Great River Road Fall Trip, Part 1

Sitting here watching the first snowflakes of the season flying outside my window, it is hard to believe just a few days ago we were in t-shirts enjoying 70 degree weather! But...those days are just a memory now and something we won't see again until the long months of winter are over.

Knowing the weather was going to change, we decided to embrace those last couple of warm days and take a quick road trip to enjoy some of the sites here in the upper Midwest. Our journey began by crossing southern Minnesota on I-90. After a very wet spring that kept many farmers from planting...and causing others to plant very late, the crops we passed were in all stages of development. Some brown and ready for harvest...others still totally green and looking more like they would in August.

Crops and livestock are not the only farm commodities in southern Minnesota.
Wind farms are in abundance here on the prairie.

A little trivia from our journey...I-90 is the longest interstate highway in the U.S. at over 3,000 miles and extends from Seattle to Boston. The last section of the highway that connected the east and west was laid near Blue Earth, Minnesota in 1978 (the year we moved to Minnesota!) and was painted gold similar to how a gold spike was driven when a railroad was completed. A stop at the Blue Earth rest area gave us a chance to read the commemorative plaque (and use the bathroom after sipping on a large cup of coffee all morning!)

Our first official stop was in Austin, MN at the Spam Museum. We have often passed by the Hormel headquarters right on I-90, but had never taken the time to venture into town. In the museum we learned a little of the history of the famous "mystery meat" and got to try "spamples" of some of the various flavors that the company produces. The World Market area of the museum was sort of an Spam Epcot with booths showcasing the products sold internationally in 44 different countries. One exhibit explained the role that Spam played as a staple for American troops during World War II (often being served for meals three times a day!)

 

This motorcycle was created to run on bacon grease and was
featured in a short film starring Eric Pierson, a good friend
of our son! (Google "Driven By Bacon" to get the full story!)

Our purchases from the Spam Shop in the museum.

I had packed a picnic lunch which we ate at the Jay Hormel Nature Center on the outskirts of Austin. We took time to wander through the interpretive center, but did not hike any of the 10+ miles of trails. Several groups of school children were there and we watched as one class took turns operating an antique apple cider press.

Pushing on, we arrived at the Great River Bluffs State Park around 3:30 pm. After purchasing an annual state park pass, we drove to the picnic area and walked a couple of the trails leading to the bluffs overlooking the Mississippi River. The fall foliage was just beginning, but if you looked closely you could find pops of color here and there. No one else was around and we enjoyed walking through the woods on such a beautiful day.

Bob cracking some of the black walnuts we found on the trail.
The nuts were so hard that the rock broke instead!

This is what happens when you prop up the camera on a fallen tree and set the timer. Ten seconds wasn't enough time to navigate through the leaves and broken branches and a split second later I was laying flat on my face! 

Our 2nd try at a photo together. I let Bob handle the photo taking responsibilities this time. 

Day 1 of our road trip ended in Winona. Dinner was at Mango's Mexican & American Grill across the street from our hotel and then we called it a night. Bob was coming down with a cold and was starting to run out of steam.

Part 2 coming up next...