Wandering Retirees

Midland, Ontario and then on to Kingston, Ontario 

Yesterday, Sunday, was a down day. We slept and ate and took time for ourselves. We met a group of three couples staying at our little motel in Midland (a great inexpensive place called the Kings Inn). They hailed from around Niagara and Toronto: Bill and Jan, Tony and Trina, and Tom and Penny. All are riders and were on the home leg of a great bike trip through Ontario. Funny, irreverent and kind were they, making room in their circle for these wandering New Jersey folks. Bill, a retired Ontario Provincial Police officer, was particularly funny as cops often seem to be. He was particularly interested in hearing about our Ben, the PA State Trooper, and wanted us to pass along his wish that he be safe in his tough job. We, promised we would add his wishes to our own. We are very proud of Ben. 

Midland, Ontario is a lovely and historic town on the southern shores of Georgian Bay, the northeastern arm of Lake Huron. (take a look on a map; it’s easier than parsing that sentence me thinks.). My Queen and I shocked the local inhabitants by processing the mile from our royal lodgings to the waterfront, stopping to enjoy a FABULOUS Italian meal at a family owned restaurant, Lilly’s. Everything is homemade and sumptuous, and one son is a trained sommelier (really knows his wine). If you’re in town, go there. Seriously. We then staggered our stuffed persons to the piers and had homemade ice cream. Walking back was both slow and necessary. Wonderful!  

While in Midland, we learned there was a solar flare and that it was likely there would be a light show across Canada and into the USA.  We were very excited about the prospect of see the Aurora Borealis (aka Northern Lights).  Alas, we had cloudy skies and contented ourselves with magical skies in our respective fictional books.

We also learned to enjoy coffee from Tim Horton’s, the Canadian Dunkin Donuts. (Been long north of the Border, eh?) Still not up to poutine, though, which comes in multiple varieties, eh? (twice fried potatoes, cheese curds and gravy plus extra toppings – like Vienna sausages, etc., if you like.) There are “chip trucks” at every corner it seems, all who offer this extraordinary culinary assault. Love so much about our visit to Canada, especially the folks we’ve met, but can’t quite reach poutine. 

We are struck how big and beautiful Canada is. It can be cold considering the entire country is north of Buffalo. There is just so much open space and relatively little congestion outside of the major cities. We smiled a Superior Jersey smile when hearing complaints of traffic jams up here. You know, 30 cars backed up at the light downtown. In Delran you can find 30 cars at midnight at Chester Ave. The take away is that the folks we met love their open spaces and don’t take them for granted. Nice. 

Today we headed across the top of Lake Ontario to Kingston, ON, at the east end of the lake near the Thousand Islands in the St. Lawrence Seaway. This is our last night before returning to the States. We covered about 240 miles today through some nice countryside. Nothing spectacular. Just relaxing and pretty. Except the time the navigator and pilot had a misunderstanding. Found ourselves in the lot of an old mill being demolished in a very small town trying to figure out how to get back on track. (Scowls and stomping amused the natives, I’m sure. A cold drink and clarified (simplified?) directions the pilot could understand got us happily back on track without further ado. A near thing that. 

We’re staying at a big fancy Marriott where our bike is something of a novelty. Not much bikerly camaraderie, I’m afraid. (Ooh, how could you ride that thing? So forth.) So sad the lives of the unimaginative. 😀

Connie here:  The photos below are from dinner last night.  The rolling hills and farmlands of southern Ontario are so similar to NJ, NY and PA, we didn’t take photographs.  But the scenery did exaggerate our longing to be home.  And we are tired (we didn’t want to admit that!)  It is time to go home.  We look forward to a couple of days visiting family in Upstate NY and then plan to hurry home to our peeps and our bed.  It’s been a wild and fun ride.  Oh yea:  our ETA home is Saturday!

Wawa, ON to Blind River, ON to Midland, ON

Traveling days through beautiful Ontario, Canada. Have to admit that there’s not so much “wow!” as it is serene and verdant beauty. We stopped a number of times along the road over the top of Lake Superior to take in the views. We found the views wonderful, of course. But we encountered a number of folks who stopped for the same reason. And wonderful introductions and conversations ensued. To give you an idea, it should have taken us about 5 hours riding to travel from Wawa to Blind River – it took us almost 9. From Blind River to Midland, ON should have taken 4 hours but took 8 instead. Talkative, friendly, enthusiastic people have been the primary order of both days.  
We met Mike, Mike and Not-Mike at a stop overlooking a series of beautiful islands of Lake Superior yesterday. (“Not Mike” is named Scott.) They hail from around Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan and often ride together. One Mike is a veteran who has embarked on an Honor Tour, a nationally organized though self-directed tour to memorials and monuments in the US honoring those who served. He was with friends Mike and Not-Mike (Scott) on the way home from a road trip to Thunder Bay for the week. Then Mike and Lawrence, acquaintances who met on the road heading for Vancouver, BC joined in. We spent an hour with Mike, Mike, Not-Mike, Mike and Lawrence sharing tales of the road and things not-to-be-missed. With such a backdrop as Lake Superior, it was a wonderful time.  

In Blind River, we met Jules and Betsy from … drum roll please, Bridgeton, NJ who were on a cross Canada tour. They have ridden in all 50 states and Mexico and were traversing the provinces of Canada. Canada is celebrating their sesquicentennial this year, so it’s kind of special even for Yanks. They are farmers in South Jersey who talked their daughters into looking after their nursery for a couple of months so they could ride. Jules says he was asked for his wish for his 60t birthday. He answered that he wanted 60 days behind bars – handle bars, that is. Wonderful people! And we made arrangements to share some rides into Bucks County after we’re all back home. Oh, another hour or so added to the day. And then there was Leo, manager of the motel. He and I talked about fishing in the early hours of the day, hockey (he’s Canadian, eh?) and the pleasures and challenges of fatherhood and grand children. Another happy hour, but too early for drinks. And so it goes. At every stop for a break we met fabulous people with whom we shared stories and good cheer. We have truly enjoyed these past couple of days.  

Oh, and the riding has been a joy. And we passed 12,000 miles today and Trixy is still going strong. We’ll spend tomorrow here in Midland, ON looking at the sights and enjoying the day off the road. We’re at a wonderful “no frills” motel that features a great host, “Jaz” and his family, and some crazy bikers from the Toronto area. Good and fun people.  

So that’s our story and we’re sticking to it. Be well.

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Beautiful Lake Superior (especially when the sun is shining).

Mike, Mike and Not Mike from Michigan.

A typical evening on the road …

Thunder Bay, ON to Wawa, ON (following the north shore of Lake Superior)

We are in historic Wawa, Ontario and not a hoagie in sight. And we traveled 320 miles to get here! <sigh>. 😀 The ride for most of the day was wet and cold like yesterday, but the weather gradually improved as we went further east. The sun even showed its face just before sunset, and tomorrow looks more promising yet. A number of folks have commented/apologized for the lack of summer sunshine. Seems 3 of 4 days for the last 2 months have been rainy. Hard on the tourist trade, but great for skeeters. Lots and lots of skeeters. Big ones, too. They found us the moment we got off the bike and did their best to drain us dry. Moving at 50+ is good.

The north shore of Lake Superior is very beautiful. Heavy forests and rocky hills with a multitude of streams and rivers makes for a quiet beauty that is enchanting. There are a few unfortunate names though: who names a river and a lake the “Fungus?” We may have missed something in the translation. But lovely nonetheless.  

We met up with the grandfather/grandson duo again today – three times! Their names are Clyde (the elder) and Nick (the younger). We independently decided to stop in the little town of Marathon to get some coffee. The town is about 4 miles off the main highway, and we wound up at the same shop in an out of the way center. Had the first of our great conversations and finally exchanged names. Later Connie and I caught up with the pair on the road and took some pics of them on their bikes. We all pulled over to swap emails to share the pics. Then in Wawa, Connie and I had supper at a little Greek restaurant and, yes, Clyde and Nick pull in. So we talked some more. It’s a wonder we got anywhere today.  

We’re in for the night, but will likely have to post tomorrow. The Wifi in our motel has very little wireless capacity. One of the pleasures of being away from civilization. No FB tonight. Withdrawal symptoms starting. Gotta go. G’nite.
Sorry no photos.  Not enough bandwidth on the router.

Duluth, MN to Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada 🇨🇦 

We left lovely Duluth this morning in less than lovely weather, heading up MN Rt. 61 along the western shore of Lake Superior. Our goal was to make Thunder Bay, Ontario by this evening, the first stop on our loop above the Great Lakes. Of course we had to stop at the Duluth AAA store to get maps. You know, GPS 1.0. Thus reinforced we set out on our roughly 200 mile journey.  
Frankly, the weather was rotten and succeeded in getting worse. Rain, cold and gusting winds made an otherwise beautiful ride a lot of work. Whining figured prominently during the day. Something about a cold trickle from the neck down through that gap you didn’t know you had. Wanted to call the “Waaaambulance several times. At each stop we were encouraged by friendly locals who use couldn’t say enough about this cold and drizzly weather. “Sure don’t feel like summer, eh?” And, “Sure would like some sun and some heat, don’t you know?” We said we know.  In fairness, we’ve had so much lovely weather we really have no rational basis to complain. (“Pity party, table for one!”). 😉 

As I write this, we are warmly ensconced in a local motel, having had hot showers. And a chance to relax. Life is wonderful.  

Coming across the border was interesting. The Canadian border control officer was friendly and asked the standard questions. How long you staying? Why are you here? Where are you headed? Have anything to declare? So forth. Much less intrusive than at other borders we’ve crossed in our travels. And it seems we weren’t terribly suspicious characters so he let us pass with kind wishes. And so we now measure our distance in kilometers, pay in Loonies, and expect cheese curds with our fries. (A delicacy, I assure you. It’s called Poutine and should not be eaten by anyone who can’t take a bacon triple cheeseburger. But I digress.) 

The people here are friendly open and kind. We met Ben who is traveling to Winnipeg to see his daughter. It’s a long way from Toronto, eh? And he was really happy to share his story, weather forecasts and all the rest. And two riders: a young man from Florida who is riding around Lake Superior with his granddad (both on big Harley’s). Pretty cool, though I’m sorry we didn’t get their names.  

We are back on Eastern time.  A proof we are getting closer to home.  

Tomorrow we continue on our way. But for now, good night.
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“Borrowed” from the internet.  We had no sun today.

Beautiful stop along Lake Superior.

Minneapolis, MN to Duluth, MN

Monday morning we bade good bye to Jeff and Rosemary, and Joe. We had so much fun and they were so generous with their time and energy, providing welcome respite for our battered bums. Jeff shared richly of his hobby. He has a jeep, you see. Built in 1944 it is an olive drab (that’s a color, you know) monument to the army’s drive to replace the horse as its primary mode of moving supplies and people to and from the war front. It is beautiful. All of its three gears and 50 mph top speed and death trap suspension. He even gave me the chance to drive it! It has no powered features whatever, making turns and braking an adventure in living. It is beautiful. Jeff had the pleasure of carrying two Korean War vets along Edina’s July 4th parade in style. Well done!

We wound our way to Duluth at the western end of Lake Superior for a couple of days of exploration. On the way we saw considerable evidence of Minnesota’s sense of humor. I can think of nowhere else where electronic caution signs would tell drivers: “You don’t have Spidey sense. Pay attention.”   

We stopped to see the manse in which our father grew up on Branch Street. Nothing too special about it, though I think I spotted his bedroom window – the one he’d climb out of to shinny down the tree. He was smart enough to tell this story after his younger sons had reached their majority and couldn’t be corrupted. Well, moved out of the house any way.  

Stopping for provisions on the way to our hotel, we saw the city’s beautiful lakeside park. They have done a lot to make Duluth attractive and accommodating for its denizens. Considering winter lasts about 9 months of the year, this is truly commendable. Just kidding. It only lasts from October to June. Well, maybe May. 

Today we walked around the waterfront park area taking in the sights. And we went to Duluth Trading, on Superior Street. Maker of Firehouse Workpants and Buck Naked Underwear (yes, they really call them that) and the fantastical commercials that promote them, this emporium of anti-fashion is a delight. Imagine, clothes marketed to real people. You ought to look them up on Google and view their commercials on YouTube. Educational as well as amusing. Then there’s Grandma’s. Didn’t realize it, but she is building a mighty conglomerate beginning with restaurants. We found her corporate offices. Go Grandma!  

We so enjoyed our stay here. And we’re close to the harbor and the Coast Guard base. If you like things nautical, this is a great place.  

Tomorrow we head north to Thunder Bay, Ontario. We plan to head east along the north shore of Lake Superior, ultimately to return to the States near Kingston, NY. So the adventure continues.

On the Schwedes’ History Trail

We have had a couple of wonderful days with the Minneapolis Schwedes. On Friday evening we were treated to a wonderful performance of Stephen Sondheim’s, Sunday in the Park With George at the Guthrie Theater, a marvelous modern venue for the performing arts. The story revolves around the brief but brilliant life of the French painter, George Seurat, and his greatest work. So much fun and so well done. As you can tell, we loved it. 
On Saturday we went to the little Mississippi River town of 2,500 souls, Wabasha, MN, where a couple of generations of Schwedes ancestors lived and worked. It’s also the setting for Grumpy Old Men, which put the town on the map. (Your challenge is to find it on a map. Google is cheating. 😀) 

My
great great grandfather, Henry Schwedes, had the good sense to to fall in love and marry Mary Kuehn, the daughter of the owner of Kuehn’s General Store in downtown Wabasha. (Spelled Kühn with the German umlaut, you know, the double dots above the vowel.) Eventually, Mary and Henry inherited the store and became rather prosperous folks. They had a beautiful home on Main Street right next to her parents. Both the homes and general store are still standing and look well preserved. The store has become a hardware emporium owned by the Hill family and is a part of the Hardware Hank’s chain. Good name. But I digress. The name Kühn (with the umlaut) is still engraved on a marker stone inset at the top of the storefront. We also visited the local cemetery where my father’s parents, Walter F. and Leila are interred alongside the larger Kuehn family. 

We had lunch in Slippery’s, a riverside formerly run down haunt where several Grumpy scenes with Matthau and Lemon were shot. The food is good and the site is popular – a lot of bikes. Our waiter told us that it has expanded and been renovated a lot since Grumpy Old Men came out. We thoroughly enjoyed our outing with Jeff and Rosemary. They have learned so much family lore and proved wonderful, entertaining guides.   

That night we went to a neighborhood block party and met some of their terrific neighbors. Patrick Henry (yep, that’s his name) stands out for his enthusiastic welcome and delightful stream of funny stories and anecdotes. A lot of fun. 

Sunday we were treated to a wonderful tour of the Mill City Museum. Minneapolis is located at the only falls on the Mississippi. That falling water has provided power for a number of industries over the years. Logging was huge in the 19th Century, and the falls provided ample power to run saw mills. Literally millions of trees were harvested upstream and floated down to be collected and milled here. Eventually lumber gave way to textiles which mostly gave way to milling flour. Minnesota and surrounds produce huge quantities of grain that have to be ground. There were 26 mills on the West Bank of the Mississippi alone at the peak of water mill power. Electricity eventually displaced water as a motive power. The two largest were General Mills and Pillsbury, names we still see today. Sounds kind of dry, but it’s not. The mills drove industry which drove the economy and attracted talented people. Through the years Minneapolis has grown to be a truly cosmopolitan center where the arts and culture are treasured and supported The well. 

Monday it’s on the road again.
The Kuehns Building.  The store is now named Hill’s Hardware Hank.

An historical tour of Downtown Minneapolis.  Pillsbury and all.

The only waterfalls on the Mississippi.

Hank’s brother, Jeff, his wife, Rosemary and their son, Joe.  And the dog is Romi.  We had a wonderful visit.

Sorry for the delay on yesterday’s news, but we arrived at Jeff and Rose’s home in Edina and had such a great time catching up we simply ran out of time.  

Yesterday, we left Little Falls to set out to Mille Lacs, MN, the site of a great little museum chronicling the life if the Ojibwa Tribe from around 1750 through the present. The Ojibwa were originally from the Northeast but migrated west to what is now Minnesota and southern Manitoba. The move was fortunate because Europeans began arriving in numbers not long after. Some established native people, particularly the Dakota, were not always pleased with the their arrival which led to some relatively fierce wars. In the end, the Dakota took the worst of it and moved west and a bit south into, you guessed it, the Dakota territories. The Ojibwa were themselves pushed onto progressively smaller and more restrictive reservations due to pressure from white folks moving westward and the abrogation of solemn treaties with the US government and the states. (The principal reservation is called White Earth; a smaller one is in the vicinity of Lake Mille Lacs.) The history of the this relationship is not pretty and overwhelmingly one-sided.  

The story that is most personal to me and my family starts with a young girl who was adopted (perhaps forcibly) by a missionary couple from Massachusetts named Ayer. She was given the English name, Margaret Ayer and grew up within white culture, ultimately marrying and having two daughters, one of whom had a daughter, Leila Sparks, grandmother to the Schwedes clan established in eastern Minnesota. Leila had two daughters, Mary (Findlayson) and Margaret (Chisholm), and a son, Walter Schwedes (my Dad). I won’t go deeper into the details, but will say only that it was a remarkable experience to visit a place that opened a window to my family’s past. I am so blessed to have had this chance to connect with my heritage in this powerful and moving way.  

We left for Edina, just south of Minneapolis, about two hours away. From the time we arrived until late last night, we talked and caught up on so much. Jeff is an articulate student on the Schwedes’ connection to their Native American roots, and he was able to fill in a lot of the story. A wonderful night.

Today I took the bike in for some scheduled service (oil change, safety check and new tires) so our stead is ready for the next leg of our adventure. Tonight, Jeff and Rose are taking us to a local production of a Sondheim play, Sunday in the Park with George. Really looking forward to it.

Not a lot to write about it seems, but the days are wonderfully full. Be well.

Mille Lac

Fargo, ND to Little Falls, MN.

We left Fargo, ND this morning and headed into western Minnesota to find the headwaters of the great Mississippi River. Turns out someone else discovered it first and made a State Park to mark it. The north end of Lake Itasca has its outlet and the mighty river has its start as a trickly little stream. By the time it reaches New Orleans, 2550 miles along, it is a mighty thing, miles across having collected the input from a number of large rivers, including the Illinois, the Missouri, and the Ohio. More than 40% of the country’s watersheds flow into the Great Muddy. From such humble beginnings… 
There were a surprising number of families at the lake, many were dangling their feet and even swimming. Kids being kids were simply enjoying getting wet. Not sure they cared so much about the significance of this stream that heads north before curving the the east and south on its way to the Gulf of Mexico. Connie got some great pics and we were quite impressed. Met some nice people along the way as we always seem to do. A fellow named Rick was tending the counter at a store near Lake Itasca and he generously shared his advice on visiting the park while ringing up a welcome cold soda.  

It was another hot day so we ditched our riding pants to get the cooler air at 65 MPH, heading for our night’s destination in Little Falls, MN. We had been planning to visit the White Earth Reservation of the Chippewa, but decided to stop at a good museum in Mille Lacs tomorrow to learn more about my family’s heritage. Looking forward to tomorrow.

And off she goes …

My rider. ❤️

Dickinson, ND to Fargo, ND.

Another traveling day, so not a lot to report. We covered nearly 300 miles from Dickinson to Fargo, ND. Our only exploit was a stop at the gigantic statue of a Holstein cow, Salem Sue in New Salem, ND. She was built in 1974 for $40,000 and stands 38 feet long, is 50 feet long, and weighs 6 tons. Built of reinforced fiberglass, she is visible for miles around and is “the goddess of dairy”. I’m going to beat Mark to the punch: it’s udderly ridiculous. But a moooooving experience. 😄 Of course we got our pic taken standing before the goddess.

Then we got back on the highway, I-94. It was hot and we got lots of snarky and sort of clever comments from passers-by when we stopped for a cold soda. (We wear riding jackets and pants on the road, just in case.) We surely added a certain something to their day. Silly easterners, and all that. Hope they enjoyed themselves. Really.  

Arrived in Fargo about 4:00 Central time, having lost an hour east of Bismark when the time zone changed. Fargo folks are not really like they are portrayed in the movie. Intelligent, open and kind are the orders of the day. Very glad. Met several folks traveling through to somewhere else. A number of Cannucks who wished us a happy 4th, and a brother-sister combo from Georgia who looked a bit bewildered. Maybe because we met at Salem Sue’s and they couldn’t believe it either. Nice folks, though. 

We’ll spend the night here and probably view the fireworks on TV. It’s very, very dry here, so pyrotechnics may be out of the question in town. Supper is from the feedbag tonight. We just can’t seem to muster the energy to get on the bike to find a decent hotdog. A cool swim in the pool looks like a better bet.  

Tomorrow it’s on to Minnesota to browse a bit in the arcana of my Chippewa (Ojibwa) heritage. Then Thursday it’s on to Minneapolis to visit Jeff and Rose and Joe. Looking forward to it.

New farming, old farming.

Big clouds.

Rapid City, SD to Dickinson, ND.

Today was a simple travel day. Because of the high heat, we decided to skip the 2 hour detour to Teddy Roosevelt National Grasslands. Kind of sad, but we were melting and pushed on to Dickinson, ND for the night. We had some fun along the way, though. In no particular order …  
We stopped for lunch near the SD/ND border and met 3 women taking a break from their travels. Two younger women (a couple?) were taking mom on a bucket list trip. Mom wants to visit all 48 contiguous states in her lifetime. They will be near fulfilling mom’s wish at the end of this trip, which includes the Dakotas, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska and Wyoming. Wonderful and interesting women. The two younger are also bike riders who expressed admiration and a bit of wistfulness about our trip across the country. Maybe they’ll find inspiration to try it for themselves.  

At this same stop we saw a cautionary sign that we’ve never seen before. Here’s betting you haven’t either. 😉 Connie has the pic attached. Amazing. 

We passed 10,000 miles this morning. We wanted a pic of the tripmeter, but it only turned over to “0”. Ugh. We did, however, stop along the side of the road and do a little happy dance. We had an audience of about 20 and they were very appreciative. We think. Pic also attached. 

Later we stopped in the shade of the only tree visible for a long way. Along side the road again, but it worked. Passing trucks gave us a breeze and a weather beaten antique shop (with old shot-put balls as door stops) providing a cold soda. We know how to roll!

On the way out of Rapid City, we rode through Sturgis, site of the annual August bike rally. A lot of road work going on and a lot of big, empty venues waiting for the 100,000+ bikes that will roll in. We tried to figure how and where they will all fit. Not sure of the answer and glad we didn’t have to fight our way through the throng. Amazing what humans will do in search of a good time.

We got a taste for the wide open prairie. It is green and brown and tan and red and not even a little flat. Rolling hills and sharp gullies are the order of the day, all day. So is the wind which is constant and can be relentless. We tip our hats at the kind of folks who can make a go of it out here, especially the farmers. Ranching and growing crops in support of the stock look like the lion’s share of agriculture, and the expanses are BIG. There was a sign advertising a “small” farm for sale – only 510 acres.

We noticed drill rigs and pumps for Bakken Formation oil and gas all along our route so far in ND. The Bakken Formation underlies Montana, ND, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Trains with Bakken shale oil pass through Philly and NJ on the way to east coast refineries and ports. It’s a long way to go.

Tomorrow, we’re heading across ND the long way to Fargo where we’ll spend the evening of the 4th. It promises to be another scorcher so we will move along with dispatch and as much air flow as we can manage. Hoping to get in a little early, before the revelry hits high gear. So an early start in the morning. In the meantime, Happy Independence Day to you all.

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Celebrating our big milestone.

Our cheering section!

Geomapping the exact location.

Random Americana.

Evidence of our morning obligatory ride through Sturgis.