Get your pickle on at Garner Park. | Photo by City of Madison
Pickleball is one of the fastest-growing sports in the US, and you can discover why it’s such a big dill right here in the Isthmus.
Madison is home to dozens of courts, and our patch is still growing. The city recently approved plans to convert an old Amazon warehouse into a pickleball facility with 10 courts, and it could be finished by this summer. Until then, these local courts are where you’ll find us, paddle in hand.
Door Creek Park, 7035 Littlemore Dr. | Courts: 8
If you are looking to practice, we suggest the spacious multi-court setup at Door Creek.
Elver Park, 1250 McKenna Blvd. | Courts: 3
We love this park because the courts are well-maintained + the parks crew went the extra mile to make pickleball lines easy to see.
Garner Park, 333 S. Rosa Ave. | Courts: 6
This stands as Madison’s first and only dedicated complex for pickleball courts, so it offers the most true-to-form outdoor option.
Friends of the Library Used Book Sale | Thursday, April 17-Saturday, April 19 | Edgerton Public Library | 3:45-7 p.m. | Donation-based | Support the library and get great deals on books — items are sold by donation with a suggested donation of $3 per bag.
Friday, April 18
Natasha Leggero | Friday, April 18 + Saturday, April 19 | Times vary | Comedy on State | $25 | This comedian and actress has been featured on a range of popular networks, including CBS, MTV, and Showtime.
Saturday, April 19
Texoma FC vs. Forward Madison FC | 5-9 p.m. | Breese Stevens Field | $24 | It’s a new season for our local soccer club and we’re hoping they start on the right foot.
Sunday, April 20
Bird and Nature Adventure | 1:30-3 p.m. | Warner Park Rainbow Shelter | Free | Enjoy a family-friendly walk on easy paths in the wild side by Warner Pond, where animals like beavers build their dens (and send us tons of pictures).
Monday, April 21
2025 Community Clean Up | 9 a.m. | Middleton Public Library | Celebrate Earth Day 2025 by stopping by the library to grab a clean-up kit and community map.
“Star Trek” Trivia Night | 6 p.m. | Garth’s Bar | Free | Put all those hours of binge-watching this historic show to use at this monthly trivia competition.
Local nonprofit FLOOR360 is seeking charity nominations for its Design for a Difference campaign. Any charity can be nominated, and the winner will receive an interior design makeover valued at $2 million. (WMTV)
Outdoors
It’s a bird, it’s a plane — wait, it’s actually just a bird. The Great Wisconsin Birdathon is officially underway through Sunday, June 15, and teams can still sign up online. The yearly event encourages everyone to get outside and look to the sky for local birds.
Holiday
Easter is on Sunday, April 20 and there’s an egg-stravaganza going down at Cave of the Mounds. The cave and pathways will be lit by 100+ glowing Easter eggs, plus an actual hunt will be hosted on Sunday.
Feel Good
Dane County Humane Society conducted a successful surgery on Kevin, a once-stray cat who was found with a dislocated ankle and fractured fibula. Now, Kevin is on the road to recovery and needs community support for physical therapy. Donate here.
Environment
DANEnet is hosting an Earth Day e-cycling event on Tuesday, April 22 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Alliant Energy Center parking lot. Attendees can rid themselves of unwanted tech items such as computers, monitors, TVs, smart watches, tablets, and cell phones.
Tech
Students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are putting AI in the trash — literally. “Oscar Sort” is a new artificial intelligence system at the university that can scan trash items to determine if they are recyclable or not. (WMTV 15)
Cause
Did you know? Families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing, or food — so they can focus on helping their child live. Learn more about how Madison’s first St. Jude Dream Home® Showplace is helping those fighting pediatric cancer + how a donation can change a life.*
Seasonal
It’s social event season — outsmart the noise of rumbling crowds and hear conversations more clearly. Most hearing aids have one processor, but these bad boys have two. They process speech and noise separately, so speech gets clearer and crisper. That’s why 540,000+ customers swear by them.*
Calling all small business owners. Features in our 2025 Parents Gift Guide are now 20% off. Secure a spot for your business’s product or service by using code PGG2025 at checkout.
City Guide
City Guide
📍 No place like home
We bet you don’t know all 20 of these Madison facts. | Photo via Canva
Did you know that Madison is home to the world’s largest Brat Fest?
Nah, just kidding. If you know us, you know we’re here for the deep cuts — and there are plenty of interesting factoids to go around. As connoisseurs of the quirky and unconventional, we put together a list of 608’s history, oddest characteristics, and more. Maybe you’ve lived here your whole life and know some of this, or maybe you’ll learn something new.
Either way, test your local knowledge with these 15 interesting facts.
1. The popular satirical media company, The Onion, was founded in 1988 by UW-Madison students Tim Keck and Christopher Johnson.
2. Nirvana recorded “Nevermind” in Madison at Smart Studios. The building still stands today at 1254 E. Washington Ave.
3. Our official city bird — the plastic pink flamingo — is an homage to an infamous UW-Madison student prank.
Really cute waterdrop earrings, with one pair of gold and one pair of silver for $12.99. The minimalist earrings hug ears + look heavy while feeling surprisingly lightweight.
Happy Thursday, Madison. Earth Day is just around the corner and it’s one of my favorite holidays. So that means we definitely won’t leave you hanging when it comes to ways to get involved. Take a look at what’s going down in 608 and help take care of this place we share as home.
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