Jul – Aug 2021

North Midwest 2021

A 31-day adventure by Oddria Read more

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Trip start
July 2, 2021
North Midwest 2021 Oddria
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Day 1
Friday, July 2, 2021 at 8:53 PM
☁️ 73 °F
Altitude: 3,104 ft
United States Tahoka 33.16935, -101.7999633°10’10” N 101°47’60” W
Finally Headed Out! TX
July 2, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 73 °F
We are finally leaving, see ya next month!
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Day 1
Friday, July 2, 2021
⛅ 77 °F
Altitude: 3,494 ft
United States Texhoma 36.50026, -101.7848936°30’1” N 101°47’6” W
State Lines¹
July 2, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 77 °F
Our states line signs!
Oklahoma
Kansas
Missouri
Iowa
Minnesota
Wisconsin - there was no sign on either of the bridges we crossed. We slept in WI, I count that!
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Day 2
Saturday, July 3, 2021
☀️ 82 °F
Altitude: 1,283 ft
United States Westport Auxiliary Airport 37.59318, -97.3624537°35’35” N 97°21’45” W
Traveling to KC
July 3, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 82 °F
Across state lines, a visit with Grandma Cron, dinner with Eric & Rachel and fireworks at Kurt & Angela's. A verry long, full day!
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Day 3
Sunday, July 4, 2021
⛅ 84 °F
Altitude: 840 ft
United States James Branch 38.93712, -94.6080638°56’14” N 94°36’29” W
Missouri!
July 4, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 84 °F
After watching 🎆, we headed out and made it part ways. We got up the next morning, did some shopping, went across another state line and pulled into the campground just in time to set up, take showers and leave for lunch with the team. Volleyball soon to take over the schedule for the next few days.Read more
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Day 6
Wednesday, July 7, 2021 at 9:00 AM
⛅ 82 °F
Altitude: 896 ft
United States City Center Square 39.09889, -94.5807339°5’56” N 94°34’51” W
Volleyball in KC, MO
July 7, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 82 °F
VOLLEYBALL! We came up for Talon to play in the National Volleyball Tournament. Dad & Mom came to watch him and follow us on the rest of the trip and Nathanael brought Torri and Pearl, so they can go on the rest of the trip with us. They came one day to watch Talon and I think they got a little bored 😴...

We were playing downtown Kansas City and there were electric scooters everywhere. In the mornings there was a bunch of them in front of the convention center. Wonder why?Read more
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Day 6
Wednesday, July 7, 2021 at 10:25 AM
⛅ 79 °F
Altitude: 1,106 ft
United States Lamoni Municipal Airport 40.62375, -93.8899240°37’26” N 93°53’24” W
Vball Ends & Vacation Begins, MO
July 7, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 79 °F
The tournament was HUGE! Talon had 64 teams playing in his division alone. I'm not exactly sure but I think there were around 60 courts. Talon did well the 2nd & 3rd day but lost in the 3rd set of his first game in the bracket today, so on to vacation! Leaving KC behind and headed to Iowa.

Pearl has decided she's going to be the spice in our family photos.Read more
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Day 6
Wednesday, July 7, 2021 at 2:00 PM
⛅ 82 °F
Altitude: 1,001 ft
United States Independence 39.0808, -94.4212539°4’51” N 94°25’17” W
My Front Door Looking Out¹
July 7, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 82 °F
I like taking pictures of my front door looking out of all the places we stay. My husband is awesome and will park to give me a good view when he can. So far;
Independence, MO
Woodward, IA
Clinton Falls, MN
Farmington, MN
Superior, WI
Two Harbors, MNRead more
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Day 6
Wednesday, July 7, 2021 at 10:00 PM
⛅ 68 °F
Altitude: 873 ft
United States Preston Creek 41.87129, -93.8720341°52’17” N 93°52’19” W
High Trestle Trail Bridge, IA
July 7, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F
Okay, I have a fascination with bridges. Pearl makes fun of me for it, BUT this was one of the best bridges, EVER! This is part of a rail- trail biking trail we rode on.
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Day 7
Thursday, July 8, 2021
⛅ 68 °F
Altitude: 1,073 ft
United States Woodward 41.88477, -93.9480941°53’5” N 93°56’53” W
Woodward, IA
July 8, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F
We left the volleyball tournament and headed north to Iowa. We stopped at a really nice corn farm in Woodward, IA. The hosts were awesome and let us climb to the top of the silo, where Torri got great sunset picture of the place we stayed at.Read more
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Day 7
Thursday, July 8, 2021
⛅ 68 °F
Altitude: 1,079 ft
United States Woodward 41.85875, -93.9212941°51’32” N 93°55’17” W
High Trestle Trail Bike Ride, IA
July 8, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F
We enjoyed a slower evening and morning, but then we went on a 12.57 mile bike ride. The bike ride was through the Iowa countryside and the weather was gorgeous. The trail is a 25 mile 🚲 with 5 towns. We stopped for pics, mulberries and of course, the bridge!Read more
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Day 8
Friday, July 9, 2021 at 1:35 PM
⛅ 75 °F
Altitude: 846 ft
United States Logan Park 45.00221, -93.251445°0’8” N 93°15’5” W
Architectural Antiques, MN
July 9, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 75 °F
We left Cabela's and drove about an hour to a campground, they were full and I called 20 places, all full. Finally Dad & Mom found us a place at the Farmington Fairgrounds. We drove there, set up and ate lunch. We headed into Minneapolis for a day of being tourists. First stop: Architectural Antiques.Read more
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Day 8
Friday, July 9, 2021 at 2:35 PM
⛅ 77 °F
Altitude: 814 ft
United States The Parade 44.96927, -93.2902844°58’9” N 93°17’25” W
Spoonbridge and Cherry, MN
July 9, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 77 °F
Minneapolis' iconic sculpture. We ate some snacks and then toured the sculpture garden. The first stop was the spoon and cherry, then everyone spread out.
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Day 8
Friday, July 9, 2021 at 2:48 PM
⛅ 77 °F
Altitude: 781 ft
United States The Parade 44.96936, -93.2902444°58’10” N 93°17’25” W
Minneapolis Sculpture Garden¹ MN
July 9, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 77 °F
The kids and us separated to look at the sculptures but at one point I went to take a selfie of me and Doug and the kids were walking by and thought I meant for them to get in the picture. I didn't disabuse them of that notion.Read more
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Day 8
Friday, July 9, 2021 at 3:15 PM
⛅ 77 °F
Altitude: 814 ft
United States The Parade 44.9693, -93.2901844°58’9” N 93°17’25” W
Minneapolis Sculpture Garden² MN
July 9, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 77 °F
We met up with the kids again and went through the shaded party of the sculpture garden. This kids enjoyed this part.

Part of the path took us by some benches with quotes on them. They were so horrible you had to read them. These are some of the funnier ones. At one point Doug sat down on a bench so the kids couldn't read it.

We went to see the bridge before leaving. It went over the interstate so we spent some time checking out the congested traffic.Read more
Audrey BoydThere's no pictures 😕
7/13/21Reply
OddriaThere are now, thanks!
7/14/21Reply
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Day 8
Friday, July 9, 2021 at 4:56 PM
⛅ 77 °F
Altitude: 820 ft
United States Northeast Minneapolis 45.00416, -93.2479245°0’15” N 93°14’53” W
LEGO'S! MN
July 9, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 77 °F
I didn't tell the kids where we were going next. We walked in and they got distracted by the games at the front. As you can see, they were happy when they realized WHY I had put this store on our stop list.

The ship is a scaled replica of the USS Missouri that was used in the signing of Japan's surrender in WWII. Mo is 25.5 feet long and over 1 million Legos was used to build her.Read more
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Day 8
Friday, July 9, 2021 at 5:12 PM
⛅ 77 °F
Altitude: 850 ft
United States Northeast Minneapolis 45.00483, -93.2479645°0’17” N 93°14’53” W
Brickmania GHQ, MN
July 9, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 77 °F
The kids had so much fun finding the 'where's Waldo?' things that have been added to the ship. Here are a few of the things they found.

The store, Brickmania, is not an official Lego store. They buy Legos, add their stickers & paint, and repackage them to sale. They sell exclusively military Lego kits.Read more
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Day 8
Friday, July 9, 2021 at 5:55 PM
⛅ 75 °F
Altitude: 889 ft
United States Deming Heights Park 45.02397, -93.2448345°1’26” N 93°14’41” W
Hidden Hoobit Door, MN
July 9, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 75 °F
We drove to this park that was on a slope and very steep. I showed the kids a picture of where to find the door but didn't tell them what. They searched the park until they found it. As Pearl was talking she meant to say 'Hobbit', but it came out 'Hoobit', so now the kids say they found a hidden 'Hoobit' door. The stop took us all of 20 minutes but Talon said it was fun searching.Read more
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Day 8
Friday, July 9, 2021 at 6:35 PM
⛅ 73 °F
Altitude: 833 ft
United States Saint Paul, City of 44.95193, -93.1010344°57’7” N 93°6’4” W
Stepping Stones, MN
July 9, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 73 °F
We decided to go ahead and go to my last stop on the list so that all we would have to do the next day was go to the Mall.

The stepping stones was a neat spot down by the Capitol. We spent a relaxing hour reading the quotes on the rocks and going to the Capitol building. The kids enjoyed stepping on the counties of MN and joking about their names.Read more
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Day 9
Saturday, July 10, 2021 at 7:40 AM
⛅ 61 °F
Altitude: 948 ft
United States Farmington 44.62758, -93.1482344°37’39” N 93°8’54” W
Dakota City, MN
July 10, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 61 °F
The fairgrounds that we stayed at in Farmington, MN had a miniature old town. I got up in the morning before everyone, made my coffee and walked the town. It was cool seeing all the old buildings. A few even had the inside setup like it used to be in the 'old' days.Read more
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Day 9
Saturday, July 10, 2021 at 12:04 PM
⛅ 73 °F
Altitude: 820 ft
United States Nicols 44.85831, -93.2408644°51’30” N 93°14’27” W
Mall of America, MN
July 10, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 73 °F
After a relaxed morning and cleaning on the camper, we left and went to the Mall of America. MoA is the largest mall in America. We got there around noon and stayed until almost 5pm. The kids stayed at the mall and rode roller coasters while Mom and I went across the parking lot to IKEA. Dad and Doug spent most of their time chilling in the motorhome.Read more
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Day 10
Sunday, July 11, 2021 at 10:45 AM
☀️ 77 °F
Altitude: 653 ft
United States Duluth Entry 46.78009, -92.0931546°46’48” N 92°5’35” W
Aerial Lift Bridge¹ MN
July 11, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 77 °F
The harbor reported a ship supposed to come through around 11am, so we drove down the island to the park, dropped off the rvs and drove back to the harbor. We showed up about 15 minutes early and were told the ship was delayed. We killed time going through the museum, walking down to the lighthouse, finding pressed pennies and putting our feet in the water. We were thinking about leaving and giving up on the ship when they announced it would just be another half hour, we waited.Read more
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Day 10
Sunday, July 11, 2021 at 1:50 PM
☀️ 82 °F
Altitude: 581 ft
United States Duluth Entry 46.77969, -92.0927946°46’47” N 92°5’34” W
Aerial Lift Bridge² MN
July 11, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 82 °F
We showed up at 10:45am and the ship FINALLY came through at 1:50pm. The 🚢 had some steering issues. The American Spirit was HUGE, over 1000 feet long, it could carry 62,400 tons of iron ore. They had to raise the bridge to its max height of 135 feet.

It was crazy how fast the pier filled once they announced the ship coming into port. After the bridge lowered back into place, I stopped counting at 130 cars coming from the island that were waiting on the ship to cross.

After the ship came through Doug, Weston and I walked across the bridge to get back to the jeep. As we were fixing to go across, a boat needed through and the bridge was raised again. It was awesome seeing it raise from up close.Read more
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Day 10
Sunday, July 11, 2021 at 3:34 PM
☀️ 79 °F
Altitude: 600 ft
United States Park Point 46.73156, -92.0505746°43’54” N 92°3’2” W
Park Point Beach, MN
July 11, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 79 °F
After watching the boat go under the bridge, we drove back to the park and played on the beach. Torri and Weston both got buried, Doug and I went for a walk to hunt sea glass and visited with a lady on the beach, and Pearl played/stayed in the water as much as possible.

We've now been to 4 of the 5 Great Lakes.Read more
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Day 11
Monday, July 12, 2021 at 7:29 AM
☀️ 61 °F
Altitude: 636 ft
United States Skunk Creek 47.02658, -91.6617547°1’36” N 91°39’42” W
Burlington Bay, MN Morning Walk
July 12, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 61 °F
We got to the Burlington Bay Campground later than I had hoped, so I didn't have much of a chance to explore. I got up the next morning, made my coffee and decided to follow the coastline and see where it led me. I hunted sea glass, enjoyed the 🌅 and had a peaceful morning before our busy day started.Read more
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Day 11
Monday, July 12, 2021 at 3:22 PM
☀️ 77 °F
Altitude: 1,762 ft
United States McDonald Creek 47.8631, -90.5452947°51’47” N 90°32’43” W
Grand Marais, MN Bike Ride
July 12, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 77 °F
We left the campground at Two Harbors around 11am. Drove the 2 hrs to Grand Marais, ate lunch and had Dad take us to the trail head and drop us off. We were on our ride for 3:20 with an actual ride time of 1:40 and went 17 miles. We dropped 1580 feet from the highest point in MN to the lowest point. It was a fun trail that at points kicked our tail, but we did it! Mom was exhausted after, but she did so good.

Poor Talon, he has to wait on us slow people, so he does lot of goofing off waiting on us to catch up. Weston is finally big enough that he doesn't struggle to stay up with us.

Do you see our exhaustion after the ride?Read more
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