Egg Harbor is a small, tidy village on the bay side of the peninsula, with a marina, a main street of low wooden buildings and the quiet air of a place that exists mostly for visitors. The name has a story attached to it that locals love to repeat: in the early nineteenth century, crews from two boats supposedly began pelting each other with eggs while waiting at the harbour, and the nickname stuck. Whether or not it is true, it is the kind of tale that makes a place memorable.
The surroundings are the real draw. This part of Door County is orchard country, with rows of cherry and apple trees running down toward the water and small wineries making fruit wines and a few grape varieties. The bay of Green Bay, to the west, is sheltered and quiet, and the sunsets across it are famous. If you stay until evening, the sky over the water turns a deep orange, and the boats in the harbour sit still on the surface.
On the bike, the roads on this side of the peninsula are at their best. Highway 42 is the main road, but side roads curve between orchards and woodland, past farm stands and small barns. The surface is generally good, the corners are gentle, and the speed limits are low, which suits the scenery. Spring brings blossom and cold wind, summer brings heavy traffic and a lot of bicycles, and autumn is when the colours peak, which means the busiest weekends of the year.
Fuel and food are limited in the village itself, though there are a couple of cafes and small restaurants, so top up in Sturgeon Bay, about twenty-five kilometres south. Alternatively, there are petrol stations in some of the larger villages north of here, but they close earlier than you might expect, so do not rely on them late in the evening.
The best time to arrive is mid-morning, after the early fog has lifted and before the crowds arrive. A short walk to the harbour is enough to feel the spirit of the place, with its gulls and sailboats and the smell of cut grass from the orchards. If you are lucky, a stand will be selling cherry pies or a jar of local jam, and that will do for lunch.