Skeletal Moose

It was time to hit the road again. We left the Keweenaw and headed to Grand Rapids MN – a location chosen simply because it seemed the right driving distance for the day.  We had two planned stops along the way – Lake of the Clouds in the Porcupine Mtns and The Village Inn in Cornucopia WS.

The Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park has lots of old growth forest and many back country hiking trails. None of which we took. My objective was the scenic overlook of Lake of the Clouds. I was last here in 1959 on the same trip we took the photo of the Quincy Mine #8 shafthouse and I wanted to see it again. Not enough to make a special trip, but, hey, we were passing pretty close by, so why not?

Family shoot at Lake of the Clouds then, and panorama from further away on the boardwalk now. Beautiful, sunny days both times.

After that brief interlude, it was on to Cornucopia. Our purpose there was to stop at the Village Inn and hoist a glass to the memory of Phyllis Allison, a friend of Ken’s who passed away a few years ago. I never met her, but I understand she was quite the character. She lived in Cornucopia and frequented the Village Inn daily. We got there in time for lunch. I had the fish chowder – good but a bit salty. And the people there did remember Phyllis.

After that, it was just lazy driving for the rest of the day, catching a bit of serendipity at a rest stop in Floodwood MN. Floodwood labels itself as the “Catfish Capitol of the World”. And has the totem to go along with it. I wonder if any place else is in contention?

We arrived in Grand Rapids around 5pm local time. By the time we settled ourselves in the hotel room, I was getting pretty hungry, so we got a recommendation from the desk clerk to the Seventeenth St Bar & Grill. Most of the meal was pretty good, but the corn chowder was too salty to eat. I cook with little or no salt so am sensitive to it. There are some places where it belongs, french fries leap to mind, but mostly I prefer a lighter hand.

Afterwards, we decided to go moose hunting. Another Roadside America find. The GPS didn’t do so well, but I remembered the written directions and we ended up at the Garden Court Chateau, an assisted living facility.

From roadsideamerica.com: “The Skeletal Scrap Metal Moose was created by Dutch artist Thijs Trompert of Amersfoort, Netherlands.” and “Trompert built the moose in 2012 -- from scrap metal and old farm equipment – in memory of his girlfriend's grandmother, who stayed for a time at the facility. The moose stands 20 feet tall and weighs 1.5 tons.” We got there very near sunset so it was difficult taking pictures. I like it.