We are taking US 2 because: a) we've been told it's an awesome drive across some beautiful countryside, and b) the road map shows it as a scenic drive. Well, it's hard to see the scenery when it's all behind trees. What has been nice, though, is seeing the small towns, not having to go through major cities, and having only minor truck traffic. When you can get a glimpse of the lakes and countryside, it is beautiful.
The first third of the drive was hilly and forested and the small towns we encountered looked as if they had been forgotten by the world. Small industries and shut down store fronts.
We crossed into the Fond Du Lac Chippewa's reservation and we started seeing lakes through the trees and signs for resorts on the lakes, but never the resort. Looks as if the main "industry" is fishing, spending time on the lake at a resort, and outfitting those who want to go into the woods. We passed a lot of lakes - or at least signs to them. (Minnesota's slogan just may be correct!) We crossed into the Leech Lake Tribe's reservation and it was the same geography, but more lakes. As we got to the edge of the Chippewa National Forest, we then entered the Red River Tribe's area. As the land was becoming more flat, we started seeing ranches and some farms. Each reservation has a casino - again we stopped in one for lunch in the parking lot. We encountered swarms of dragonflies the size of our hands. Maggie just looked confused trying to figure out whether she should ignore them or chase them. Three out of four pick up trucks we saw were towing fishing boats. Roger commented at one time, "There goes Virgil Flowers." If you've read any John Sandford books, you will know who he's talking about.
I spotted a HUGE nest up in the top of a dead tree and as we got closer we saw two bald eagles. One was perched on a branch and the other standing on the nest. Bet there were babies up there!
Birds - a side note here - We have seen many different kinds, but I think that this trip through the farmlands has produced the most sitings of red-winged blackbirds I have ever had on any trip. They are more numerous than crows and are much prettier!
Lots of logging going on in these forests and there was a huge paper mill in one of the towns. When we got to Bemidji there were all kinds of signs referencing Paul Bunyan and Babe, so in the 1800s this area must have really seen a lot of logging.
The last third of the drive today was flat and full of farms. I'm assuming sugar beets because I saw a Sugar Beet Museum as we passed through one town. Sugar beets and alfalfa seemed to be the crops of choice.
We crossed the Mississippi River twice and saw a sign pointing to a small lake that is the headwaters for the river. At this latitude the river is only a few feet across and it's hard to imagine that it will become the giant river that it does.
Wind - we had a headwind most of the day - a pretty strong one. The winds are following that big storm system from yesterday. As we got closer to Grand Forks, SD (where we are staying tonight) I saw lots of toppled and broken trees. Here in the RV park the place is littered with broken cottonwood branches. The young woman in the office said that they had 80mph winds here with that storm system yesterday. We had overcast skies and cool temperatures this morning when we left Duluth, but as we came west the sky cleared and the temps got up into the 70s. The big deal today was wind.
We are in a campground just south of Grand Forks, ND called the Grand Forks Campground. It is a former KOA (the building gives it away) and is pretty disreputable looking. It's near the highway, has many permanent residents, and has a weird odor. It is surrounded by sugar beet farms so may be the smell is from that - although I know what manure smells like and this isn't it. There is farming equipment spread out all over the place, and some broken down trucks parked off to one side. There are plenty of spaces for over-nighter's and we've already got several neighbors in the transient side of the park. We did get a long pull-through with full hookups. Half the site is under water from the storm and the utilities are, again, a long way away. Rog managed to get situated so that everything reached and the entry steps are on dry land. We didn't put down the stabilizers in back because there was too much water to wade through to get to them. Let's just say it's not one of our favorite places we've stayed on this trip, but better than a couple of them.
We took some time to reevaluate our route from here. The plan was (and is still) to continue on US2 to Minot, ND and then drop down to I-94 from there. Since we haven't seen the "awesomeness" of US2 yet I thought maybe Roger would like to go down the interstate and catch I94 at Fargo. After looking at the wind forecast he opted to continue on our original plan. Better, he says to face strong headwinds than have strong sidewinds. The wind forecast for tomorrow is 15-25mph coming directly from the west. As it did today, the truck will probably suck down a whole bunch of fuel bucking the wind.
I'll be giving Roger a haircut tonight before he takes his shower. Wish he could do the same for me. The minute I figure out what day we return to Sparks is the minute I call Jill, my haircut lady! Up until now the longer hair hasn't been an issue - it loves the humidity and stayed nice and wavy/curly. Now that we are getting to the drier climate, it's not looking so good.
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