Lucy is Finally Back on the Road

[moosetags]

We packed up this morning in Chippewa Falls and headed north on US 53 through the Wisconsin countryside. It was a pleasant drive with minimal traffic along the route. We stopped briefly in a few of the small towns along the way.

We arrived in Superior, Wisconsin late this afternoon. We crossed over into Duluth, Minnesota where we got Lucy a nice campsite at the South St. Louis County Fair Grounds. We took a ride and got a bite to eat before returning to Lucy for the night.

Brian

Tonight's pictures include:

- Some of Lucy's traffic company along US 53.
- Farm field rollers making their way along the highway.
- Giant fishing bobber along the road.
- Downtown Rice Lake, Wisconsin.
- Beautiful flowers along the boulevard in Rice Lake.
- Neat new travel trailer.
- Marina in Superior, Wisconsin.
- Coming into Duluth.
- Entering Minnesota.
- Arriving at the Fair Grounds.

[Gene]

We stayed at a county park or perhaps a city park on the south end of Duluth overlooking the St. Louis River. It was quite nice.

Be sure to see the lift bridge at the Duluth port; it is unique. The bridge tender rides up and down with the bridge rather than staying on the deck. The railroad museum is also worth a visit and had a gigantic locomotive among other things.

[moosetags]

Lucy broke camp at the Fair Grounds in Duluth and headed west on US 2. There was smoke in the air from fires in the Minnesota Boundary Waters. It also rained on us during most of today's trip. We didn't get many pictures today. We arrived in Lake George this afternoon.*

We will be visiting with our friends, Jeff and Linda, for the next couple days. They have a cabin on Lake George. They also have RV hook-ups for Lucy in their yard. We had a nice dinner with Jeff and Linda before retiring to Lucy for the night.

Brian

Tonight's pictures include:

- Shorty gondola ore cars were lined up by the hundreds on the way out of Duluth.
- Ice fishing house. In the winter, the wheels retract and the trailer sits directly on the ice frozen lake.* *In the summer, the wheels are down and it becomes a travel trailer.
- Coming into Walker, Minnesota.
- The Cass County Courthouse in Walker.

[moosetags]

Lucy spent another day camped in Jeff and Linda's yard in Lake George. We slept in this morning and got a somewhat late start. As it was raining, it didn't really matter. Jeff and Linda offered the use of their washing machine and dryer. This gave us the opportunity to get get a couple of loads of laundry done. This is a real plus on one of Lucy's great adventures.

We also took a tour this afternoon. We got to see some of Jeff's ongoing projects. We also went by another friend's place, and got to see Brett and Holly's significant snowmobile collection.

We had a nice dinner at Lobo's Restaurant in nearby Lake Itasca. We went back to Jeff and Linda's where Brett and Holly came by. They are cattle ranchers and each has another job too.* We had a very nice visit.

Brian

Tonight's pictures include:

- A view of Lucy's work area.
- Lake George, Minnesota.
- Jeff and Linda's Cabin on Lake George.
- Lucy and Vivian at their campsite.
- The road from Lucy's Campsite.
- Jeff's project 1957 Chevy BelAire.
- The engine and frame are already done.
- Brett's extensive snowmobile collection.
- An ice fishing trailer coming through downtown Lake George.
- US Post Office in Lake George, Minnesota.
- Lobo's Restaurant in Lake Itasca.

[moosetags]

We got a late start out of Lake George this morning. We needed to say good bye to our hosts, Jeff and Linda, and it was raining again this morning. We finally got on the road shortly before the crack of noon.

We traveled in the rain through Bemidji, Minnesota. We looked around Bemidji briefly and continued to Crookston, Minnesota. By the time we got to Crookston, the rain had quit. We took a tour of Crookston before heading west.

We crossed into North Dakota late this afternoon. We drove up to Grafton, where we got Lucy a very nice full hook-up campsite at the Grafton Campground in their City Park. We got Lucy settled in for the night and enjoyed a nice dinner in Lucy.

Brian
- The roadway out of Lake George.
- Arriving in Bemidji.
- Paul Bunyan and Babe the blue ox in the Park in Bemidji.
- Very nice turreted Victorian in Downtown Bemidji.
- Very nice vintage water tower in Erskine, Minnesota.
- Commercial sunflower field along the highway.
- The 1910 Grand Theatre in Crookston, Minnesota.
- The 1882 Merchants Bank Building in Downtown Crookston.
- The 1890 Union Building in Downtown Crookston.
- The 1899 Crookston City Hall, Fire House, and Police Headquarters.

[moosetags]

Lucy is still camped at the City Park in Grafton, North Dakota. We spent the day touring some of the small towns in the area, When we say small towns, we are talking about towns with populations under 500 people.

We drove all the way up to Pembina on the Canadian Border. Brian worked here when he started with US Customs in 1971. The town looks about the same as it did then. We returned to Lucy in Grafton and had a nice dinner before settling in for the night.

Brian
- Very nice US Flower Flag in the City Park in Grafton.
- The 1946 Strand Theatre in Downtown Grafton. It lost its marque a few years ago.
- very nice vintage neon sign in Downtown Grafton, North Dakota.
- A unique vintage round ball water tower in St. Thomas, North Dakota.
- A familiar name appears on this grain elevator in St. Thomas, North Dakota.
- The 1931 US Customhouse in Pembina, North Dakota.*
- The 1900 bank building in downtown Pembina.
- Advertising wall in Drayton, North Dakota.
- A North Dakota black soil farm field.
- The 1881 Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Oakwood, North Dakota, population 62.

[moosetags]

Lucy broke camp this morning at the Grafton City Park Campground and headed west on North Dakota 17. We passed through a number of small towns along our route. Eventually, we made our way to Devils Lake, where we had lunch. After lunch, we took Vivian over to Lake Chevrolet in Downtown Devils Lake. We were able to get Vivian serviced which was due. We disconnected Lucy in the dealership parking lot so that Vivian could be serviced.

We continued west to Rugby, North Dakota where we got Lucy a very nice campsite at the Pierce County Fair Grounds. We took Vivian on a short tour of Rugby before returning to Lucy to settle in for the night.

Brian

Tonight's Pictures include:
- This 1955 Thunderbird passed us in Grafton this morning.
- A very large farm tractor heading the other way on ND 17.
- The 1917 Lyric Theatre in Park River, North Dakota.
- A long ago abandoned prairie school house along ND 17 in the middle nowhere.
- The former Burlington Northern Railroad Headquarters in Devils Lake.
- Vivian getting serviced in Devils Lake.
- A rather brightly painted house next door to the US Post Office in Rugby, North Dakota.
- The 1908 Pierce County Courthouse in Rugby, North Dakota.
- A very unusual round house sided in rock in Rugby, North Dakota.
- The monument naming Rugby as the geographic center of the North American Continent. In 2016, new satellite information moved that point to Robinson, North Dakota.

[GSP9]

We were on Route 2 this summer from the UP to Glacier. We loved it and would do it again.

[moosetags]

Originally Posted by GSP9

We were on Route 2 this summer from the UP to Glacier. We loved it and would do it again.

Yes, US 2 is one of the special roads in this Country.

Brian

[moosetags]

Lucy had a light travel day today. We packed up in Rugby, North Dakota and moved her to Bottineau, North Dakota. This is only about a fifty mile distance, but Lucy needed an easy day.

We got Lucy settled into a nice campsite at the Bottineau City Park Campground. We took Vivian and toured around Bottineau for awhile. After a couple of store stops, we returned to Lucy for dinner.

Brian

Tonight's pictures include:

- Lucy and Vivian are all hooked up in Rugby, ready to hit the road.
- This is Main Street Willow City, North Dakota. This is just another piece of small town America that is disappearing.
- Willow City High School that has been abandoned for quite some time.
- A weather-worn building sign in Willow City. I can't remember the last time that I sold a hide for cash.
- SuEllyn caught this combine in action right along ND 60.
- ND 60 is so sparsely traveled that we were able to stop on the roadway with Lucy to get the combine photograph.
- Main Street in Bottineau, North Dakota.
- The grain elevator in Bottineau. The incoming grain is lifted to the top of the silo. Outgoing grain is drawn from the bottom.
- The 1941 Botno Theatre in Downtown Bottineau, North Dakota.
- A late 1940's Spartan Travel Trailer in its final resting place in a back yard in Bottineau, North Dakota.

[Wayne&Sam]

US 2 is a nice road. Drove it on two trips to Alaska- in 1971 and 2011.

[moosetags]

Lucy is still camped in Bottineau. We took off in Vivian this morning and drove up to the International Peace Garden, about thirty miles north of here. The Peace Garden was established in 1932 as a statement of peace between the United States and Canada. It consists of 3.65 square miles, half of which is in North Dakota and the other half is in the Canadian Province of Manitoba. The Peace Garden is maintained by both the United States and Canada. Once inside the Peace Gardens, you must clear US or Canada Customs to return to to either the United States or Canada.

We toured most of the Peace Garden and enjoyed our visit. We then drove down to Dunseith, North Dakota, and toured the town a little bit. We returned to Lucy at her campsite in Bottineau. We had a nice dinner in Lucy before settling in for the night.

Brian

Tonight's poictures include:

- Stately old barn along ND 5.
- Festive cow pony rural mail box mount.
- A combine making its way along ND 5.
- Entering the International Peace Garden.
- One of the main gardens. Canada's side is* the right side of the photo and the US is the left half of the matching gardens
- Manicured garden section with gradual water fall from top to bottom of photo.
- Another main garden shot.
- Main official border marker.
- The Wheel Turtle. A main attraction in Dunseith, North Dakota.
- The Turtle is made of thousands of old automobile wheels welded together.

[azflycaster]

Picture number 5 is the statue "A Promise of Peace" and was donated to the garden by the WBCCI in 2016. It was paid for by donations and was a replacement for another statue that was donated in 1975, but only lasted a few years.

The Peace Garden was establish to mark the end of the war of 1812 and to ensure peace between the two great nations, Canada and the Unite States.

[moosetags]

Originally Posted by azflycaster

Picture number 5 is the statue "A Promise of Peace" and was donated to the garden by the WBCCI in 2016. It was paid for by donations and was a replacement for another statue that was donated in 1975, but only lasted a few years.

The Peace Garden was establish to mark the end of the war of 1812 and to ensure peace between the two great nations, Canada and the Unite States.

Thank you for this information, Richard.

[moosetags]

It was raining hard in Bottineau this morning. Accordingly, we decided that sleeping-in was an excellent idea. Hearing the rain drops on Lucy's roof made that decision easy. We stayed in bed until about eleven when we got up and had breakfast while watching the rain out the window.

The rain finally quit early this afternoon. We decided that we would make the rest of the day a maintenance day. Lucy's hitch system needed some new parts. I went to the local farm supply store where I got the needed parts. We got Lucy's hitch squared away. We also greased the moving parts of Lucy's hitch.

By then it was late in the day. We decided not to go anywhere. Today's pictures were taken just around the campground. This is one of the nicest campgrounds that we have stayed at, and at $20 per night, it is a bargain.*We had a nice dinner in Lucy and settled in for the night.

Brian

Tonight's pictures include:

- This is Tommy Turtle. He is 30' tall and the mascot of the Bottineau City Park where Lucy's Campground is located.
- The Bottineau City Park Campground from the street.
- A closer shot of the campground.
- Lucy and Vivian in their campsite.
- Campground from the other end of the street.
- A shot of the Girls from the inside road.
- You can see how nicely these sites are set up.

[moosetags]

Hello all. I thought that it is about time that I provide you with an assessment of Lucy's trip so far. We have been on the road for 47 days and Lucy has camped at 27 different campgrounds which cost a high of $44 in Vermont to a low of $15 in North Dakota. We have covered about 8,000 miles, and Diesel costs have ranged from $2.98 to $3.19.

Were were concerned about all of the new RVers on the road and difficulties getting campsites without advance reservations. We have now traveled from Florida up to New England and are now crossing the upper tier of the United States. We have yet to see any throngs of new RVers out here. We have not made any advance reservations for campgrounds, and have not had any trouble finding Lucy a site.

Brian

[Hittenstiehl]

Brian
It has been good to hear of your ability to find nightly accomodations on your road less traveled trip.

Thanks for the update.

[DaveP]

Brian,

What resources are you using to find the campgrounds?

Thanks, Dave

[Gene]

I guess turtles use snowmobiles when they want to get somewhere fast.

Glad to hear you are finding CG’s without reservations. We have not traveled far, but the CG’s we use in Colorado and Utah have been booked up. A couple will fit us in because they know us, but we give them plenty of notice.

[moosetags]

Originally Posted by DaveP

Brian,

What resources are you using to find the campgrounds?



Thanks, Dave

Hi Dave. We us rvparky almost exclusively. They do list most of the city and county park campgrounds. Most of these are shown with the green tent symbol like state parks. This is not always the case. Today, for instance, we were in three small North Dakota towns. Each had a small city park campground. Most were full hook-ups.

Brian