The trip from Grand Forks to Lake Itaska State Park in Minnesota is only 119 miles, a little over two hours. The scenery along the way does not change much until very close to the lake. At that point the northern forest look takes over, with lots of tall pine trees and deciduous forests of all types. The park is very rustic and has the feel of a CCC project from early last century. Lot of log cabins, solid structures, and vaguely defined roads of gravel, macadam, and asphalt. An old-time lodge that was undoubtedly the height of country vacationing many years ago. Lake Itaska itself is not a very large lake – maybe 6 miles from north to south and less than a mile wide at any point. Perhaps because it has been a state park for so long, it has not seen much development, and one feels that one could be back in the 1950s at nearly any point in the park.
The lake is the source of the Mississippi River. Water flows out of the lake on the north end, and the point at which the water flows out has been designated the Mississippi Headwaters. The river flows north for twenty-odd miles, gathering some volume until it empties into Lake Bemidji at the down of the same name. From there the outflow is in a southerly direction, beginning the long journey to the Gulf of Mexico some 2,350 miles distant. At the point of the headwaters, one can walk across the river on a series of stones that enable a dry crossing for the relatively sure-footed. I am not at all confident of my sure-footedness, so I substituted water socks for my shoes and simply waded across. The water is cool and very clean, and it’s possible to walk across and even a couple hundred yards downstream without getting wet above one’s knees. I had been there a day earlier with Ollie, but did not trust my footing with an excited dog yanking me here and there, so I left him in the trailer and returned, as I had decided that a walk across the Mississippi River was a good bucket list item. It was thus on, and is now off, my bucket list.
Bemidji is a town of some charm and 14,000 residents. It’s the home of Bemidji State University (the Beavers) and Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox. Paul Bunyan park is on the shore of Lake Bemidji, right downtown, and has huge statues of the famed lumberman and his helper. Despite the rather light traffic on the Wednesday afternoon there was a constant flow of tourists visiting the statues for a picture opportunity. Checked that box as well.
Bemidji is also the home of Bemidji Brewing Company which happens to have a nice dog-friendly patio and offers some very tasty products. I sampled their IPA, a red ale, and their Oktoberfest, all of which were very good. Ollie liked the free popcorn and had several of the other patrons tossing him kernels and complementing him on his catching skills.
The remoteness of the park is part of its charm, but also a source of frustration. No wi-fi is available, which is pretty typical of state parks. However, there is VERY weak cell coverage, and for reliable internet connectivity it’s a twenty-minute one-way drive. When I have some kind of connection I can stay somewhat plugged into the world around me via YouTube TV. But for three days at Lake Itaska, I was flying blind.
It is worth noting that I have not mentioned the heat in recent entries. The summer swelter of my first two weeks that made life uncomfortable without A/C has been but a memory lately. Since the day after arriving in Miles City (August 3) the daily high has rarely broken 80 degrees, and never approached 90. Nights have been cool, in the 50s and low 60s. My new air conditioning unit awaits in Egg Harbor and will be installed on August 23, but I haven’t missed it much.