I left Saint Ignace, and headed to Canada. To get there, I had to go to Sault Ste. Marie and cross at the Soo Locks. I had spent some time in Sault Ste. Marie on my 2013 gypsy trip, so I didn’t spend any time exploring the locks, although they are fascinating. If you’re interested, […]
As I left Voyageurs National Park, I headed south. I first came upon the city of Duluth, Minnesota. I’m not sure what I had in my head, but I don’t think I envisioned a natural resources port as large as this one. It was interesting to see all the different types of facilities there for
Voyageurs National Park is located about a two-hour drive almost due north of Bemidji, Minnesota. It is one of the few national parks where you need a boat to reach the bulk of the area, as most of it is not drivable. The land area of the park is contained within the islands of the
Over 700 miles separate Medora, North Dakota and Voyageurs National Park in International Falls, Minnesota. I made three stops along the way. The first stop was in Jamestown, North Dakota. It is on I-94 and is home to the world’s largest buffalo statue. I spent the day there. The statue is in Frontier Park, which
My third Badlands in 30 days. First, I didn’t know there was more than one Badlands. To me, the only Badlands I had ever heard of was South Dakota’s National Park. I’d been there a couple of times. They were interesting colors, and stark rocks with striated hues showing the different geological formations that had made
The drive (almost due north) from South Dakota to North Dakota was anything but straight. I zigged and zagged around towns, farms, and outcroppings of rocks (bigger than hills, but not exactly mountains). Along the way, I started seeing a crop that didn’t look familiar. I had to look it up. It turned out to
The South Dakota Badlands are about 50 miles from Rapid City, South Dakota. The significant town is Wall. In the 1930s, Wall Drug Store was just a small shop on the main drag. They started giving away free ice water as vehicles came across the South Dakota prairie. It was hot, dry, and generally miserable
From Calgary, we pushed toward Winnipeg. Doug and Cheryl had friends to see in Minnesota, and I had a plane to catch in Winnipeg. There wasn’t much to see — mostly just prairie and the occasional eerie sky caused by nearby smoke. We stopped in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, and then in Winnipeg, Manitoba. At this
After several long days on the road, we finally arrived in Calgary, Alberta. Here, we met up with Cheryl’s friend, Jen, again, and she was gracious enough to play tour guide. On the first day, we went to downtown Calgary. I specifically wanted to see this city, home of the games dubbed the Calgary Stampede.
Cheryl had told me that between Watson Lake and Fort Nelson, we would have our best opportunity to see wildlife. Not long after we left our motel, Doug pulled into a parking area. I wasn’t looking at the road, and as I looked up, I was a bit confused. There were numerous signs nailed to
