As I’m nearing the completion of my second year at UW-Eau Claire, I’ve come to the conclusion that quality ice cream is hard to come by in this town.

Yes, there’s a Dairy Queen, a Coldstone Creamery, a CherryBerry and Culver’s obviously has stellar custard.

But surprisingly enough, a Google search Monday morning confirmed my worst fears as a summer ice cream queen: there appears to be no small, non-chain ice cream shops in Eau Claire that I could find.

During the summer months, I practically consider ice cream to be a food group, so you can imagine my disappointment at this realization.

I was used to being able to drive a short distance from my home to Cup and Cone in White Bear Lake, Minn., which offers quality homemade ice cream for a low cost.

Whenever I was bored last summer and feeling a little bit down, I’d head over to Cup and Cone for some ice cream therapy.

If I was feeling a bit ambitious, both in the distance I was willing to travel and the amount of ice cream I wished to eat, I would head over to Nelson’s in Stillwater, Minn., which also offered incredible homemade ice cream, but boatloads more for even cheaper.

Ice cream, I’ve learned over the course of my 19 years, solves all problems.

Horrified at my unfortunate realization about the ice cream situation in Eau Claire, I began to wonder what I was going to do with myself this summer when I’m in need of some good ice cream therapy.

But then, I discovered Olson’s Ice Cream in Chippewa Falls. All was not lost after all.

Though there’s a bit more of a drive involved than I’m used to (25 minutes from campus) and the roads in Chippewa Falls are a bit confusing to say the least, the, as they call it, “homaid” ice cream is entirely worth it.

The worst part of Olson’s, 611 N. Bridge St., was how hard of a time we had choosing our flavors amongst a long line of mouthwatering options.

For about $4, I got a perfectly crunchy waffle cone filled with “Tin Roof Sundae” flavored ice cream. The ice cream itself was vanilla, but filled with chunks of chocolate fudge. Talk about delicious.

This flavor is one of Olson’s several seasonal flavors, along with others such as the licorice flavor also available right now.

My friend Amy on the other hand ordered their classic “Coffee Caramel” flavor and absolutely loved it.

We took a seat inside the adorable shop, decorated with ice cream cones painted on the walls and an overall homey atmosphere to finish our delectable cold treats.

It seemed like nothing could get in the way of that perfect sweet treat break we took from our mounds of pre-finals week homework.

Then, we were so immersed in our conversation in the car that I drove us 20 minutes in the opposite direction of Eau Claire.

If you know me at all, this is very typical Sami behavior. It’s also very typical Sami behavior to be really frustrated and completely thrown off for a few hours afterward. But since the ice cream was so darn tasty, I wasn’t too upset about it.

So, if you’re looking for a break from studying and a satisfying cool treat, or this summer, you’re in search of the place that will offer you the best ice cream therapy, look no further. It may be a 25 minute drive, but I promise you, it’s worth it.