chances across the board, and enough sunshine to make every spot worth fighting for. It is about as close to a perfect Door County week as you are going to get.

Sunrise on Tuesday, June 30, hits at 5:19 a.m. Sunset comes around 8:38 p.m. That gives you just over 15 hours of daylight to work with. Use them.

By Saturday, the Fourth of July, highs will be pushing toward the upper 70s, with calm winds and clear skies in the forecast. Perfect fireworks weather. The kind of night where you can sit on the beach until well after dark without reaching for a jacket.

Water temperatures on Green Bay are running in the mid to upper 60s right now, comfortable for kayaking and tolerable for swimming if you are brave. Lake Michigan, on the east side of the peninsula, runs a few degrees cooler. Worth knowing before you commit to a beach day on either shore.

Cherry season is right around the corner. The orchards are full, and the harvest typically kicks off in mid to late July, depending on the weather.

If you are planning a trip and cherries are on your list, the next few weeks are when you want to be watching.

Every week, I write this newsletter with music playing in the background.

This week, it was Rumours by Fleetwood Mac, which came out in 1977 and somehow sounds better every time I put it on. The whole album brings me back to a time when everything felt a little simpler.

Go Your Own Way, The Chain, Gold Dust Woman. Forty-five minutes of music that holds up better than almost anything recorded in the last fifty years.

My family knows I have a top 5 bands list that hasn’t changed in nearly 40 years, and Fleetwood Mac sits there right at number 4. Keep reading each week and you’ll figure out who the others are.

If you have not listened to it start to finish lately, this weekend is the right time. Put it on, open a window, and let the summer in.

The Fourth of July weekend fills up fast.

If you still need lodging, move on it today. And if you are already booked, stop reading this and go find a good spot to watch fireworks over the water. You earned it.

See you on the peninsula,
Brian

thebestofdoorcounty.com

I’ll drop into your inbox every Tuesday. Make sure to let me know what you think.

Brian.

The Best of Door County Weekly