One upon a time in the North Country

"Then why do we still live here?  For the taxes? For the climate? No, and no again. For the North Shore (and the grandies)? Yes, and yes again. Where else can you find these sights the North Shore has to offer?" 

The annual trek "North". Which north? In Minnesota, "True North" is anything out of sight, or sometimes smell, of the metro area. In other words, civilization. The further north one goes in Minnesota, the blood pressure drops about a point a mile. But Saturday, when I was so worried about thick smoke and drought might have screwed up our vacation, I was pleasantly surprised by rain - and lots of it, all the way on our trip up to "True North".

This trip, we came up with the grandies. Oh - and for our oldest daughter's 40th birthday (Gasp! Am I that old?). In any event, the six of us, headed North (MN speak) for some R+R (rest and rejuvenation). Yes, there was some fog. Yes, there was some drizzle. But who cares? We were up North staying at a place with an indoor pool, and thousands of acres of God's living room right in front of us. Oh - did I forget to mention "The Lake"? Superior, also known as Gitche Gumee. The inland fresh water ocean, many of us take for granted. The "Superior" great lake, properly named for its size.

What does all this mean? As kids, those of us who lived in this state as youngins, saw this "North Country" through the eyes of a child. If we were blessed to have kids, and could take them up to the the "North Country", we could once again see those wonders through the eyes of a child. As a bonus, if you are blessed to live long enough, and have grandkids, you can see that wonder once again, through the eyes of your children's children. Awesome once again!

Today, we went to Gooseberry Falls. A bit sad, due to the drought. But, there was enough water and rocks on the trail, to have some wide eyed and wonderful times by the youngins. The highlight for the boy, was the walking stick we bought before we went down to the falls. His Dad had made him one, his name engraved on it, but alas and alack - it was still back at home. So I found one at the Gooseberry Gift Shop which was larger, and also had a carved turtle on the head of it.

The boy loved it. Then, the frosting on the cake, was as soon as we ventured down the trail to the falls, three ladies came up to him and told him how much they loved his walking stick. They loved the turtle! For him, it was like winning an Olympic medal.

"Up North". Or, in some places in the Northeast quad of Minneapolis - "Up Nord". Why come up here? As Telly Savalas ("Kojak") would say, "This is better than RIviera of France". Telly loved it so much, he opened a restaurant in Duluth known as The Bellows. It operated for years. We ate there many times. Steaks were beyond outstanding! Telly loved the North Shore for a reason - and coming up here, is a good reason to understand why.

Whenever we come home, we vow to come back soon. We will be back this fall, for the "Gales of Superior". We will be hunkered down in our condo, looking out at the (hopefully) angry lake, feeling blessed for living here.

Then why do we still live here?  For the taxes? For the climate? No, and no again. For the North Shore (and the grandies) ? Yes, and yes again. Where else can you find these sights the North Shore has to offer? Not too many places. And I am grateful our kids and grandies have seen them. Each day day, every day.