Fall Colors

Our fall this year is mostly pale yellow. We had a record-dry fall (after a record-wet summer) so it was similar to a really nice Nebraska fall.

Now that the heat has left and the leaves are falling, it feels and smells like fall.

 

Davidson College

We visited the campus of Davidson College. It was absolutely stunning. They have 100-foot willow oaks that are the biggest trees I've ever seen east of the Rockies. It looks like a great school.

"Alenda lux ubi orta libertas": "Let Learning Be Cherished Where Liberty Has Arisen"

 

Beneficial Insects

In NC, they actually sell Asian Beetles at the garden center. It's similar to someone trying to sell Florida Palmetto bugs in the Upper Midwest. It's all about the marketing.

 

Fall in NC

The fall colors were getting started in the high country of NC.

In the four days we were there, everything really started to pop.

 

Blowing Rock

The Ns took us up into the NC mountains to Blowing Rock. It was a magical fall afternoon.

 

Ely Police Hiring Campaign

The Northwoods city of Ely is trying to attract new police recruits by giving them a $4000 canoe. 

 

Minneapolis Design Show

GP & I hit the Minneapolis Design & Advanced Manufacturing show. Coolest thigs we saw: (1) a micro camera that is not much bigger than a speck of pepper, and (2) a 3D-printed soft banana.

Afterwards, we hit Brits Pub for a pint & some curry.

 

El Gato

We have this orange tabby cat/kitten that comes around now & then. He likes hunting mice in the back yard, and JP likes to give him food. If we didn't already have such a great cat, we would take him in.

 

Muskrat Love

Every morning, we stop at the dog beach and snap a photo of the lake. S has no interest in chasing after the muskrats. 

 

Nap Time

Fall afternoons in front of the TV & fireplace are the perfect place for an upright sitting nap. 

 

Winds of October

The gales of November have yet to arrive, but the winds of an October cold front wreaked havoc on a sailboat that was late to get out of the lake. 

 

Fall View

We have the prettiest view of the neighborhood fall foliage from our sofa!

 

Northern Lights

We had a nice display of the Northern Lights IN THE CITY!! They didn't last long, but they were bright and easy to see.

I was hoping to get a photo of them across the lake and above the downtown skyline, but they were to the south.

 

Arrowfest!

The local electronics distributor, Arrow, hosted what they call Arrowfest at a big hotel in Bloomington. CP & I were one of two father-son engineer teams. It was fun attending some technical seminars with him.

After the seminars, there was a full-on trade show with tasty food, beer, and prizes. CP won a camping grill!

 

Fireplace Season

It's official: Fall is Here!

 

Rainy Camp

There were a couple of sections along the river where the beavers were busy at clearing our the forest.

We had a bit of rain, but we were able to duck under the a spruce tree and stay dry. S ended up with a bit of sap on his belly.

The peeked out under the rain clouds and treated us to a pretty sunset glow.

 

Fifth Falls Hike

The park was absolutely overrun with "peepers", city dwellers out for the day to peep at the fall colors. However, once you get 100 yards from the main falls, the craziness fades and you're back in the peaceful North Woods.

We hiked a six-mile loop from the campground up the river to Fifth Falls. 

We stopped for lunch at Fifth Falls and took some time to dip our toes in the water. Brrrr!! It's not warm lake water.

 

Lakeshore Camping

Gooseberry Falls Park has a beautiful stretch of shoreline adjacent to the campground. No sunsets here, but the sunrises are spectacular.

 

Signs

The campground was full of signs.

 

Gooseberry Falls Camping

We took the boys up to Gooseberry Falls State Park for a weekend campout. Other than a cold front with 40-50 mph winds Saturday night at 1:00 AM, it was perfect weather and we all had a blast.

JP discovered some amazing vacuum-sealed burgers @ Lund's. No mess in the cooler, and incredible meat. We put our new cast iron griddle to use.

Lunch Stop at Canal Park

On out way up north, we hit Canal Park in Duluth for lunch at the Northern Waters Smokehaus sandwich shop. It was a perfect day for a walk around the peninsula. 

 

World's Largest Walleye

We stopped for gas a an exit we had never visited. It had a beautiful mount of the world's largest walley that was caught by none other than Paul Bunyan.

 

Last Game of the Season

The last game of the season coincided with the Vikings-Packers game @ Lambeau Field. The downtown watering holes were packed. We found a couple of seats at Kieran's and split a tasty Ruben.

The last game of the season in '23 was frosty. Not so this year. We had some great seats in the shade and enjoyed the perfect weather.

The new condo in left field turned into a solar power station. For 30 minutes we were sitting with the full glare of the midday sun in our eyes.