Unique Places in Minnesota

This is America. Pumpkins growing fat and plump in anticipation of Halloween. Every kid loves a pumpkin patch--especially Linus from the cartoon series "Peanuts". The cartoonist Charles Schultz was born and raised in St. Paul. I suspect he had firsthand knowledge of Minnesota's pumpkin patches. Like Linus, I have yet to see the Great Pumpkin arise from the pumkin patch on Halloween night, but I'll keep a vigilant watch just in case.

65 families in the area got together and built this memorial chapel at the Spring Creek Norwegian Lutheran Cemetery founded in 1906.

The granit marker's inscription says:

"For He is our peace..." Eph 2:14

This Memorial Chapel is dedicated to the memory of all the loved ones who have gone before us, to honor the pioneers who struggled to settle the land, a salute to the Veterens who served to protect it. Peace.

Original markings from when my family originally owned it still visible.

The owners that bought it from my family are only second to own this land. It was nice of them to have us for our family reunion.

We drove from Minneapolis out to a family reunion on a farm that was originally homesteaded by my great, great grandparents who travelled from Norway in 1876. This region of Minnesota is comprised of low rolling hills, large beautiful trees, green, green, and more green fields.

I wondered where all the water for the Mississippi River comes from because I'm used to rivers born of snowmelt off mountainsides. The first night I spent in Minnesota it rained, and rained, and rained some more. That year there were huge floods about a week later farther downriver on the Mississippi.

We visited this Vince Shute Wildlife Sanctuary one day in August of 1998. You drive along a long dirt/gravel road to where there are some observation decks.
These bears really are wild and there have been attacks in the past, but generally, they seemed well-behaved. They feed them and I guess that's how they know to gather there during parts of the year. It is kind of intimidating getting from your car to the deck and back as they are just wandering around and there are a few volunteers walking around with big walking sticks to try to keep them away from the visitors.

You can find a few more photos on my travelogue which includes this same info.

The settlers of this state most often built their rural churches on the highest hilltop in the region. I'm not sure if it was an attempt to get closer to God or whether the Norskes not being all that good with directions, simply set their church on the highest hill so it would always be in sight and easy to find.

This photo is of the Vasa Lutheran Church in Vasa, Minnesota.

Minnesota has always had wolfpacks patrolling its northern forests. A few decades ago the wolves were all but wiped out from the lower 48 states. Minnesota was the lone exception with its sparsely populated northern forests. Minnesota does not have free range livestock, so there was not the same type of wolf bounty hunting as plagued the western states.

Of course, wolves have now been reintroduced in many states and the Minnesota wolves are also doing better. However, to this day, there are many who see the wolf as a threat. Do you know that there are no confirmed reports of wolves attacking people in Minnesota.

One day I will get a clear photo of a wolf and post it here.

Visit www.wolf.org to learn about wolves and explore the possibility of a wolf centered eco-vacation.

After spending a year at the University of New Brunswick, in Fredericton, I returned to BC with some classmates. We drove across the country in a Volkswagon van. After following along Lake Superior on the USA-side, we passed into Wisconsin and then Minnesota.