We
never quite know where our travels will take us. We needed a place to
stay for the night, so we did what we usually do and scanned our big
book of campground/RV park listings for a place that was close to the
bike trail we wanted to ride on the next day. We selected one that turned
out to be a winner. The campground was on the shore of a beautiful lake
and the town was the birthplace of a famous author, Sinclair Lewis.
We enjoyed the morning, watching the Canadian geese, seagulls and ducks
on Sauk Lake, then our 35-mile bike ride began with a stop at Lewis'
childhood home. We then made a more informative visit to the Sinclair
Lewis Interpretive Center and had a picnic lunch in the shade of the
trees surrounding the nearby "Little Red Schoolhouse."
Thirty years before Sinclair Lewis was born, Chippewa and Sioux lived
in the area of Sauk Centre. In 1862, Chief Little Crow and the Sioux
warred with the whites in the bloodiest conflict in history between
the two races.
The Lake Wobegon Trail turned out to be a wonderful bike path and we
enjoyed the day's journey. It was built on the route of the old railroad
and makes for very smooth, level, easy riding.
We took the recommendation of an impressive cyclist we met on the trail,
and had a snack at a cafe in Freeport before heading back to the campground.
We pulled in just before dark, tired, but content with having spent
an enjoyable day exploring a beautiful part of Minnesota.
)
Next
to the Interpretive Center is this "Little Red Schoolhouse" that
served as the town's multi-grade education center for many years.)
A
woman from the Interpretive Center was kind enough to unlock the schoolhouse
and let us walk inside. Harrison and Amanda sat at the little desks, complete
with ink wells and imagined what it would have been like to go to school
here. The pull-down maps were impressive, but not as amazing as the teachers
must have been who taught children of many ages at the same time within
these walls.)
During
our bike ride on the Lake Wobegon Trail, we passed a turkey farm. While
Rob got a close-up view of the white feathered fowls, they checked him out
as well. They seemed to flock toward him at the fence, as if trying to hear
an interesting orator, though it would have been impossible to hear anything
over gobbling.)
Susan
and Amanda on the Lake Wobegon Trail. The scenery was beautiful, varying
from small lakes to well-kept farms to charming small towns.
Faces
(Click Here
for more faces) 
)
)
