Thursday, August 28, 2014
Today, we departed Bemidji and headed south on US Highway 71 to Granite Falls. We had a leisurely drive through the Minnesota “North Woods” past Wildflowers, Aspens, Pines, Larch, Birch, abundant hardwoods, and numerous glacial lakes, then through the Long Prairie area, past large agricultural fields. We saw several more pairs of Trumpeter Swans in the north woods, along with many small lakes and marshes, with wading birds. Long Prairie was the site of the 1845 Sioux/Ojibwe/Wennebago Indian Agency. Unfortunately, these peoples were fierce rivals and somebody had to go. This opened vast lands to be grabbed by white settlers, so now we have lots of Scandinavian descendents here. We had a picnic lunch at Menahga, (means “blueberry bush” in Chippewa). At Wadena, the town has over 100 murals depicting “1000 years of Minnesota History”. Quite a puzzle!
In the prairie, we saw lots of corn, oats, wheat, barley, soybeans, alfalfa,  and sugar beets. Also, dairy farms are quit prevalent, along with game farms that provide for bird and deer hunting. We also took a short-cut and drove through an Amish Farm Community, an interesting contrast to their large-farm neighbors. The agribusiness farms in this area average several thousand acres. Fall is definitely approaching, as the leaves are beginning to show their fall colors.
In our Minnesota travels, we encountered the three-way continental divide (Laurentian Divide) of the north. We have encountered it previous travels here but never completely understood it’s significance. The roadside marker reads as follows:

A drop of rain water falling here in the Giants Range, a rare three-way continental divide, may flow either north into the icy Hudson Bay, east into the Atlantic Ocean, or south into the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

From the north slope of these very old granite ridges, streams flow into the Red River of the North, through Lake Winnipeg, and into Hudson Bay in northern Canada.

Creeks and rivers on the south slope flow into the St. Louis River, enter Lake Superior at Duluth, and eventually reach the north Atlantic through the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River.

On a western spur of Giants Range the great watershed of the immense Mississippi River system gathers the flow from a maze of streams and swamps as the legendary river begins its winding course from Lake Itasca to the Gulf of Mexico, more than 2,500 miles away.

Lying as it does near the center of the North American continent, Minnesota marks the transition between eastern woodlands and western prairies and between northern coniferous forests and rich grain-growing land of the mid-nation.  It is a land of dramatic differences, tied to the world through three great waterways that originate in these rocks and streams.

We’re spending four days, over Labor Day weekend, at the Prairie’s Edge Casio and Resort, owned by the Upper Sioux Tribe, in Granite Falls, Minnesota. The area has lots of attractions and the Casino maintains a nice RV park and offers entertainment, and some scrumptious dining opportunities.
Granite Falls is situated on the Minnesota River, with an extensive outcropping of volcanic granite along it’s banks, and it can be seen all over the area. It’s the county seat of Yellow Medicine County, named for the yellow root of a medicinal plant used by the Native American Dakota people. The Minnesota River takes it’s rise just south of the Laurentian Divide (North Divide) and flows through here, on down to it’s confluence with the Mississippi River.
Wishing you all a relaxing Labor Day!
Bob (AND Terry)

Boy did I get behind on my notes. Terry has been much better than me. I make notes mainly for purposes of later reference AND to share with friends and family. Now, I have to go back and include some things that I want to incorporate and remember. This practice is inconsistent with the Blog format but it’s sometimes difficult to keep up chronologically. So, now it’s catch-up time:
Tuesday, July 1, 2014
Well the “Mighty Mississippi” is still on the rise. We have been aboard three nights and been through four severe thunder storms. The Savanna Marina is located on the east bank of the Mississippi River, at Savanna Illinois, in an old oxbow lake. With the river at flood stage, the water is pouring through the marina at 3-4 knots, with the water still rising. After a thunderstorm dumped three inches of rain on Sunday night, we awoke, Monday morning to find our 16-foot tender boat swamped and then capsized(Sunk). (An automatic bilge pump would possibly have prevented the mishap.) Thanks to a small group of our marina staff and neighbors, we successfully hauled it out.
The camaraderie and amusing stories made the unnerving task almost enjoyable. With the help of my new buddy, Frank (the marina manager), we got it dried out, cleaned, refueled, and running, just as another severe thunderstorm hit us.
We closely monitor the weather, so we knew the severe thunderstorm was coming from the west, but we were intent on finishing the boat repair. Just as we got it re-assembled and running, the storm hit, and thanks to our friends, we got everything stowed and secured just minutes before the severe weather part. (Keep in mind that we are living on the houseboat at this time.  Riding out the storms.)
Given the circumstances, we had to leave the boat resting on large timbers, on the edge of the parking lot, where we had hauled it out for the repairs. Aware that the river is still rising, we moored the boat over-night to my truck hitch, parked 60 feet up-hill, on  the parking lot. Well, we all had a chuckle this morning because the water was within 15 feet of my truck and my boat was bobbing around the parking lot, tethered to my truck. Frank was born and raised on the river, so he knew exactly what he was doing when he directed the project. So, the river floated our boat that yesterday, had been hauled out to dry land, and set on blocks for rejuvenating repairs. After moving the boat back to the dock, we returned to our daily activities.
Today, a steady stream of river-watchers have paraded around the partially flooded parking lot with dashed hopes for boating on the 4th of July weekend. The Army Corps and the DWF have closed the river to commercial and recreational traffic. The marina is closed to launching, so it will remain a quiet spot for boat owners and marina staff. I’ve heard lots of boaters complaining about a recurring, seasonal dilemma of not getting good river conditions until mid-July. We do not mind the wait. We are on river-time!
Just like we expected, every day brings a new challenge(s), and every day you learn the ways of the river. Out here, there’s a lot of wise counsel available and you had better seek it AND listen. We plan to stay safe, prepare and follow the guidelines.
7-17
After living aboard, moored at the pier, in the marina, we have arrived at the point that we can not get insurance without an expensive survey. Based on thorough investigation, we have elected to sell the boat and go back to a travel trailer. We are disappointed that we can not, in our current situation, continue with our live-aboard cruise plans. However, we know that this is the right decision for us. It’s just too physically demanding and would be too expensive and uncomfortable. See you on the road!
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
Last night, our fourteen-year-old Jack suffered a seizure, and it was heartbreaking to watch. He was  rigid, with moaning, and wailing for a few minutes. I thought that he was going to die but as he was struggling to get up, I helped to lift and support him and that seemed to slightly quiet and comfort him. For two hours following the seizure, he seemed totally disoriented and was desperately trying to find himself and make some degree of recovery. He finally drank water and went to sleep, and I just knew he wouldn’t wake up. We spent a sleepless night watching over him and this morning, he slowly got back to his normal state.
We did some research and discovered that there are two kinds of seizures most common in old dogs. Unfortunately, depending on the cause, it could recur. We will get him to a vet asap if it happens again.

Leaving Savanna, Illinois, we traveled up the upper Mississippi River, camping at the US Army Corp of Engineers Parks, situated on the various pools, behind each lock and dam structure. Grant River and Blackhawk were in remote settings but Goose Island is just south of La Crosse. Saw Sand Hill cranes here. We enjoyed visiting La Crosse, touring the Lady of Guadalupe Shrine, downtown river park and garden, and the UW-La Crosse campus. 

Leaving La Crosse, we traveled across Wisconsin, heading to Duluth, Minnesota. We followed the Mississippi River and the St. Croix River up to Superior and Duluth. We enjoyed sampling the cheese of Wisconsin but they are so abundant that it’s impossible to sample them all. Crossing the Wisconsin Ice Age moraines, we were surprised to see numerous sand mines, amid controversial political protests. We discovered that the sand had come into high demand by the petroleum industry and is used in the process of hydraulic fracturing to produce oil and gas from shale formations. The sand had special qualities that make it very desirable, so it is mined, sifted, sorted, and shipped, to meet the needs of the customer. Concurrently, local conservationists are trying to halt state sand-mining permits in order to protect the natural moraine.
At Eau Claire, Wisconsin, we discovered that this is the venue for the U.S. Championship in Kubb. It’s a Scandinavian game, popular in the state.

We spent a week at Duluth, visiting the Canal Park, Enger Tower, Aquarium, Spirit Mountain, ship docks, and the downtown. Duluth is situated on the north shore of Lake Superior, with steep hills directly adjacent to the town. It‘s called the San Francisco of the Midwest. First Street runs about one mile, from the water straight up the hill.
Duluth, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin are both large commercial shipping ports, adjacent to each other, situated on the west side of Lake Superior. This is one of the most impressive examples of teamwork, just the epitome of cooperation and coordination.  They move one-thousand-foot ships in and out of the harbor, facilitating the loading and unloading of all sorts of cargo. Specialized teams of pilots move the ships to and from the harbor incorporating/coordinating teams of tug boats and line handlers. Other teams conduct the loading process, while even more teams of folks manage the paperwork and technical aspects of insuring seaworthiness. For example, a gigantic, pelletized taconite, iron ore facility, receives the pellets from the Minnesota Iron Range, by rail. The rails cars are dumped into the ore dock facility, by the carloads . Next, the ore is conveyed into the ship hold by computer-controlled material handling equipment. The heavy ore has to be loaded in a certain sequence to avoid damaging or unbalancing the ship. One can observe the same activities at nearby elevators, in handling oats, wheat, cement, coal, and limestone.
Next, we traveled along the Lake Superior north shore to Two Harbors. Spending a few days at Two Harbors, we walked the lakeshore trail, saw the iron ore facility and shopped around the town. We took a day-trip to Gooseberry Falls State Park, a beautiful park with awesome waterfalls, at the lakeside.

Next, we drove north to International Falls and Voyageurs National Park, for a few days on the Boundary Waters. This place is a “river of lakes” dotted with numerous, rocky islands, varying from tiny to large.
We took a cruise on the Rainy Lake area and visited some old gold mines, saw Bald Eagles, Loons, and lots of islands. The International Falls Bass Championship was held during our stay and we got to see our first boat parade ever. With around eighty entries in the tournament, the opening event was a boat parade of the contestant teams. Each contestant team, friends, and family, parade along main street down to the tournament headquarters at the city park. Here they are introduced, as the truck/tailored boats pass the review stand. What’s strange is that it is a quiet parade; no bands etc. It’s like Mardi Gras but boats instead of floats. We also saw our first lawn-tractor drag races, as part of the tournament festivities. Each night, they had music and other entertainment for the visitors. Yes, Minnesota has lots of rednecks too! Ain’t life great!

Our next travel was down to Bemidji, Minnesota, where the mighty Mississippi River takes it’s rise. Saw Trumpeter Swans along this route. This area is home to several Indian reservations with casinos. It’s a WalMart town so it has all the accommodations that we need. We attended church at St. Phillips, a very impressive church and community. We have attended church almost every Sunday and large to small, we have been fulfilled.
Today, we explored  Lake Itasca State Park(1891), Minnesota’s oldest park, and headwaters of the Mississippi River. Itasca is a “lake of lakes” in an Ice Age glacial plain, consisting of 100+ interconnected lakes. The Mississippi River begins here and ironically, flows north to Bimidji Lake and then begins it’s 2600-mile course south to the Gulf of Mexico. At the headwaters, Terry waded across the river and I walked a log across. There were several places in the woods where you could literally step across the river. We had heard a lot of stories about this place but it was exhilarating to be here and witness it.
The day was cool and clear, with a light northwesterly wind. We saw a pair of Bald Eagles that were the largest we have ever seen. At the Visitor Center, we confirmed our sighting of a pair of Trumpeter Swans that we saw a few miles north of the park.
It was a good day!
Today is a mail day, meaning that our mail from the Green Cove Springs, Mail Forwarding Service will arrive at the Bemidji UPS store. We can use UPS or Post Office General Delivery to get our mail whenever we want it. Also, we can see it on the computer, whenever we want. We only forward a small portion of our mail for tangible things that we need in-hand like the dogs’ heartworm pills and the license plates for our new trailer.
Wednesday, August 27, 2014
As of today, we have made application for “winter-quarters” camp host jobs at three locations:
First- Las Vegas
Second- Southern New Mexico
Third- Southern California
We’ll keep you posted on the outcome. Maybe you can come visit!
Bob

Now we are in Minnesota and it is beautiful here too.

 Duluth, William A Irvin Ore Ship Museum

 Great Lakes Aquarium, Duluth.  A very beautiful Sea Horse, pregnant maybe?

 Enger Tower over looks Duluth MN harbor and city.

That long, green land mass is called Park Point.  We walked the beach there.

Looking out on Lake Superior as the Gooseberry River runs in to it.

 Here is the lower Goosberry Falls.  Bob is on the far left with Jack.

 Jack enjoying the lower falls.

 There are several buildings at this state park that were built by the CCC.  This statue is to commemorate their work.

 Upper Gooseberry Falls.

 I looked for sea glass all along the Atlantic coast from Florida to Maine.

 I found sea glass on a beach on Lake Superior.

Here are some more photos from our stay in Wisconsin:

 This "fossil" catfish was at the entrance of our campsite at a Corps of Engineers campground right on the MS river.

 Here is Bob relaxing on the front porch.

I love Urban Art.  These herons are the choice for urban art in La Crosse, WI. 

 We visited an international friendship garden in La Crosse.

 Another heron at the garden.

 We went to Mass at the Our Lady of Guadalupe Shrine here.  The gardens and buildings are breathtaking.

 Statue of Juan Diego showing the bishop proof of Mary on his cloak.

 The first native American saint Kateri Tekawitha.

The votive chapel.  It is incredible inside.  There are so many candles it is quite warm in there.

We have not posted here in a while so here are some photos.  Bob will post some narrative soon.  We've been busy with the business of selling our boats and buying our new camper (land yacht?).  It has taken quite a bit to switch gears.  We are about to launch ourselves again though.

 Mt Carrol, IL, an old college we visited.  Beautiful grounds and buildings.

 The old college.

First night in our new camper at a very nice county park in Dubuque, IA.  They gave us a bottle of champagne to toast it with.  I thought about breaking over the tongue of the camper but decided that would be a waste.