Monday Memories: Sneaking a Peek
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Blue Earth, Minnesota
Before we took off on our cross-country adventure in May 2002, we looked at a few sight-seeing travel books to discover all of the weird roadside attractions off the beaten path. Visiting the statue of the Jolly Green Giant in Blue Earth, Minnesota, is a direct result of my findings.
My fascination with the Jolly Green Giant no doubt is steeped in my childhood memories of the TV commercials featuring little Sprout and the big giant always "Ho-ho-ho"-ing at the end in time with the famous jingle. Plus, by visiting the said statue of Mr. Jolly Green, I could discover what is underneath his tunic! Is he crotchless and smooth like a Ken doll, or did they make him anatomically correct? We arrived in Blue Earth in the late afternoon/early evening. We freshened up and then walked to see the Giant, as our hotel was within walking distance. I almost ran and skipped up to the Giant, I was that thrilled to be in the presence of his green majesty! To find out what is underneath the Giant's tunic, simply click on the image of him! Walnut Grove, Minnesota
From Blue Earth we made our way to Walnut Grove, Minnesota. Perhaps this is the most famous residence of Laura Ingalls Wilder because of the TV show.
The location that Laura and her family lived on the banks of Plum Creek in an earthen dug out is marked by a large sign. The creek has changed course over the last century and washed away the original dug out that the Ingalls family called home for awhile. Currently, the portion of Plum Creek that is identified as being historic is part of a private farm and residence. As for other remains of the Ingalls being in Walnut Grove, such as a house or building, do not exist. The city has a small but interesting museum containing photographs of some of the real people that Laura mentions in the book On the Banks of Plum Creek, including Rev. Alden and Nellie Oleson. There was an interesting display about locust plagues and how frequently a problem they were until modern chemicalization. (If you recall in the book the family lost a crop to a locust cloud.) The town of Walnut Grove is just a wide spot on the prairie road. The wind blew hard and strong during our visit to the town. I recall asking one of the local clerks if it is always so windy, and she replied, "Yes, that's the prairie for you!" I don't think I could tolerate living with wind that takes your breath away. Pipestone & Petroglyphs
Also in Minnesota we visited two different locations that had to do with rocks. Not just any kind of rock, but pipestone. Our first finding was at Jeffer's Petroglyphs. The location Native Americans would carve images on the exposed pipestone rock. It was a self-guided tour through an open field on the prairie. Thankfully there were displays that pointed out the carvings. Some of the images looked very interesting. I found the raging 20 mph wind to be too overwhelming to stay out in the open for very long, and since the visitor's center was closed and we both needed a restroom, we made our visit as quickly as possible.
The second site we found was Pipestone National Monument. Here the local Native Americans had quarries to extract the pipestone from the earth to carve pipes, animals, and other assorted items. The park contained paved trails that followed a small river and led us to a view of a very beautiful waterfall that wasn't very tall. The trail went to the top of the falls and you could peer down onto them. The pipestone quarries in the park are still functioning and local tribes dig out pieces of the rock to make pipes both for use in their ceremonies and to sell to tourists. What was interesting about the town of Pipestone is that many of the buildings were made from the abundant pipestone and so the main street had lots and lots of red and pink exteriors which was totally cool to see.  
Not Your Typical Dutch Windmill As we drove across Minnesota on our way to South Dakota, we came upon fields of windmills off in the distance. I expressed my curiosity at wondering how large the blades were. Well, shortly after I said this we came upon a roadside windmill maintenance station that had some spare blades resting on the ground. I had Pooky stand next to the blade to give a perspective of size. He stands 5'6" (1.70 meters). Next we headed into South Dakota which will be covered over the next two Monday Memories. Links to other Monday Memories |
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Lori! OMG, Pipestone, MN! That's where my grandparents live! I would beg my dad to take me out to the monument every single day when we visited my grandparents! That waterfall used to be really tiny, like a gentle shower. Once my aunt Julie and I climbed down onto the big flat rocks at the base of the waterfall and watched painted turtles swimming around. This entry just made my day, you have no idea! :)