Day 27, Cross Minnesota

The day began in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, where we emerged from the hotel into a heavy mist. Our plan was to cross all of southern Minnesota today and sleep in Onalaska Wisconsin with stops at whatever caught our interest along the way.  It was like driving through a thin, damp cotton ball.  Occasionally a giant, sleek windmill appeared out of the mist, turning in absolute silence above the corn fields. As the mist lifted we found ourselves in the middle of an enormous wind farm with rows of spindly machines that stretched to the horizon in all directions. 

This southern part of Minnesota consists of miles and miles of farms punctuated by little towns.  Gloria spotted our first herd of domesticated buffalo. I was staring into another section of fog and missed the herd and our turns to a couple of attractions.



What am I doing here?



A guide at an information center along the highway suggested several out of the way adventures in southeastern Minnesota.  We opted to leave I-90 at Austin for a most unusual attraction, the SPAM Museum on the campus of the Hormel products company.  We had already visited museums for potatoes and corn, so spam seemed to complete the big three. The museum is a combination of a history of the Hormel brands, meatpacking technology, recipes, historical artifacts related to early 20^th century manufacturing and farming, and a gift shop.  The tone was understandably self congratulatory, but the creators also had a sense of humor about the iconic brands and their own history.  We had a good time and I was able to buy four exotic flavors of Spam that are not available in stores as gifts for family members who like span.  Gloria refused a free sample of Spam on a pretzel pick (sorry, she can’t stand the stuff). I enjoyed mine and would have taken hers too had I thought of it sooner.

Our second foray off I-90 was at exit 193 in the middle of yet another enormous wind farm.  We joined scenic route 16 which runs through Amish country, a beautiful gorge, and past some reputedly spectacular caves.   We followed the scenic route as far as Harmony, but were just too tired to drive to Niagara Cave on the Ohio border.  Instead we traveled back northeast through more farming country and arrived in Onalaska which is a suburb of La Crosse.



There is a horse and buggy behind the post, trust me.



Just outside La Crosse we crossed the very swollen Mississippi river.  It seemed to have three or four huge branches, all full.  We didn’t hear any reports of flooding in the area, but it might be worse further south.

The Mississippi River at La Crosse, Wisconsin

We decided against the ferry over Lake Michigan.  It is pricey, doesn’t exactly go where we want to, and there is the risk of high wind and severe thunderstorms and tornado’s in the Lake Michigan area the time we would be crossing.  I don’t want to be caught out in the water during that!  We are watching the weather and will try to slide in after the front that is rising toward Chicago. If the front stalls we may add a day to our trip so we can ride the patch of clear sky behind the storms.  We will know better tomorrow morning.

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I look forward to visiting with you again tomorrow.