Date: 10/13/2013
Day: 16
Location: , Bemidji, MN
Miles Today: 205
Total Miles: 3236
A Short Day, A Lucky Town, The Prairie, On the Road
A Short Day Today
After only a couple hundred easy miles, the Colonel could not not stop in Bemidji, Minnesota. Oil rich, Republican North Dakota is receding behind us to the west -- did you know that Rush Limbaugh is still on the radio? -- cuddly Democrat-ish Minnesota unrolls ahead. Yes, they do have Garrison Keillor vowels here abouts. A fellow on the AM radio this afternoon actually said "My mother taught me to be nice, so I'll ask you to please listen to my farm show 6:00 AM in the morning." Too close to Canada, I guess.
Speaking of which: Although the High Line is not quite so high as it was -- the road turns southeast at Grand Forks on the North Dakota / Minnesota border -- it is still possible to find people speaking Canadian on the radio, and sometimes even ... French! Who know what perfidious Gallic ploys they are plotting; perhaps an invasion intended to retake the Louisiana Purchase. Now would be the time with the Department of Homeland security closed for the duration.
There was an emergency stop today about noon in Crookston, MN; we ran out of battery life in our camera. Egad, bad battery management!! Sport bar type coffee shops are really empty at noon on a Saturday when both bird hunting and fishing are on offer. The nice kid got down on his knees to plug our charger into an obscure power point and a slow lunch ensued. They had a soup on the menu new to the Colonel; Kneophia, pronounced, the Colonel believes "nip-fla, swallow the 'K' like knife." The nice young man described it as a German soup with potatoes and turkey. It turned out to be a thick dumpling laden concoction, almost a stew, with chunks of turkey, potatoes and other vegetables. Really good. Perfect stuff for a chilly rainy Saturday. The salad accompanying was poor. The Colonel has never seen salad stuff so dispirited without actually being spoiled. Be thankful for the veggies and the water, those of you in California. God bless the Great Central Valley and the Hetch Hetchy reservoir.
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| Kneophia. . |
Some of those reading this have an attempt at Kneophia stalking them in the future.
Saturdays' Lucky Town
The Colonel wandered today through Fisher, Minnesota about 25 miles east of the Red River and the state line. It still seems odd that there is never a person on the streets of these small towns. Maybe they really are all out shooting birds and killing fish. Or working hard on their farms, of course.
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| Another classic grain elevator in Fisher. |
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| There is no telling what is actually in this small, apparently ancient, building. Could it be the public loo? |
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| If American could be said to go home somewhere, it would look like this. |
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| Trinity Lutheran, a church building not to be improved upon. |
The Prairie
There is a major movement to restore parts of the great American prairie. The Nature Conservancy, one of the Mrs. Colonels favorite institutions, is particularly active in this regard. When the Europeans arrived, prairie was the largest ecosystem in North America, and stretched from Canada to Mexico and from the Rockies to Indiana. The county and local Ag school will teach you how to convert (or revert) you land to prairie. It takes a nmber of years. Such land is property tax exempt in Minnesota.
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| A slice of prairie off the High Line at Mentor Minnesota. The green stuff is mowed by the side of the road. |
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| This image is taken from the same spot at the two above, rotating about 90 degrees to the left. |
On the Road
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| The Colonel would have the guy looking roguishly over his shoulder, buns on view, but he is from California. |
Late breaking news: Tonight the Colonel was able to negotiate the vagaries of the motel washer and drier, a skill he has not practiced in 40 years. Truly.
Tomorrow, on southeast to Duluth and the Lake they call Superior. Must make the other lakes feel diminished. Is this bullying?
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