THE TWIN CITIES AND BEYOND

May – June, 2021

The trip from Baraboo, Wisconsin to our campground in Cannon Falls, Minnesota took us through some of the nicest scenery we’ve seen along a major Interstate in the past 3 years – rolling hills, dense forests, green fields, grazing dairy herds, and occasional small towns. While motoring from place to place we find ourselves frequently wondering whether or not we could live in such and such a place. While West Texas generates an answer of absolutely no, our answer based this journey through central/west central Wisconsin and into southern Minnesota in late May was a hesitant yeah…we wondered though what it would be like in wintertime. Needless to say this was one of our most enjoyable rides.

Waterways have divided cities throughout the world. The Danube River separated the Romanian cities of Buda and Pest for centuries before the incorporation of the two into modern day Budapest. Istanbul is unique in that the Bosphorous Straight splits the City – half of the city is in Europe and the other half in Asia (talk about continental divide!). The Mississippi River separates the cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul as it has since encampments became villages became cities became present day metropolitan areas. However, the two are thought of as one – 3.6 million citizens call the Twin Cities home – the metro area is commonly written with a hyphen: Minneapolis-Saint Paul, and even the baseball team’s logo stands for Twin Cities. Saint Paul is the State Capitol, and Minneapolis is home to the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers.

Cannon Falls is a lovely small town of a little more than 4,000 that is approximately 45 miles from either Rochester (Tom and Karen Williamson) or The Twin Cities (Roesner Mob). The weekend of Memorial Day is normally the official start of camping season and most campgrounds throughout the Country are busy. Covid-related restrictions have been relaxed and we soon realized that, as it was the day before Memorial Day, our campground was completely full – we might have reserved the last site. Settling into our site was a bit of a challenge in two unrelated ways; the roads were narrow and we needed neighbors across the street to move their vehicles so we could swing properly into our site, and the site sloped so radically front to back in order to become level we had to place all of our leveling blocks under the rear jacks. We’re old hands at the process, and while it took a bit more effort we were able to settle in with minimal stress.

The campground had lots and lots of activities throughout the holiday weekend including bingo in the early evening. $3 each got us a bingo card good for the night’s 10 games. We both had the good fortune to win a “single winner” game and cashed in on a $156 return for our $6 investment.

Memorial Day itself was special since Tom and Karen came up from Rochester to spend the day. We hadn’t seen them in a year and a half…so a steak fry, good bourbon, and a wonderful time to catch up were the order of the day!

We had been looking forward to spending time with the Roseners since we broke camp in Mesa at the beginning of April. We had become close with Angie 2 years ago, when we also spent some time getting to know the ‘rents Don and Carol, as well as hanging out a bit with Mark and Lisa. Last winter we all became very close friends. We met at Mark and Lisa’s home on Prior Lake, and were greeted with open arms, unbelievable warmth, graciousness, and beautiful surroundings. We were truly spoiled during the 2 afternoons we spent together, and there are not words enough to express appreciation to our terrific hosts…

Those afternoons were spent on the Lake seated in The Rosener’s pontoon boat traveling in style and sipping adult beverages. Lots to see, including a Lakeside hello from other Mesa friends John and Cheryl…

…and seeing some Testudines reptiles working on their tans…

…but what really struck Brian was “bird island.” Mark and Lisa didn’t know why so many birds found this particular island on Prior Lake their nesting place night after night.

The setting sun painted its glorious colors on the canvas of the sky over Prior Lake.

The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden showcases works from the Walker Art Center’s renowned collections of modern and contemporary sculpture in an urban park setting. A stunning collection of 40 works of art are thoughtfully arranged within the 11-acre park. This is truly a jewel, and well worth a stroll whenever we’re in Minneapolis.

The centerpiece of the Garden is Oldenburg’s Spoonbridge and Cherry.

We refused to avoid seeking obscurities in the Twin Cities…so here’s our sampling of places in loyalty to keeping Minneapolis-Saint Paul weird.

The “infamous” Elf Door at Demmings Height Park is a mysterious little handmade door set at the base of an old tree. Rumor has it that the magical elf who lives inside the tree leaves treasures and twinkly trinkets inside the door for local children to find.

Local sculptor Allen Christian established the House of Balls in Minneapolis’ Warehouse District almost 36 years ago as a physical incarnation of his idea that “we all possess the creative impulse and we owe ourselves the balls to express it.”

Allen Christian earned the reputation as “the Willy Wonka of Twin Cities art” through his belief and practice of bringing a “tangible life force to inanimate objects when they come into contact with living beings.” Roesner Mob consigliere Angie joined us on our exploration of this eclectic display.

The front door was locked and posted, a sign stating that the House of Balls was open at midnight weekdays, noon on weekends, and by appointment or whenever the owner felt like being there. However a “push this button” notice stated that we could leave a message (my apologies for not having a picture). Being a weekday we were disappointed to not be able to view the indoor exhibition, but we thoroughly enjoyed the outdoor gallery. Oh yeah, we did take advantage of leaving a message.

This collection featured Allen Christian’s amazing ability to use an acetylene torch in order to create some pretty cool metal sculptures…

Then again there were a few other displays as well..

From our list and in search of other interesting places in the Twin Cities, we bumped into Sheridan Veterans Memorial Park. Located on the banks of the Mississippi River, the sculpture is the main feature in this City Park and stands in honor of Minnesotans who served in domestic and foreign wars,

Zoran’s Sculpture Garden – Artist Zoran Mojsilov, a Belgrade-born sculptor and illustrator has made the park his pet project over the years, placing his minimal yet strong stone sculpture works, held together with delicate steel rods in the off-the-beaten-path lot. The park is perpetually under construction.

The Alpine Asphalt Paving Company has built a makeshift fence constructed completely out of colorful old skis…and the company’s name is Aspen Asphalt. Why we asked? Well, the brothers that own the company are avid skiers…’nuff said!

Without enough time to really do the street art/murals of the Twin Cities justice we had to pick and choose what we’d like to see. The internet told us that the best mural is something entitled Broken Crow and Over Under, which we found partially covered up by the outdoor seating of a bar. Pretty detailed even with only what we were able to see…

…and with apologies to Hubert Humphrey and Paul Wellstone how could anyone not pay tribute to the two most famous sons of the Twin cities.

A nice sampling of Twin Cities weird–no? Well, there was one other venue that years and years ago Barbara and I had the good fortune to visit, that has since been incorporated into the Science Museum of Minnesota . The Museum of Questionable Medical Devices pays homage to the time of “snake oil” hustlers, phrenology, trephination, and leeches. The owner and docent tours visitors through the fascinating world of cure-all “medicine” made for, as P.T. Barnum might say, “that sucker born every minute.” Remarkably when Brian sat in the phrenology machine its read of his personality was pretty darn close! Hmmm…wonder if animal de-worming pills or bleach or hydroxychloroquine for the treatment of Covid will be a future display in the Museum?

A few more stops along the way…

Completed in 1883 the Stone Arch Bridge was built at Saint Anthony Falls for use by the railroad to cross the Mississippi River. Now used by pedestrians and bicyclists it is the only arched bridge made of stone on the entire Mississippi River – quite a historic landmark.

Barbara and I have quietly altered our diet to include several plant-based protein meals a week. Being carnivores more than omnivores most of our life we feel that there are some plant-based recipes we’ve made that miss the texture of animal protein; however, many others are more than excellent without. That being said Minneapolis is home to one of the best vegan “butchers” in the Country, and given our new diet a must stop. Founded by a sister-brother duo, The Herbivorous Butcher is passionate (and successful) about creating meat-free meats and cheese-free cheeses that taste “like no other vegan product on the market.” Brian was especially excited to talk at length with the owners, sample product, and make purchases to help with our at-home menu. Alas and Alack the best laid plans can be waylaid by stuff like Covid – the company has taken to an order ahead and pick-up your order at a specific pre-arranged time; the store isn’t open to the public operation. Shame of Brian for not double checking. We suspect we missed out on something special. Guess we could always order on-line?

We could not in good conscience leave the Twin Cities without paying our respects to George Floyd, who was murdered by a Minneapolis policeman. The intersection near his place of death has been turned into an impromptu memorial, not just to George Floyd, but to many Black Americans that have been murdered by law enforcement or who have died while trying to find a way for justice to prevail for all in our Country. The local store owners would love for the neighborhood to return to as close to normal as possible, but the City has not, to date, acted in good faith to find a peaceful solution to the complaints of the many who are there in protest. We sincerely hope that no more heavy-handed methods based on prejudice and fear are employed by authorities, no more unnecessary deaths occur, and that peace can return to the Community.

Using our campground in Cannon Falls as a home base we had a spectacular time in this part of Minnesota! Great friends, and many, many great memories of our visit.

Voyageurs National Park is 325 miles pretty much due north through rural Minnesota from the Twin Cities. We could have managed the trip alright, but we had made plans to spend some time with old, old friends from Pennsylvania who were workcamping in Isle, Minnesota. A detour northeast instead of heading true north was in order. Duluth is easily in reach of Isle, on the shores of beautiful Lake Superior, and someplace we had never been together.

Our campground was about 10 miles from downtown Duluth and was bordered by a small lake. Barbara was enthralled with her first loon sighting as well as its echoing call!

The waters along the shores of Duluth are exceptionally deep and fairly free of hazards, which matched well with a needed shipping port on Lake Superior for shipping iron ore from the nearby mines in Minnesota’s iron range to the steel manufacturing ports along the Great Lakes (I’m looking at you, Gary, Indiana!) and a bit further inland (I’m looking at you, Pittsburgh, PA). The ore boats still use the harbor, however with far less frequency sailing through the channel under the Aerial Lift Bridge and past the original docks to moor at silos on the far side of an islet bay.

Lake Superior is daunting with its far horizons and, we were sure, kept its secrets – tales of many a sailor who lost their lives battling the seas throughout the years.

A walk through Canal Park and out onto the pier at the waterfront afforded some nice views…

We did head out to visit our friends Tom and Landa at their campground in Isle, and it turned out that they had a 3-day break from their workcamping gig, and were coming up to Duluth the next day. We had a terrific long visit.

The Duluth Aerial Lift Bridge is one of the City’s landmarks. Completed in 1905 and spanning the Duluth shipping channel, the bridge connects the Mainland with Minnesota Point, a five-mile long sandbar on which recreational facilities, hotels, apartment buildings and single-family homes, and supportive businesses such as food stores, restaurants, etc. have been built. Originally the bridge had a high clearance to let boats pass, and a cable car was attached to the underside of the top truss to carry passengers, wagons, and automobiles across the bridge. Demand exceeded ability, and a flat deck across the 386 foot span was added in 1929. Because the deck was to be lifted to allow boats to pass, the top span was made to be raised so that the big ore boats could still use the canal. When the span is completely raised it It has a clearance of 180 feet.

The Legend of Grandma – A true Duluth icon. Years ago a colleague and good friend who was managing the psychiatric program for the University of Minnesota Health Services Duluth asked me to come to Duluth to consult on their failing program in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. During our time together he told me of the legend of Grandma. She was a “feisty Italian immigrant” named Rosa Brochi who opened her first “boarding house” to the lonely sailors in the Great Lakes Port of Duluth in 1869. Grandma took very special care of her patrons, making sure they were always comfortable and satisfied…if you know what that means. Grandma was also a very shrewd business woman, not just opening several other “boarding houses,” but buying up as much of Duluth’s lakeshore in the harbor district as possible.

There is so much more to do in and around Duluth than we had time to experience and explore. The North Shore Scenic Drive is said to be filled with spectacular views, a visit to Split Rock Lighthouse, seeking out waterfalls and a day in Gooseberry State Park are musts if you have the time, and a fun afternoon in the summer can be spent on the “Point” across the Aerial Lift Bridge at Brighton Beach Park…

Spending time with Tom and Landa, the chance to watch an ore boat go through the channel (not ready with my camera?), walking around Canal Park, and viewing the Aerial Lift Bridge made for a wonderful stay. But it’s time to get our National Park on – Voyageurs here we come!

Barbara and Brian

“It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.“ – Henry David Thoreau