A typical rest stop: buy a soda, charge my phone, use the bathroom, update the website.
Website
Minnesota has been the most pedestrian-friendly state by far.
We shared a wonderful evening yesterday, sitting on the deck as the sun set, eating pizza. And then retreating to our respective shelters before the mosquitoes came out in full force.
On the Lake Wobegon Trail. I'll walk over 100 consecutive miles on this trail and others like it, not counting a couple of brief supply stops in towns along the way.
Day 73
Aspen, Quaking
June 7th, 2010
Populus tremuloides
One of my favorite sights (and sounds) in the world! (Although my camera can't do it justice.)
Day 73
Stephen Nei’s Eagle Project
June 8th, 2010
I passed two of these rotating informational signs on the trail today. This one had been vandalized to look more like Pac-Man. Following along with the video, we see: State Mushroom (Morel), State Butterfly (Monarch), State Bird (Common Loon), and State Flower (Showy Lady's-Slipper). The second sign contained info on the state's biomes, wild turkeys, eutrophication, and James J. Hill.
Taken from the top of a viewing platform along the trail in Avon, MN.
The trail mile markers line up with the railroad mileposts, even though that means the trail starts at Mile 81.
I saw many of these along the trail today, mostly around the town of Freeport.
I was drawn to their house by the large stone grotto in their front yard (more on this to follow). They gave me tours of the grotto and their beautiful garden, and fed me some great homemade food, including the first batch of strawberries from their garden this year.
Inspired by something similar he saw in Michigan, Eymard built this over the course of four months in 1990, spending countless hours searching for rocks that were the right shapes and sizes (every stone used in the grotto is as he found it; none were split or altered to fit). The water cascading over the steps passes through a screen at the bottom to filter out debris and is then pumped back up to the top to begin the downward journey all over again.
For five consecutive winters, Eymard worked on his memoir, writing everything by hand. He published it in 2008 with the help of, I believe, a daughter-in-law and the scoutmaster of the local Boy Scout troop. He is going to mail a copy to my parents for me to read when I get home. I'm quite excited: flipping through, I noticed many intriguing story titles, such as "Dogs in the Hog Pen", "Spitballs Hit the Ceiling", "About Time You Washed Your Feet Young Feller", and "Hot Britches".
Birthplace of Sinclair Lewis, the first American to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.
Larry's main competitor, Harry uses the latest in meteorological fence technology. If the fence has a shadow, it's sunny!
I also love the color choice.
And notice the three beautiful little flowers in the corner.
I made a bathroom stop at a Burger King and discovered a whole line of pseudo-witty posters and signs on display. Here they are.
Is this a generic term people use or is it specifically referring to the Mall of America?
