Recreation

Get a Clue: Escape room fanatics build one of their own

Justine  Childs, photos by Andrea Paulseth |

PEOPLE CAN’T WAIT TO GET OUT. Escape EC is a new addition to the area’s “escape room” scene. Owned by Jessica Stickler and Jack Trautlein, the new space offers one room with plans for more.
PEOPLE CAN’T WAIT TO GET OUT. Escape EC is a new addition to the area’s “escape room” scene. Owned by Jessica Stickler and Jack Trautlein, the new space offers one room with plans for more.

I grew up reading Nancy Drew books and was completely enchanted by the captivating world of mystery, friendship, and problem-solving. Walking into Escape EC’s room called “The Professor” takes me back to those Nancy Drew mysteries. The room is dimly lit by a couple of lamps and is outfitted with a locked desk, a trunk, and other furnishings that may or may not contain clues to help you escape the room once you are locked inside. Is that picture on the wall a clue? Does it contain an answer you seek, or is it simply a picture? That is the challenge of “The Professor” at Escape EC.

Jessica Stickler and Jack Trautlein are the creators and co-owners of the new business with Jesse Dunn. Jessica and Jack got hooked on escape rooms after experiencing their first room while visiting Las Vegas in April. Within a month of returning home, they had completed all the escape rooms within a three-hour radius of Eau Claire. After experiencing the first rush they received from escaping a room, they knew they had to open their own.

Currently they have one room available, but have plans to expand with two more rooms and are looking into designing a mobile escape room.

“We love designing and building everything ourselves,” Jack says. “We are diving into more advanced puzzles that have incredible twists.” Jack goes on to say that he hopes everyone will use the escape rooms, from families and groups of friends to corporate team-building events. “The best part of an escape room is that everyone has equal knowledge going into the room,” he says. “You may have done other rooms in the past, but every room is truly different.”

Jessica says the escape room trend will hopefully catch on because it enables the customer to escape reality and immerse themselves into a world of puzzles, mystery, and camaraderie with friends. “We are used to these types of experiences with video games, but to have something tangible is special,” she said. “It’s a really good way to disconnect from everything and have fun with friends, family, and co-workers.”

With escape rooms being a fairly new industry, the options and potential designs are endless. Being escape room addicts themselves, who better to open one than Jessica and Jack? They take their rooms from inception to completion and then test them on people they don’t know to make sure the puzzles and clues are flawless … and fun.

“Our vision is to bring a world-class escape experience to Eau Claire.”  Jack and Jessica are from Eau Claire and see the city transforming, and they want to be part of that transformation. “The process of building a room and business as a couple has been really satisfying. We’ve had a lot of support and encouragement from family. We can’t wait to share what we’ve built with the community.”

So grab a friend or two, take your partner on a date, unplug for an hour, and take on the challenge of being locked in a room and use your ability to decipher clues, think creatively, and work together to escape.

Escape EC • 1727 Westgate Road, Eau Claire • www.EscapeEC.com • (715) 598-5695 (call for hours of availability)