Hike Decorah
When I think Iowa, I think cornfields and Hawkeyes. Neither of which are very appetizing. Decorah, Iowa has neither of those things. And it is wonderful. The town sits on the Upper Iowa River and is nestled in its steep valley walls. If you’re there in the fall, like I was, you’ll see fluorescent sugar maples atop limestone bluffs circled by flocks of eagles. (At … Continue reading Hike Decorah
Enjoying Driftless Iowa
Driftless is a region covering far SE Minnesota, SW Wisconsin and NE Iowa known for deep valleys, fast rivers and exposed limestone bluffs. It is an area untouched by glacial drift during the last ice age. If you travel there, you’ll find incredible scenery and some of the best trout fishing in the country. Decorah, Iowa lies on the western border of Driftless. Audra has … Continue reading Enjoying Driftless Iowa
Wisconsin Trout Season Goes Out with a Meh
Yep. Skunked. On the last day of the season. The closest quality trout rivers from Minneapolis are just over the border in Wisconsin. Rivers are lined up from west to east. The first river Minnesota fishermen come to on their journey east is the Kinnickinnic. It runs through River Falls, WI and is known for its abundance of browns. The second is the Trimbelle. It’s … Continue reading Wisconsin Trout Season Goes Out with a Meh
Cabin: Booked
Several of Minnesota’s state parks have camper cabins. Some have electricity with heat, while others have a only a wood stove for heating and cooking. Lake Maria (pronounced Mariah) has three of the latter cabins. After hearing of these cabins from a friend, Audra and I decided to explore them ourselves. Accessing the cabins means a hike of a couple miles. Our January trip meant … Continue reading Cabin: Booked
Mental Health Day at Interstate State Park
Yes. State twice. It’s fun to say. While we were planning on heading to the North Shore for a stay at Tettegouche State Park, we opted to hang around Minneapolis. Monday was to be included in the North Shore trip as well. Audra had the day off and I spent a day of PTO. This meant we had Monday to ourselves. How did we spend … Continue reading Mental Health Day at Interstate State Park
The Fishing Spider
In my last post, I mentioned encountering the BIGGEST SPIDER I’VE EVER SEEN while fishing on the Rush River. It was even written in all caps to illustrate the largeness of said arachnid. If Minnesota and Wisconsin had a tarantula, this would be it–hair, stripes, long legs and all. I knew my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me. There had to be images online of … Continue reading The Fishing Spider
Fall has hit the Rush River
The trees around Minneapolis are a sea of green broccoli with red and orange sugar maples sparsely mixed in like a seasoning for the autumn we are about to enjoy. It’s a different story just over the border on Wisconsin’s Rush River. Fall, it seems, has already arrived. I picked up my buddy Phil for a Saturday afternoon trip. That’s him in the photo … Continue reading Fall has hit the Rush River
Birch & Flannel 