Highway 95 runs from Fountain City on the Mississippi River to Neillsville, near the center of the state.

A trip along it brings you through varied scenery and some interesting geological and cultural history.

Fountain City, in Buffalo County, was originally called Holmes' Landing, after Thomas Holmes, who settled there in 1839. Riverboats stopped at the landing to take on firewood, as well as water from springs not far from the river. That led to the change of name to Fountain City.

Chippewa, Winnebago and other tribes inhabited the surrounding area before European settlers came to the area. A renowned tribal battle is said to have taken place in the bluffs around Fountain City in 1839 and witnessed by some of the early European settlers.

Today, tourists still are drawn to the picturesque river bluffs and the Mississippi River itself. Some find stone artifacts and other remnants of the Native American culture in the area.

The Great River Road runs through the city and intersects Highway 95. Merrick State Park is located a short distance up river in Fountain City Bay, a slough of the river. The most notable establishment in the city is the Monarch Tavern, once a brewery, which dates back to 1894 and still retains the original hand-carved oak back bar.

You might not be able to go west from Fountain City, since the bridge across the Big River to Winona was closed a couple weeks ago for inspection. It could be open by the time you read this.

But, for the purpose of this column, head east out of Fountain City and you leave the Mississippi River behind. In Trempealeau County, you'll come to Blair. The city was first settled during the 1850s. The majority of the city's population descended from Norwegian settlers, with a smaller group descended from German settlers. The city's Norwegian heritage is represented by annual lefse and lutefisk suppers.

A lefse-making company is located in Blair. More recently, a number of Amish farming families have settled in the area and their horse-drawn carriages are sometimes seen on the road.

The city's name was changed from Porterville in 1873 when the Green Bay and Western Railroad was routed down the valley and through the city. The new name of Blair came from one of the railroad's chief investors, John Insley Blair.

Continuing east, you'll come to Hixton, a small town that has devoted itself to antiquing. Several good stores, including one in the old community schoolhouse, hold treasures for those who love to hunt for good old stuff.

As you continue east, you'll come to the south branch of the Trempealeau River. If you like the outdoors, the area holds potential for several hours of fun.

One of the activities is barefoot water skiing. The Blue Moo has been built on a private lake in the area. As its Web site says, its "sole" purpose is to facilitate the advancement of barefoot waterskiing. Instructions are available.

If you want to take in some history of the area, the Stanford Cemetery along Highway 95 has several very old graves and will give you some insight into the settlers and pioneers of the region.

Further east along 95 in Jackson County, two small towns claim to be capitals. Alma Center bills itself as the Strawberry Capital of Wisconsin. Depending on the time of year, you can find delicious berries from farmers in the area.

Merrillan, just a bit further east, informally calls itself the Christmas Tree Capital, although more than one place in Wisconsin makes that claim.

To the south of Merrillan, off 95, you can find Hatfield, and beautiful Lake Arbutus.

As you follow 95 into Clark County, you get into "mounds" country. Bruce Mound and the Levis Trow Mound trails are among the finest non-motorized trail systems in Wisconsin.

The Levis/Trow Mound Recreational Area is located within the southwest corner of Clark County and provides more than 34 miles of trails that wind and loop through a portion of the 133,000-acre county forest. The area is managed to maintain and protect the natural environment and wildlife habitat while providing recreational opportunities and a sustained supply of raw forest products.

The mounds are "monadnocks," small mountains or isolated hills, knobs, ridges that rise abruptly from a gently sloping or virtually level surrounding. Monadnock is originally a Native American term for an isolated hill or a lone mountain. The name was taken from Mount Monadnock in southwestern New Hampshire.

Perhaps the best-known monadnock in the world is Uluru, or Ayers Rock, in Australia. In Wisconsin, Rib Mountain is the best example, but the mounds in Clark County also are good ones.

Our Highway 95 journey ends in Neillsville in Clark County. There are several attractions in or near Neillsville. The High Ground is a veterans' memorial park located west of Neillsville. It's been featured before on OnMilwaukee.com.

The 1897 Jail Museum is on the National Register of Historic Places. The Wisconsin Pavilion from the 1964 New York World's Fair was moved to Neillsville at the conclusion of the Fair. The building is now home to local radio station WCCN and a gift shop.

Chatty-Belle is a large cow statue located on the ground of The Wisconsin Pavilion. She has the distinction of being the World's Largest Talking Cow. Drop a quarter into her voice box and she will tell you all about the surrounding area.

After listening to Chatty-Belle, you might want to explore more of the area, or head in another direction to other destinations along Highways 73, 10 or other routes.