8/14/12 - Crossing the Mississippi

We left Little Sand Bay and drove south and west to Itasca State Park in western Minnesota.  We drove through miles and miles of pines and fir in the North Woods.  I can see why this area draws people.  It is magical. 

We stayed at Lake Itasca State Park in the Bear Paw Loop of the campground.  We didn't see any bears.  Yet.  We live in hope.

Our neighbor, Bonnie, and her dog Hanna were great.  They joined us for a campfire and giant marshmallows.  Hanna was so sweet - blind and deaf and 15 years old but always ready to give kisses and to receive pets.  She was a black chow and something else.  In the morning, Bonnie gifted us with fresh coffee and bowls of cantelope.  How great is that to discover a friend when you meet a stranger! 

Itasca was established to preserve the white and red pine.  In the 1800's, Mary Gibbs, a 26 year old woman, single-handedly stood off armed lumbermen to save the forest in the north part of the park.  The park is one great stand of old growth timber.

This area of the park is special because it contains the headwaters of the Mississippi River.  This mighty river is 5 miles wide at its mouth in New Orleans, LA.  It flows out of Lake Itasca where it is only about 12 feet wide. 

When I was eight years old, my family visited Itasca and I remember wading across the river.  I stood and watched the water flow between my feet and thinking about that same water becoming so wide after its  2500+ miles' journey south.  It is the longest river on this continent.  One of the items knocking about on my bucket list was to cross the Mississippi at its headwaters before we left the Midwest.

Today we did it.  Now in order to accomplish this feat, you stagger across slippery stepping stones.  If you fall in, that is a sign of great luck. 

I made it part way across by using my walking sticks. 

Drichab Anna and Adina made it all the way across. 

I went about twenty feet south and inched my way across on a fallen log.  None of us fell in but we felt lucky anyway.

We spent most of the morning there.  The displays were really interesting. 

We found a statue of the head and shoulders of a woman.  Her flowing hair symbolized the river water.  She holds a basket full of turtles and her torso is surrounded by them.  The turtles also have great symbolism.  Many Native Americans think of the earth as a turtle.  Its four feet point in the four directions, its head points up to Father Sun and its tail points down to Mother Earth.  The statue was beautiful, cast in bronze. 

We found a quote by Aldo Leopold, our friend Thokmay's grandfather, on one of the displays.  He was the father of modern conservation in Wisconsin.  He wrote "The Sand County Almanac."  He said:  "A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrigy, stability and beauty of the biotic community.  It is wrong when it tends otherwise."  I couldn't agree more. 

Drichab's comment on the park:  I want to come back here!  I would love to rent a bike and ride the bike trails.

Adina says:  Itasca State Park is very beautiful and is worth coming to play in.  It woud be wonderful if someone would come camping here with Drichab Anna so she could come back here.

About noon we left Itasca and began our day of driving.  We wanted to reach South Dakota by nightfall.  Our plans went awry when we hit construction on Minnesota Highway 212.  Our plan was to pick up 212 in Montevideo MN.  What we found was a series of detours that took us 10-20 miles south for a few miles, then 10-20 miles north for a few miles - back and forth, back and forth.  It took us about 70 miles to travel west 20 miles.  Driving on detours is very tiring.

We picked up supper at a Burger King where I discovered sweet potato fries.  WOW!  If you get a chance to try them, do.  They were really good. 

We finally found a campsite just past Watertown SD where we pulled in about 7:30 pm. 

Tomorrow, we drive hard across SD on our way to the Badlands, Wind Cave and the Black Hills.  If the gods of construction allow it, we'll reach that area by tomorrow night.

Have any of you ever driven to the Baclands or the Black Hills?  Anyone ever seen the scupture of Crazy Horse?