Day in the Life of an Idiot

 
A colorful fallen oak leaf.

On Sunday, Shawn and I decided that we wanted to go see if we could catch some fall color before it faded completely. The MN DNR color tracker told us that just south of us was at peak or just past, so we decided to take a trip down to Frontenac State Park. Frontenac State Park is just between Red Wing, Minnesota and a natural widening of the Mississippi called Lake Pepin. I have never understood, despite growing up in this area, what makes Lake Pepin a "lake." I tend to think of lakes as bodies of water that are, you know, separate from a river, or at least much, much larger than the river that feeds it? But, somehow this fat section of the Mississippi gets to technically be a lake. 

No matter how you define it, the view is gorgeous:


Image: the view atop the Frontenac State Park bluff towards Lake Pepin/the Mississippi River

Before leaving for the State Park, Shawn and I did a bit of reading in all the various books that we've collected on Minnesota state parks over the years. One of them recommended the self-guided interpretive trail and so we planned to walk that, as well as maybe the pine circle trail. I also really wanted to see the rock with a hole in it, called In-Yan-Teopa. 

We decided to drive down in our new-to-us Toyota, in order to test drive it. We are, for the first time in our lives, a two car family. There is a used car shortage and so we actually got this second car in order to hold in reserve for when our current Ford dies. I'm glad we test drove it because there was some concerning creaking that I'm going to have our mechanic look at when I take it in on Thursday, but we kind of forgot that our state park pass was actually affixed to the window of our OTHER car. So, when we got to the park, we had to stop in and get a day pass. Shawn managed to find a sweatshirt and several other things, so it was worthwhile. Plus, the ranger who was staffing the front desk was very helpful. She stamped my passport and gave us a great overview of places where we might see some good fall color.  She had just hiked everything in the last couple of days herself. 

She did also warn us, like all the books did, that there was "some elevation." I have come to understand that "some elevation" is the geological equivalent of "some weather." When Minnesotans tell you there's been some weather recently they don't mean a bit of rain, they mean a tornado ripped through yesterday. I now know that when a Minnesota park ranger tells you there is "some elevation," she means HOLY SH*T YOUR KNEES WILL KILL YOU CLIMBING ALL THOSE F*CKING STAIRS.


A blurry shot of stairs ascending the bluff.


But, so, Shawn and I took the interpretive hike, which did not have a huge amount of signage. But, it led to the lovely, flat pine circle trail which we enjoyed. It was very much Shawn's speed as it was a loop, had benches at every turn, and was under a mile. The hike back up to the picnic area, however, was where we first encountered "some elevation." This set of stairs was just one of MANY. We did get to hike along the old quarry site, which was fascinating, and there was an iron ring still pounded into the ground where a rock was going to be taken but was abandoned for some reason. 

At this point, even though we arrived fairly early (an hour or so after the park opened at 8 am), we started to encounter a lot of other hikers on the narrow trails. The trails were so narrow that we had to press up against the rock face in order to let people pass. 


This path is actually not as narrow as some, but you can see how there is just a wooden plank bridge over some areas. Now imagine that, only with the other side being a rock cliff.

The weather could not have been more perfect, however. We did see a bit of fall color here and there, too.


image: sunlight through yellows leaves

After the steep interpretive trail, Shawn tapped out. As she said several times during our walk, "Do not mistake me for a hiker," and so I left her at the picnic area with a good book (the newest Longmire) and waved goodbye as I headed off to see the rock. 

A good portion of the way out towards the rock was paved and perfectly flat. I missed a turn, however, and ended up tromping through the very busy campground (people were packing up to leave) until I found my way back to the upper bluff trail. That trail was slightly more rigorous, if only because the ground was uneven and the path narrowed significantly again. I got excited when I started to see signs for the rock...



image: a sign!!

But, I was disappointed by what I saw when I got to the observation area....


image: Yep, the uninteresting top of a rocky outcropping....

As I was staring at this very dull rock for several minutes a couple of other hikers came up and explained to me that if I wanted the view of the actual stone arch, I would have to hike down to the lower bluff trail. The ranger had been actually very clear (for a Minnesotan) that the lower bluff trail was steep "but do-able." Given that all we got for the stairs that nearly killed us was "some elevation," I figured this warning should be headed. Also, I was on my own. Shawn was waiting patiently in the picnic area, but it was after one o'clock and I still had to make my way all the way back to her. I decided that this was the view I was going to get. 

I did look it up, however, so if you're curious what I WOULD have seen, this is it::


Image. the view I should have gotten. (Yanked from the wikipedia entry on Frontenac State Park.) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frontenac_State_Park

We spend a good portion of our day on this little trip and it was very fun, though my knees ache a little today?  The ironic thing, of course, is that for all that walking not a mile of it counted for the Minnesota Hiking Club, because I never walked the official trail to get the password. At some point I will have to come back to log those miles, but not any time soon. Maybe I'll walk it next spring. 

Shawn brought along her old film camera, so it should be interesting to see if any of her pictures turn out. Also, as we were leaving we caught sight of trumpeter swans in the Mississippi. So, that was very nifty.

All and all, a thumbs up.

 
Image: The view of Minnesota Lock and Dam #1 (Mississippi River) from the Minnehaha Dog Park.

I went walking with some friends of mine early Saturday morning at the Minnehaha Dog Park. Not having a dog myself, I had only ever been there as a visitor once or twice before. It's actually quite lovely, if you are cool with random doggos bounding up to you on occasion to check you out (which I more than am.) 

The sky-blue asters were blooming.

Image: A flower growing on the banks of the Mississippi that I initially thought was called fleabane, but is actually "sky-blue aster."

To be fair to me, fleabane is in the aster family, and t's kind of a shame that these aren't fleabane, because fleabane does (to some varying degree of efficacy, which is to say almost none) repel fleas. Obviously, whether or not it actually works, fleabane seems like the perfect flower/weed to encourage in a dog park, doesn't it?  But, these, I'm fairly certain, are actually sky-blue asters, so there you go. They were everywhere along the sandy banks of the Mississippi. One of the few natives in bloom in the dog park. 

Anyway, it was a lovely walk followed by donuts and coffee shared with new friends, whom Shawn and I met at a backyard concert held by the neighbors-across-the-street. Shawn declined to go on the hike with us, being far more "indoorsy.". She stayed home and finished up a few rugs on the loom. 

But, Shawn and I went for our own neighborhood stroll on Sunday. During the height of the heavy lockdown part of the pandemic, Shawn and I used to go on neighborhood walks in St. Paul regularly. I started photographing some of the cool architectural details / nifty houses that I came across, and I posted them on Facebook. I did the same on Sunday, which you can feel free to check out, if we are Facebook friends, otherwise I will simply share this one very TERRIFYING bit of sidewalk poetry that we came across. 

 
Image: My second stamp in my passport club booklet

When Mason was still very sleepy, but awake I asked him how he felt about a road trip today. He said, in a very Mason way: "I would not mind that."  And, so one espresso drink later we were on our way to Taylor's Falls and Interstate State Park. The weather has been kind of gross here, if I'm honest? And our car's air-conditioning has stopped fully functioning, so it was a HOT hour to the State Park. However, I stopped in at the ranger station and got myself my second passport stamp. Whoo!  Only 73 more left to go!

I had to laugh, however, when we found the trail head:

Image: Ah, my old enemy... STAIRS!

There were, in point of fact, a lot of stairs on this hike. Many of them were actually wooden. There were several boardwalks and bridges built-in along the trail, too, which I found quite lovely. A number of the scenic overlooks also had fully built-up decks with park benches.  That part was quite lovely, as the terrain was very reminiscent of Magnetic Rock.... lots of rock and uneven ups and downs.

The views were quite lovely, however.


Image: The view from one of the many overlooks on the official Minnesota Hiking Club trail at Interstate State Park.

For my non-local friends, Minnesota is under a heavy haze thanks to the wildfire just above us in Canada that is threatening the boundary waters as WELL as the Bootleg fire in Oregon (at least I'd be surprised if we're not, given the size of that fire.)  The view, despite the fire haze, was fairly spectacular. We are also in a drought, so the trail was dusty and, in places, a bit dreary. There's one long section (maybe 800 feet) where we walked directly alongside the highway.

In fact, I was rather surprised how much highway noise we could hear during the entire hike. 

I would say I was disappointed, but that wasn't at all true. Once we made it to the campground area, we were able to get closer to the river. We found a way down to the shoreline and did a bit of exploring. 


Image: Our big little Last Child in the Woods in the woods, looking for signs of life in the water (specifically crawdads.)

Mason never found crawdads, but he did spot an adorable baby turtle just in the water-side of the shoreline, which we watch scoot around for awhile. He also surprised a chipmunk on the trail. I didn't get to see her, but he did.  The riverbank was lovely, honestly. I stuck my hot feet in the water and we sat for a long time on the sand in the shade and watched a couple of raptors circling overhead.


Image: Minnesota Native wildflower, the Tall Bellflower, growing along the banks of the St. Croix.


Image: The Saint Croix from its banks.

I was able to log my miles on the official Minnesota Hiking Club booklet, and I got my passport stamp (and I wrote in the TRAVEL LOG!!) So, I would say that despite the sweaty heat, this was well worth it. If you are wondering why there are no pictures of the potholes, it's because this was our second trip to this state park and we already had seen all the funky cool geological features. (See: Our Road Trip to Michigan. If you follow this link to my previous DW entry, you will also get the Concrete Park of Wisconsin, which is... terrifying, but also awesome?)

 I am officially a State Park nerd.

I have joined both the passport club and the hiking club. Why, you ask? Why not! The cost of both of them was about thirty bucks, so, say, fifteen each. (About twenty-five Euros, total.) It's not nothing? But, it's also not too much.


Image: Club items, include: A fancy pencil case embossed with the State Park Passport Logo, a travel log (!), a passport booklet. There is also a hiking book with a picture of affluent white people wandering into the woods.

So, what are these clubs? Well, so the Passport Club exists to get people to try every single state park in Minnesota. Sort of like Pokemon, only for state parks: You gotta catch 'em all!  Minnesota has at least 75 state parks and so, inside the little passport booklet there is space for over 75 stamps. Apparently, if you fill out the entire book, you can get a plaque with your name on it that can either hang in a state park office OR on your wall at home. I find this part kind of hilarious. I do not need a plaque, because I am all in on the travel log.  The travel log is kind of a pre-made bullet journal. There is a pre-printed table of contents, so that as you fill it out, you can mark which page has which park's entry. There's space for each park to have a full-page entry of your notes on your experience. I LOVE THIS CRAP. I like filing things out! I'm not even kidding. As a kid, I used to make up forms for me to fill out and then I would fill them out!! And, yeah, okay, I hear what you're saying: I could basically have made my own bullet journal out of the five-hundred and fifty-seven empty journals I have lying around, but this one is OFFICIAL.

The hiking club is a bit different, but also gamifies/rewards specific state park activities. With the passport, the idea is to see as many state parks as you can, with the hiking club, the idea is to walk as many of the trails as possible. You get rewards at mile markers, IF you hike the very specific trails they want you to take. They know if you've done it, because on each of these designated trails, there's a hidden password!  Which, I mean, is kind of fun, just in and of itself??  This one may be less successful for me, because I just like to go where I want to go?  But, if you fill out your miles, you can get patches (like to sew onto a jacket, I guess??) that show off how many miles you have hiked. You get your first one at 25 miles (40 kilometers.) 

Like yesterday, I walked around Fort Snelling State Park again. This time, I  followed a trail that led me around Snelling Lake. It was a 2 mile (3,2 km) hike and none of those miles count for the hiking club because this was not a designated trail.


Image: A lake full of lily pads. This is near a boat landing. Most of the lake is quite clear.

Several times I saw families of some kind of duck. MANY BABIES zipping along behind a parent in a little, adorable line.  I probably should have taken the time to dig out the binoculars out from my backpack because I just know they weren't the typical mallards.  They were smaller and definitely had rounder, possibly "hooded" heads. Were they wood ducks? Something else? I don't know because I was too excited to see all the little ducklings! One parent was in charge of eight little ones. But, I also saw pairs, with babies between them... and a completely different kind of duck when I was over closer to the Minnesota River.


Image: A wide, slow river. No ducklings in this picture because I am not that good a photographer.

But, right here is the reason I suspect that I'm going to be much worse at the hiking club goals than I am the passport's--although already I am repeating state parks, which I guess is not the point of the passport club either. But, the official hike for the club is the Pike Island hike, which I did part of already and so I was like, 'meh." I suspect I will fail to do either of these clubs properly, but I really don't care. I love the little log book! Did I mention the log book? 


Image: A purple coneflower growing in the Fort Snelling State Park

 I was very worried when we started off up Honeymoon Bluff, because, once again, like Kung Fu Panda, I met my old enemy….

 Today (Wednesday) we hiked to Magnetic Rock. Magnetic Rock is one of those official destination hikes like Devil’s Kettle, where we had to get in the car and drive about twenty miles, nearly to the end of the Gunflint Trail.  

 Woke up to temperatures this morning of 42 degrees F (5 C). 

This weekend was cold and rainy. I did do a few hikes, despite the drizzle, mostly to try to figure out what my next destination will be. On my way out to explore Bear Cub, I discovered that the National Forestry Service is doing "fire suppression" work... which, looks a lot like clear-cutting and setting up giant bonfires??

'

In fact, by chance Shawn and I ran into Bob (one of the owners of Bearskin) on our way back and asked him about it. That is precisely what they've been doing. They have been cutting out pines that are six inches in diameter in width, piling them up, and setting them ablaze. This method got away from them (NO SH*T) and they burned a huge section of Ox Cart Ski Trail by accident. Bob has been spending a lot of his time at various meetings trying to get them to stop this nonsense. 

I feel like this is about on par with Tr*mp's big plan to "rake" the forests to suppress fires.  

It is both heartbreaking to see and deeply angering. 

I did manage a bit of this trail, but it is a ski racing trail for a reason. This hills are MASSIVE, and so I hauled myself up a couple before giving up. Plus, with the rain, it seemed actually dangerous.

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Image: Bear Cub World Cup, please note the elevation indicator blow the sign. It looks like a heartbeat.

Today, the big plan is to head back for another grocery run and take a detour out to see Devil's Kettle waterfalls. We are state park members, so we can spend as much time exploring there as we like.

Today was a day when we planned on a grocery run to Grand Marais. Since a trip to town is a half an hour away from the cabin, Mason and I decided to see of we could also squeeze in a hike somewhere. 

 Tuesday, I decided to hit an easier destination than Rudy Lake. I’d noticed in my deep read of the ski trails that North-South branched off toward Aspen Lake. The little distance marker suggested that the extra leg was exactly a mile—easy peasey!  However, my map also gives a vague sense of topography, so I knew that I’d end up going up and down some pretty steep hills (fun for skiing!)  Indeed, at least one was so steep that I hugged the tree line in case I needed handholds!

 We set off for Bearskin in our usual frenzy of packing and whatnot.  The first leg of the road is always just a push, three hours north, to Duluth. Once in Duluth, we begin to meander down Scenic Highway 61.