Of traveling west to Idaho. Northern Minnesota is old, somehow. Old barns, silos, low sheds with faded tin, and trailer houses. Someone thought it was a good idea to pull in a trailer house beside the old farmhouse and move over. Now the old house stands straight and true, admittedly windowless, but the mobile home is rotted and sad. Nobody should have created them. Ever. They scar the countryside, pitifully. If I had youth and time, I would revive the old houses. There’s a future in them. But that’s just my opinion.
Still, there’s something unpretentious and homey about swamps, cedars and popular trees with HWY 2 cutting through. Something north and always about that. The same scenery as was fifty years ago, I’m sure. Here’s a bit of trivia for you…Minnesota Rt 2 has been blacktop since 1932.
North Dakota is slightly more up and coming with newer businesses and housing sprouting everywhere. The road is divided here, running west through flat land. Flat land that isn’t really, once you actually look. There are swells and dips and lines of trees. It’s spring here. The sky has squiggles of flocks of geese overhead. Water stands in low spots in the black loamy fields.
We follow the same track west as last time we came through. Only we’re in the Jeep now, on the road.
I read aloud to Elv from the Constable book we are on. Cenex stations and Super One grocery stores live along this route. I’m intrigued that Super One is the grocery of choice from Superior all the way to Bonners Ferry along HWY 2.
Brad asked us to get on 360, which we did. Twice, I saw swans today. The first pair was in the Mississippi headwaters area… They found open water. The other pair didn’t seem so fortunate and were tentatively standing in corn stubble.
Tonight, in Minot I send off to my siblings to let them know that we Minot leave here till morning since we have a hotel. Often one or two of them Minot something else back to me. Yup it’s lame, but, oh well.
Stone House Scribblings 