Grand Forks ND to Hibbing, MN

 

Sunday March 28, 2021 – Today is Palm Sunday.  There is an Episcopal Church in Grand Forks, ND that was having services in church, but we choose to listen to the service at St. Timothy on Zoom.  Fun to see the faces of our friends and Mo B. 

Since church started at 9 am and that would be 11 where we are, we had breakfast first.  We were staying at the Hilton Garden Inn next to the University of ND.  There was even a walking covered bridge that connects the University to the hotel.  Breakfast was good; however, management needs to improve the service with additional staff.

After church we found the one and only antique store in Grand Forks.  I found a pretty brass plant stand that I thought about bringing home but when I contacted by antique consultant, I was advised they were asking too much for it.  We are seeing more large crocks, Shawnee, and McCoy pottery.  Since we first started cruising antique stores, we have learned what may be an antique and what is not an antique or what may be a reproduction.

I guess there are some other stores, but they are open every other weekend only.  Maybe it is because it is still winter here.

Just entered Minnesota.  The first store we see is a large Cabela’s.  It is 220 miles to International Falls, MN where we will spend the night.

We have driven about 60 miles and still seeing the same farmland.  Crookston, MN one of the towns we drive through sits in the fertile Red River Valley, once a part of glacial lake Agassiz. As the lake receded it left behind the rich mineral deposits.  They grown grain, sugar beets and potatoes among other things.

We drove about 90 miles and turned left at Bemidji toward International Falls.  On the map the highway is designated as a scenic highway.  There is a wide swath of brown grass on each side of the road and what appear to be a handful of evergreen trees and a huge number of birch trees.  Of course, at this time of the year the birch trees are still barren.  The land is still flat and of course there are no mountains.  Makes one appreciate the scenic highways in Washington State.

There are several small towns along the way.  The smallest posted that there were 57 inhabitants.  I think the largest posted 256.  International Falls is not very big.  In the early 1900’s there was a water fall that probably has something to do with the name of the town.  But Mr. Backus came along and wanted to build a paper mill.  However, before the mill could be built, he needed to build a dam to generate electricity. So the water fall was no more.  Because the water fall linked the US and Canada, he had to make a deal with Canada, and Canada received one-half of the electricity produced.  Mr. Backus built the US paper mill and the Canadian mill on the other side of the lake.  The Canadian mill operated for just 100 years and is presently being torn down.  The US mill is called “Big Blue” and employs the majority of the residents in International Falls. 

When we came into town, we arrived at a railroad crossing just as the light bar went down.  The entire train consisted of containers.  The container industry started in the mid 50's by the White Pass & Yukon RR.  The first container was 6x6x6 and developed and used to carry newsprint from Seattle to Skagway, AK.  John's grandfather was president of the RR at that time and the first container ship bore his name, Clifford J. Rogers.  The ship was eventually sold and went down in the Bermuda Triangle.

The hotel was a bit different.  It is a combination of a distillery, restaurant, and hotel.  The room was nicely appointed with a ceiling made of iron bars and painted brown.  The bathroom was large as bathrooms go with a slipper tub wrapped in 3 shower curtains.  Because the tub was sitting on claw feet it was a bit higher so being careful getting in and out was critical.

We had dinner in the restaurant which again was laid out a bit different.  There were 3-4 tables, and the rest of the seating was at several bars placed around the room.  The bar where drinks were made was in the center of the room.  Because they did not serve wine (which is what I prefer) I had one of their specialty drinks, a pear gin and tonic.

March 29 – This morning we were late in getting on the road.  The hotel did not serve breakfast and in fact the kitchen and bar are closed on Monday.  The Chocolate Moose was recommended to us, so we set out to find it.  Google maps got it wrong, truck navigation got it wrong and the address we were given was wrong – so I called them to get directions.  It is one of those restaurants where one meal would be enough for 2 people and the prices were reasonable.  Makes up for the places where the prices are not worth what they put on the plate.

After breakfast we found our way to the Chamber of Commerce/Visitors Center.  They were extremely helpful, and we wound up spending the entire day in the International Falls area.  First thing we did was drive about 15 miles out to the most northeastern point of Minnesota.  If the ice/snow were melted we could have gone over to the Voyageurs State Park, which is an island.  During January, the ice forms a road over to the island, but the ice is too thin now.  There are several peninsulas that you can get to from the main road and we did meander out to a couple.  This is a vacationer’s paradise if you live in the area.  There are cabins, resorts, campgrounds, house boats and private homes you can rent to stay in.  There is hunting, fishing, hiking, snow shoeing, snowmobiling, and boating for activities as well as playing on the beach.  The average temperature from June-August is mid 70’s.  It is really something to see.

After exploring the water area, we went to the local museum.  The name of the museum is Bronko Nagurski.  Bronko was a local hero of International Falls. His claim to fame was being a Chicago Bear Football player.  He was recruited because he was big and fast.  He also played basketball and wrestled.  When he was not playing sports, he returned to his home to farm and be with his wife and 6 children.  He was born in 1908 and died in 1990.  When we were leaving the museum, I commented about the story they had about Bronko and even though we are not football fans, it was a good story about a local hero.  Turns out, one of the girls there is the great-granddaughter of Bronko.

After leaving the museum we headed south on Highway 53 to Hibbing.  This area was previously huge in mining iron ore.  Much of the ore is gone but there is still a small mining operation.  We will be able to see that tomorrow and visit the 3 antique stores in Hibbing.

Had a great dinner and are now doing the washing.  Laundry does tend to pile up after a while.

Good Night.