Setting Forth to the North

North Dakota, that is. And South. Mr. K. and I left late one morning in October. Oh sure, everyone says to get an early start, but that’s a little judgy, isn’t it? What with going to the gym, watering the plants, taking the trash out, and eating a hearty breakfast, let’s see you get an early start. Luckily, we had a long way to go.

We drove through Pennsylvania, into Ohio, into the evening, and spent the night outside of Toledo. We travelled late into the night (we did not get an early start) and booked a hotel just off the highway. The next day we made it into Wisconsin and camped at a beautiful state park. It was freezing cold, and the only place there was running water was in the bathroom sinks. Okay, now we are starting to get into the swing of things! We took a walk as it got dark, viewing the stars as they emerged, hoping the trail we were on actually did loop back as we expected. That would be pretty funny – getting lost on an unknown hiking trail somewhere in Wisconsin the second night of the trip. Hahaha! Eventually we made it back to the van, added a few layers of clothing, and hunkered down under the down quilt and into a deep, dark sleep.

The next day we were anxious to get on our way, early start and everything, and as we were on the road we stumbled across a funky diner that we knew we had to check out. It had a big arrow pointing toward it, so we knew we were in the right place. We were greeted by the alligator host and sat down to a huge meal of fried eggs. All that driving makes you hungry!

More driving, and the next day we finished passing through Wisconsin. Next thing you know we were in Minnesota. Boy, they sure have a lot of lakes there! Right, left, forward, and back. North, south, east, and west. And a Lake Wobegon Trail, if you are into that kind of thing. Minnesota has St. Cloud, which is named for a city in France which was named after a monk. You never know what you are going to find once you start investigating things.  

Head northwest across Minnesota, and before you can say Paul Bunyan you are in Fargo, North Dakota, site of one of my favorite movies! No, not that one. Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter tells the story of a woman in Japan who watches the American movie Fargo, and becomes determined to unearth the suitcase full of cash buried during said movie. Without any knowledge of the United States, Fargo, or how to stay warm in Minnesota in the dead of winter, she takes a flight and follows a hand-made map to the site that she believes will make her rich. I’ll leave you to watch it and see what happens next. But it’s not giving anything away when I say it is a movie made with heart and imagination. 

Fargo is North Dakota’s largest city, with around 133,000 which means it holds around 17 percent of the state’s population. Look around most of North Dakota, whaddya see? Farms. You drive down a main road, and notice a gravel road meeting it, with a mailbox at the end of the road. You look down the road as far as you can see, and there is no house. Where is the house? Who comes in to feed the dog while the owner is away? How long does it take for Dad to bring his kiddo by for a play date? I’ll tell you, these places are way out there. They are set in an area of natural geographic beauty under a majestic sky. And you have to really like being out there on your own.

North Dakota is the 50^th state RunningBarb has visited. Go North Dakota!