Community Overview
La Crosse, WI: The Pride of the Coulee Region.
As an almost lifelong resident of La Crosse and the Coulee Region, my love for this area has only grown. To this day I count my blessings that I get to live here and experience the beautiful and unique landscape and culture that La Crosse brings to the table. Here are some of the highlights of our area:
- Social Life. The social life is plentiful in La Crosse! La Crosse is a small business friendly city: we have many locally owned shops, restaurants, bars, dance clubs, coffee shops, al fresco dining options, food trucks and more. With several organizations dedicated to keeping La Crosse strong (Downtown La Crosse, Explore La Crosse), there is never a shortage of activites and festivals to participate in. Tap the Golden Keg at our world renowned Oktoberfest, watch the Fourth of July Fireworks at our activity filled Riverfest, or enjoy your favorite music at any one of our music festivals, from Country Boom to Irish Fest. The La Crosse Center hosts numerous conferences and MANY large music and comedy acts for us to enjoy. Riverside Park is a Jewel on the River; they host food trucks, Moon Tunes (music acts in the pavillion) and much much more! La Crosse is also home to the La Crosse Loggers, a stellar minor league baseball team that plays great games and puts on a great show.
- Water Activities. If you are a river rat, La Crosse has options! Situated directly on the mighty Mississippi, the river offers a multitude of activities from boating to fishing to waterskiing. The river culture is strong here with multiple marinas and boat landings. Kayaking, paddle boarding, beach time, pontooning, tubing, fishing are just some of the river activities you can enjoy. La Crosse even hosts a couple of high profile bass fishing tourneys and is a target destination for trophy sportfishing. Or, hop in a pontoon or a riverboat and take in the beauty that is the river, but make sure to stop at one of our many sandbars in the middle of the river and maybe enjoy a few cold ones or just take in some sun; it's an experience you won't forget.
- Land Activities. If you are a land lover, there is stuff for you too! The La Crosse area has a carefully cultivated network of hiking and biking trails for you to enjoy; Myrick Park and Hixen Forest are great launching points for you to trek up and down our beautiful bluffs. If hunting is your thing, we are situated in the heart of hunting country. A short jaunt into the country will take you to plentiful public lands to hunt deer, turkey, small game and more.
- Winter Activities. It is Wisconsin, so I would be remiss if I didn't mention winter! We embrace "Cozy" here in Wisconsin and view winter as a blessing; in many ways we enjoy winter more than summer here. We are home to Mt. La Crosse, a unique collection of downhill ski runs, some dificult, some not. Participate in our Winter Rec-Fest or have a go at our winter Half Marathon series. Go for a winter snowshow hike. Shovel some snow (it's fun, believe it or not). Build a snow man. Or just snuggle up next to a cozy fire with some hot chocolate and enjoy the beauty that is a winter snowfall.
- Employment. La Crosse is a great area for employment! With three accredited higher education universities (University of WI-La Crosse, Viterbo University, and Western Technical College), two world class hospitals (Mayo Clinic Health System, Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center) and numerous large companies (Trane Technologies, Kwik Trip, Logistics Health, etc.) there are numerous opportunities for high paying, forward moving careers.
- Education. The La Crosse area is a strong place to raise a family; the educational opportunities are vast. The La Crosse Public Schools consistently rank among the best in the state and we have several private school options as well, if you prefer. As noted, Higher Education Institutions are in close proximity, offering a wide variety of educational opportunities for you and/or your kiddos to participate in.
