"48"- Day 5- Mississippi, #48, and secrets
Minnesota this morning.....Mississippi tonight?!?!?
Originally published 12/18/2022
Are we in Mississippi? What a ride that was from Duluth! Hey.....wait a minute!
We left Duluth this morning and programmed our next destination into Waze. My plan was to head due west across the incredibly remote interior of Minnesota and into our 48th state together....North Dakota! We are in a very urban/downtown area and the app says we need to go 90 miles south. I'm thinking "that's not right!"
We left Duluth this morning and programmed our next destination into Waze. My plan was to head due west across the incredibly remote interior of Minnesota and into our 48th state together....North Dakota! We are in a very urban/downtown area and the app says we need to go 90 miles south. I'm thinking "that's not right!"
We found a place to stop and checked the routing. The app wanted to route us south to Minneapolis then back up north to Fargo and Bismark, in North Dakota. We did not plan to ride the interstates so much this trip. We wanted to take back roads through rural areas. We wanted to see and explore off the beaten path. This would not do.
Not for the timid
In order to take the route we want, we navigated to a VERY remote town about half way to North Dakota on the route we wanted to take. When we reached that town, we programmed in our final destination and took the route we wanted. Our intent on this trip is the path less traveled. To see and do things not along the interstate. To go places at times when others go the other direction. We refuse to stray from this now.
While driving through incredibly remote northwest Minnesota we crossed a bridge. I did a double take when I read the sign and actually stopped. Laurie shot a quick photo out of the truck window. We did a google search when cell service returned and found the Mississippi River starts at Lake Itasca in northwest Minnesota! Same river......and we crossed it today. This was totally unexpected and a really cool "Easter Egg" we found along the way.
Paul Bunyan, Akeley, MN
In the town of Akeley, MN, we drive by a statue of Paul Bunyan, probably 40 feet tall or more. This one was worth turning around for. We whip a U turn and come back into the small village for a photo or two.
One of Laurie's physicians (Dr. Busbee) is spending Christmas in Nevis. We went through Nevis, MN took a photo of the sign to prove it, and looked for Dr. Busbee. We did not see him. There must be another Nevis......
One of Laurie's physicians (Dr. Busbee) is spending Christmas in Nevis. We went through Nevis, MN took a photo of the sign to prove it, and looked for Dr. Busbee. We did not see him. There must be another Nevis......
Nevis, MN, population 377
We go across Minnesota and North Dakota, with daytime temperatures below zero Fahrenheit. We see snow to the top of fence posts. We see trees covered in snow that look like they could come to life, like some snow covered monster. We see vast frozen lakes with solitary snowmobile tracks across them and we see ice fishermen in their huts. We pass snowmobiles on trails that parallel the highway.
We see cars, but your mind doesn't really connect the vehicle to people as you don't really see them. The only place we see other people are at fuel stops. Everyone tops off and gets coffee, a confirmation that we are not alone out here. This is a comfort, as well as a shared badge of honor. Getting coffee at a fuel stop in the middle of the Minnesota wilderness on a below zero day is not for the timid.
Wilderness tree monsters
We are bearing down on our stop for the night in Bismark, North Dakota. It is after dark, VERY cold, and very remote. We start seeing these tubes of light rising up from the ground into the sky. They're everywhere.......like some tractor beam from a space ship. Are we crazy???? What are these? Are we really seeing them?
It turns out these are called "light pillars", and are a very rare occurrence seen only a handful of times every year. Like the northern lights, they are one of the most unusual things in the night sky. They are rare as the conditions have to be perfect, with VERY cold temperatures and no wind. Ice crystals fall slowly down through the atmosphere and reflect light, appearing to be a huge shaft of light going into the heavens. Through sheer luck we experienced an incredibly rare phenomenon. This was SO amazing.
We are running through the frozen wilderness, the middle of nowhere, the middle of winter, in sub zero temperatures. We try to travel off the beaten path, and we are succeeding. We are rewarded with things seen by few other than the locals. Sharing harshly cold and remote experience with the locals helps us have a better understanding of those that live here.
We venture off the beaten path, with the hearty few that live here. As a reward, this cold and frozen wilderness is showing us her secrets and treasures.
Goodnight everyone.====
We venture off the beaten path, with the hearty few that live here. As a reward, this cold and frozen wilderness is showing us her secrets and treasures.
Goodnight everyone.====