History Tourism Recreation

Take a Self-Guided Trip Through E.C.’s History with These Audio Tours

Eau Claire Tours invites folks to explore the area’s past with new tours

McKenna Scherer |

WALK THROUGH THE PAST. Eau Claire Tours released two new self-guided tours on Aug. 29 inviting folks to walk or drive through the area's rich history. (Photo courtesy of the Chippewa Valley Museum)
LOOKING TO THE PAST. Eau Claire Tours released two new self-guided tours on Aug. 29 inviting folks to walk or drive through the area's rich history, which includes the logging era of the 19th century. (Photo of the Eau Claire Lumber Co. mill courtesy of the Chippewa Valley Museum.)

Eau Claire Tours recently launched two new self-guided audio adventures: “The Making of a City: An Eau Claire Story,” and “How Lumber Made the Chippewa Valley Tour.” Now is the perfect time to plug in one of these audio tours and enjoy the Wisconsin weather as fall begins to turn the leaves and cool down the temperature.

For just $5 and an hour of your time, you can stroll along the Eau Claire and Chippewa rivers and dive into the true tales of E.C.’s history with The Making of a City: An Eau Claire Story. This tour pulls you back to the very beginnings of the city, discussing the early fur traders through 1900, the city’s lumber era in the late 1800s when Eau Claire was the nation’s Lumber Capital, and more. Plus, it even explores the steamboat era and electric trolley that once rode through downtown. (Volume One’s own Chippewa River Trolley Co. is a nod to that very history!)

The How Lumber Made the Chippewa Valley Tour will take you on a drive that winds through the city, allowing you and a carload of people to drive to key areas tied back to the lumbering history of the area. For $7, this tour is an hour and 15 minutes and has multiple stops, including Eau Claire’s first sawmill location and the historic High Bridge, and it ends at Carson Park where more adventure awaits.

The audio tours use VoiceMap, a free app that uses your phone’s GPS to trigger audio files of these true tales and more, and offers tons of pictures to go along with them. Local vendors also offer discounts for Eau Claire Tours users.

Through the month of September, get $2 off of any Eau Claire Tour with the promo code “History.” Explore the other Eau Claire Tour adventures by heading to eauclairetours.com.


Keep up with Eau Claire Tours on Facebook (@eauclairetours) and go to the website to learn more.