on the road to....: Northern Exposure Mystery............

We returned last night from a great 4 day mystery trip to Northern Minnesota. What a beautiful trip with a group of 40 wonderful travelers.

We left on Tuesday morning bright and early and headed north through St. Cloud with our first destination being the Charles Lindbergh Historic Site near Little Falls. With a wealth of information gained about our own "Lucky Lindy" we continued our trip north to Camp Ripley for a stop at the Minnesota Military Museum there. Many tanks, helicopters, jeeps from WWI, WWII and newer. We had a couple of our men who drove tanks just like the ones on display so it made it even more interesting. The museum has a great collection of history from all around Minnesota and how Minnesotan's have been vital soldiers in wars from the Sioux Uprising through the present operations in Iraq. It's always interesting to hear the stories of how our travelers are connected to the things we see...we had two women traveling with us whose brother was a prisoner of war in WWII. What a story!

Then it was on to Cragun's Resort on Gull Lake near Brainerd for our first evening. We had a

wonderful dinner together and then the opportunity was given for our travelers to have a pontoon ride around Steamboat Bay! Many took advantage of the opportunity and Captain Perry took them on a beautiful ride on a wonderful evening! Meanwhile Tour Director Donna was lighting the bonfire and getting all the fixins ready for the smores! UMMMM they were enjoyed by all! The evening was wonderful and many stories were told around the campfire!

In the morning we headed northwest for our next stop at Lake Itasca and a luncheon cruise. We cruised for two hours enjoying the sites that only can be seen from the advantage point of a boat.

Then a short drive by coach took us to the headwaters of the Mississippi and many took the opportunity to walk across the Mississippi! Later a stop in Bemidji for a photo opportunity with Babe and Paul Bunyon before we headed for Grand Rapids and our evening meal of duck, walleye and pork at Rutgers Lodge. Then it was time to check into our hotel for the night and we were tired!

Our third day began with a stop at the Hill Annex Mine in Calumet. Our guide, a retired miner who had worked in this mine boarded our coach and traveled with us around and down into the mine sharing stories of how the operation worked. It was a fascinating hour and a half of stories and history as well as some pretty awesome sights! Following our mine tour it was on to Hibbing for lunch at Zimmy's Restaurant. Zimmy's is noted for it's Bob Dylan (born in Hibbing) memorabilia as well as the very neat building it is located in...an old Trolley car garage! A wonderful meal and we were ready for our busy afternoon. First a stop at the Greyhound Bus Museum. That's right the busing industry got it's start in Hibbing! Again we were surprised when we had a direct connection here, one of the ladies who was traveling with us informed us that her husband had been a Greyhound Bus driver for almost 30 years! Many enjoyed climbing aboard an old bus, much like the ones they used to travel on...and then enjoyed getting back on their R&J Coach and enjoying the luxury it offered them today! Our last stop in Hibbing was at the observation spot to watch the mining operation at the Hull/Rust Mining operation. This mine is known as the "Grand Canyon" of the north and is the largest of the open pit mines....it was awesome! But wait....we weren't finished! We headed back to Grand Rapids and made a stop at the Forest History Center where we had the opportunity to see what life would have been like in a 1900 logging camp. 70 men in a bunkhouse...a cook who ruled the kitchen and horses that were their lifeline. It was a great stop. Then back to our hotel for a "Lumberjack Dinner" with "linen lifters", Pork, potatoes and rutabagas and all the black jack and swamp water you wanted to drink, oh and don't forget the apple pie! Then off to the Mississippi Showboat show on the banks of the Mississippi for some evening entertainment!

Our final morning we began by all clicking our heals together 3 times and repeating, "there's no place like home" before we stopped at the Judy Garland Museum and early childhood home. A fascinating museum and many stories to hear and share. Of course we were on the lookout for the Ruby Slippers as we made our way to Cloquet for lunch and our final stop at Jay Cooke State Park for a fascinating view of the beautiful St. Louis River.