Peaceful Easy Feeling

The lodge was totally relaxing. No kids, no sirens & planes, no traffic, just peace & solitude.

We spent every evening beside a campfire on the lakeshore watching the sun set.

 

Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness

The Gunflint Trail snakes its way north through the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, a million-acre park with 1,100 lakes and 1,500 miles of canoe trails. It's an official wilderness area, so no mechanization is permitted. Just peace & quiet a million miles from civilization. 

Our lodge also has a full-featured outfitter that can provide you with every piece of gear needed for a wilderness trip. We watched a group load up their canoe and paddle off into the wilderness.

The lodge also has boats. We reserved a pontoon boat, but got rained out by a thunderstorm on our last day.

 

Gunflint Lake Swim

The weather we had was unseasonably warm/hot: We hit 88°! 

The average for September is 65°.  Good thing we had a 60° lake to cool off in.

The water was absolutely refreshing. Cool, but not quite as cold as Lake Superior.

 

Late Fall Colors

Last time we were here, it was the first week in October and most of the fall colors were already past. This time, we figured we'd hit it two weeks earlier and catch the glory of fall. We hit it too early; there were barely any leaves turning.

There were a few maples that were going, but all the aspen & birch were still green & vibrant.

 

Dayhike

Our lodge has a ton of hiking/skiing/snowshoeing/horse/snowmobile trails. Since there was no snow, we stuck to the hiking trails. We had a hard freeze last week that took care of all the bugs, and we enjoyed not having to juice-up with bug spray.

The trails top out on the cliffs above the lake with a beautiful view into Canada.

We enjoyed the serenity of post-Labor Day crowds and zero people on the trails.

 

Up North

Within 24 hours of getting home, we took off with the Gs for an epic long weekend up north. Stopped in Duluth for lunch and a stroll along the harbor entrance.

This is one of our favorite places on the north shore. 

We checked in, ate too much walleye, and sat beside a firepit for the sunset up on a lake that separates us from Canada.

 

Spendy

The duty free shop in Paris had a wide selection of wines. Anywhere from €7 to €8600. That's a bit spendy for me, no matter how good it is.

 

Nazi Stain

As beautiful as Nuremberg is, one cannot forget the stain of Nazi Germany. It cannot happen again, and there are many reminders of this in Nuremberg. Adjacent to the German National Museum is the Street of Human Rights. 

I did not make it to the rally grounds, but it certainly has a connection to Trump's rallies. I am surprised that he has not built his own personal MAGA rally stadium. He is focused on himself, and everything related to him. Much like Hitler. He needs to be held accountable so that we never go through this again.

 

Ehekarussell

There was a massive bronze sculpture near my hotel. It is called Ehekarussell. I've never seen anything quite like it. Very cool.

 

Good Eating in Germany

Some of the things I really like about Europe:

- Awesome healthy food

- Normal person-sized portions of food. Never a need to feel bad about not being able to finish 4 pounds of food.

- Good beer

- Cheap good beer

- No tipping

- Tax & service & healthcare & feel-good charges are all included in the prices. Ordering $20 of food in the US would result in a $30 bill with another $7 of tip on top of that.

 

Rooftop Patio

My hotel had a nice rooftop patio that gave a good view of the tall buildings in town. This is the Opera House.

Looking to the north is the castle and its towers where I had lunch.

 

Nuremberg Sausages

Nuremberg has countless sidewalk cafes. After flying all night & day and walking 12,000 steps, I had to stop at one for some nourishment. Nuremberg sausages are small breakfast link sized. The ones I got was smoked and very tasty. Served up with a pile of spicy mustard and some freshly ground horseradish. Mmmm good!

 

Nuremberg

I had most of a day to explore Nurembeg on foot. My hotel was inside the old medieval town walls. 

The city center is all old buildings. At least they were (re-)built to look old. Most of the city was destroyed during the war and later rebuilt. Great pains were taken to bring it back to its old self rather than modern.

This blog post has some really good photos of the town. It's now at the top of our list of places to visit as a couple.

 

Must Paint

Mere hours after I left, the paint came out.

It looks awesome, and I am so glad I did not come home to a new pet.

 

Crossing the Pond

I had a pop-up trip opportunity to go to a trade show in Germany. Yes!! I've crossed the Pacific many time, but never the Atlantic. 

 

I dozed off and woke up to the seatback screen showing that we were banking hard to the right. That is not a comforting way to wake up! Turns out that the signal to the screen was stuck at a 52° roll; the plane was flying level. 

Chowda

When in Boston, you cannot go wrong with some wicked good Legal Seafood clam chowda.

 

Employed

One of the exciting stats for Sept. 2024 is that unemployment is at a low due to everyone getting a job. Congrats to GP with his new career in drayage! His office is only a few miles up the road in Golden Valley.

 

New Roof

One of the (many) big houses for sale on the parkway is getting a new slate roof. It had a pretty red tile roof, but it must have had some issues. Once the new roof is done, this house will be a steal at $2M.

 

Them Bones

Walking the dog the other morning we came across this. In the pre-dawn poor lighting, I thought we had stumbled across a femur! Turned out to be a stick.

 

Fall Morning Dog Walk

I never tire of the early morning dog walks by the lake. This morning the geese were causing a ruckus with their honking and splashing. It didn't seem to bother the muskrats; they kept up their daily routine.

It was 47° this morning and it's finally starting to feel like summer is on its way out.

 

Mars Red Sky @ 7th St

The boys and I hit 7th St. Entry and saw Howling Giant and Mars Red Sky. It was our first time there, and we were amazed at how small and cozy it is. The capacity is only 250 people. Between the tiny venue and the awesome bands, GP was in heaven. CP, too; he bought two t-shirts, a hat, and an autographed CD. The boys met the bands, and we all had a fun time.

The crowd was very mellow. No mosh pit, no pushing or shoving, just a lot of appreciation for some good music.

 

Colita

Our friend PK from NE came up for a couple days to work at the home office. We tried out Colita for the first time. It has been on our list since we moved here. We have now tried all the neighborhood restaurants within a short walk.

 

Como Park

We took advantage of perfect weather and no crowds to hit Como Park and the zoo. Last time we were here (January?) it was cold and blustery. Not so on Labor Day.

JP's favorite place is the conservatory and its tropical plants.

 

Lake Walk

Labor Day weekend in the city is heavenly. Everyone is out of town for one last fling at the cabin and the city is somewhat deserted.

With the heat and humidity gone, it's perfect walking around the lake to grab breakfast at the Bread & Pickle.