Rain...Thunder... Lightening... and the Pit Stop.
We drove towards Lake Louise State Park in the pouring rain. At times, it was difficult to see the road. It began to clear a little as we traveled West. We heard a little thunder, and were excited to witness the first thunderstorm of the year.
Then, unexpectedly, there was a huge, earth-shattering, spine-tingling crack!!. A llightening bolt shot out of the sky and and struck the ground - what felt like - right outside my window (though it was actually out in the field). I screamed like a little girl! Adam laughed. The lightening was so strong, he could feel it in his cavity filling. I'm sure the windows rattled and the truck shook. I really don't like storms.
But, that was it. The storm fizzled out, and we were left with a light drizzle.
We decided to find a place to eat lunch. We like searching for little out of the way, non-chain restaurants and bar. Using our awesome gps (thanks Mike & family), we found the Pit Stop, just across the border into Iowa.
Today is Monday
Oops! I missed a day or so. We were without a good internet connection -- and bushed by the end of the day.
Since my last posting, we have traveled from Worthington - around the SW corner of the state - to New Ulm. Then we made a large loop and ended up in Willmar.
State Parks: Blue Mounds, Split Rock Creek, Camden, Lake Shetek, Menneopa (then stayed in New Ulm).
Flandrau, Fort Ridgely, Upper Sioux Agency, Lac Qui Parle (supper flooded so did not find), Big Stone Lake - then drove over to Willmar for the night.
Today (Day 5) we plan to back track a little and make a loop of Monson Lake, Glacial Lakes, Sibley, Lake Maria and then home.
When we get home, I'll write in more detail and pictures. We've had a great time, and have seen some cool things.
Stay tuned....
Day 2: Rochester - Worthington: Holy Stairs! and Lightening
Wow, what an interesting day - from changes in weather (warm morning breeze, super down pour, scary lightening, sunny, super cold and windy) to a wide varitey of terrain (more stairs than I could count, slippery mud and gently sloping prairie - speckeled with deep ravines) and a little Pit Stop in Iowa.
State Parks: Carley, Whitewater, Forestville/Mystery Cave, Lake Louis, Myre-Big Island, Kilen Woods.
Carley: We did two caches in this park. They were both easy finds. It was a nice easy walk and a very nice warm morning. We reminisced about our last spooky experience in this park. It was a good way to start the morning.
Whitewater: This was one of our least favorite parks - due to my car break-in last time. But, this time was different. I think I could really like this park. It has a huge variety of areas. Today's cache took us to the Swimming hole - and up to Chimney Lookout. STAIRS, STAIRS and more STAIRS! Then, we decided to get a second cache in this park -- up more STAIRS - straight up to Coyote Point. This trek was nearly straight up. This strenuous exercise really felt good.
Forestville/Mystery Cave: This walk was a longer than we thought it would be. But a nice walk. We just missed the rain - which started when we got back into the truck.
Then it poured. Our drive to Lake Louis was an interesting one....
(More to come later)
Day 1: 4 caches found
What beautiful day to be out geocaching! We left home around 9:30am, and headed towards Hinkley. Our first cache was a small memorial park in Cloverdale. From there, we went to St. Croix State Park. It was a perfect morning. This one was 3 stages, and an easy walk and find.
Next, we set our car GPS to take us to Wild River State Park. Well, we had an adventurous tour down some dirt roads, and ended up by a sign that said "Wild River SP", but it was definitely not the main gate. So, we followed our own intuition, and got to the right place. This park is one of our least favorites. So we ran in and out at quickly as possible.
Next stop - Interstate State Park (by Taylor's Falls). This was a nice easy one.
But, that was the last of the easy. After a detour through the cities to drop of my snowmobile jacket, we tackled Afton State Park. This park has thrown us for a loop in the past. But we were ready for this one. We found the first two stages easy enough, but #3 had stopped us in our tracks. We looked high and low, but it was no where to be found. But, with the flood, we figure #3 is long gone. So, we'll have to come back to this park again.
We finished our day by traveling to Rochester. We found a really cool place for supper. Adam had a Peanut Butter Bacon Cheeseburger!
Tomorrow's plan: Carley, Whitewater, Forestville/Mystery Cave, Lake Louis, Killen Woods, and hopefully Blue Mounds. We hope to make it across the bottom border of the state.
Easter Geocaching Roadtrip: Day 1
Today is day 1 of our Geocaching Roadtrip. Our goal is to make a loop, and stop at every State Park in the Southern half of Minnesota. Our planned route for today will be to go East - toward St. Croix State Park, then South toward the cities. (We need to take a detour. The zipper broke on my super awesome snowmobile coat. So, we need to stop in St. Paul to drop it off at a special shoe repair place.)
Our goal is to make it to Rochester today. State Parks on the way are: St. Croix, Wild River, Interstate, Afton, Carley and Whitewater. (There are a couple more park on this route - but the caches are not available do to flooding.)
You can watch our route each day on the SP Route Map - link located under pages. (The map will be uploaded tonight.)
Tune in each night for updates!!!
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