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Minneapolis MN to La Crosse WI 14,297 kms

Aug 09, 2014

Thumbnail is a shot of a City building in Minneapolis, one of many which we love which surprises us as we are not city people. By the way, the hotel staff told me today it isn't a power station next door but a steam distribution point from the steam generated out of town by the rubbish furnaces.

Today's ride has been just lovely. Norm plotted a course so we could have more country road riding than interstates and it has been a delight and a huge bonus is that the traffic, once we lost an hour in stop start traffic on road works getting out of Minneapolis, has been minimal so a treat. The countryside has been gently undulating to small hills and bluff areas and heaps of farmland, mainly cropping with some dairy along the way, and not dairy as we know it but in barns and the fragrance of all that concentrated excreta is NOT fragrant. That aside, most of the activity is on the flat to undulating land and for the most part the hills have been smothered in luxuriant forest growth somewhat reminiscent of the forest areas we rode through last year in the east of the state though the colours are many shades of green rather than being clothed in a fall mantle of orange red and gold though we did find one plant along the side of the road today which was totally confused as to the season and was a brilliant combination of fall colours.

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Soon after we left we came to St Croix and this was a quirky railway bridge we found crossing the river. We didn't find Ellsworh Falls which were supposedly close to here , not sure how we missed them.

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Then into Ellsworth For a coffee and this is the Pierce County Courthouse, one of the most significant buildings in town as they often are.

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One of the things we enjoyed about the ride today was that there was pretty intensive farming in small holdings with lots of communities small and large along the way and that is close to an absolute opposite of the land and communities we experienced as we followed the Oregon Trail heading west, even where water was plentiful on the Trail the terrain lent itself to large broad acre holdings so communities were sparse on the ground. This is an example of a tidy little farm, one of many we saw on our travels.

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And this is an example of a community hub ahead.

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We called in to see Crystal Lake but most of it was covered in a green growth of some sort and not so crystal clear so we proceeded on to Black River Falls, but the only remains of the falls we could find were beside the dam wall to hold the Black River back. Ah well.

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Ths is a shot of another significant courthouse the Jackson County Courthouse in Black River Falls. This was only about a third of the building and the Police / Sheriff offices were beside it and extended at least half the distance again on from that so substantial.

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And a street scape shot again in Black River Falls. This was a substantial and well maintained town.

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And here we are in La Crosse and this is a shot of the waterfront on the mighty Mississippi River.

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And another courthouse, this time the Courthouse and Law Enforcement Building, a more recent build than those already shown today.

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And the Weber Centre for the Performing Arts which is next door to our hotel on the banks of the Mississippi.

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And this is the bridge across the river literally next to our hotel.

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And a shot under one side of the bridge at the edge of the car park. 

Bits and Bobs:

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The little town of Black River Falls, apart from having many Art Deco buildings, had lots of murals and dedications to their history both significant historically and to the regular population. This is one example of the latter.

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And this was a bike stand near our hotel tonight in La Crosse which looks great.

Last 2 Night's Accommodation:

Best Western Normandy Inn & Suites, 405 South 8th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55404

A nice welcoming hotel with multiple options of places to sit and relax, comfortable space in our room and bed lovely. Restaurant and bar on site but many options close by as well. Included parking and wifi.. On site guest laundry, gym and swimming pool. A handy spot to the downtown and good value.

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