House on the Rock

This shows a view of a large pinnacle rock as we near the building.

In the 1940s, Alex Jordan, Jr. took over the project from his dad. The House on the Rock opened to the public in 1961. It now brings in over a half-million visitors a year. Not bad for not being able to design a cheese crate or a chicken coop.

The tour is self guided and we were told that it is approximately a 4 hour tour. Though we managed to get through it within 3 hours. But the tour seems much longer. We were rats caught in a maze, seeming to go around this corner and that corner and never finding our way to the prize...the exit. The building is not air-conditioned. We came on a very hot summer day. Tourist were everywhere. There were times we seemed to be at a standstill waiting to get through this maze.

At the beginning, an automated band plays Bolero, the first of some thirty-five music machines on the route. Loud music was blaring around every turn. Crazy people (who bought tokens at the gift shop) kept adding to these strategically placed musical token operated machines. At times several songs could be heard at once. It truly did go on and on and on.

There were few stops for food and something to drink. Once we got to the half-way mark, the maze lead through a fast food pizza place. We each had a slice of overpriced pizza and a soda. Once we had filled our stomachs and rested, we went on to finish the tour.

April 2008: House on the Rock has split its tours into three sections, which will help those who don't have the time (or stamina) to take in the whole place at once.

(The photo is the Orchestra with Washington and Lincoln.)

House on the Rock Carousel Photograph - Beautiful 16"x20" Photographic Print by Carol M. Highsmith

The second most intriguing area of the house is the Carousel Room. This room holds the world's largest carousel in motion. The 239 carousel beasts, collected from around the world, are half-human and demonic looking. It looked too scary to take on riders. But it wasn't meant to.

Above the carousel are hundreds of topless mannequin angels which hang from the walls and rotate overhead. The room contains 182 chandeliers. This is a good place to stop and take in the beauty or strangeness. Everything is a mix-match. To exit this room, you must walk through a dragon's mouth on a bright red shag carpet symbolizing his throat.

Throughout this huge spectacular building are various treasures to view behind the glass. Along with these treasures hold the history behind it. The House on the Rock is really a museum.

The number one most intriguing aspect of the house is the Infinity Room. The Infinity Room is the 14th room of the House, completed in 1985. This engineering marvel extends 218 feet out over the scenic valley and 156 feet above the forests floor. The Infinity Room has 3,264 windows for walls that treat guests to a truly spectacular view.

This was the last stop on the tour for us. To me, architecturally speaking, it is the best part of the house. The view outside of the windows is truly amazing.

Now that it has been divided into three separate tours, I may consider going back. This is a must see when going to Spring Green, Wisconsin.