When we left Delano, we were still trying to decide if we were going to go into South Dakota and check Pierre off our capital list, or if we would go directly to Bismark, North Dakota. As we meandered through Minnesota, we found a few interesting spots. The first was Pillsbury State Forest, named after the Pillsburys of Pillsbury Dough Boy fame who donated the land to the state. The State Forest allows boondocking on state lands, so we put directions together from about three different sources and figured out how to get to the camping spots. We found that the road where the campsites are located is considered a minimum maintenance road, which means nobody is in a hurry to clear fallen trees or make sure the overhead clearance is maintained. We were just about to give up and find a place to turn around when we came upon the first of the campsites, so we parked for the night and went for a walk. The road runs between ponds so there were a fair number of mosquitoes, but it was better than Michigan. The dogs each picked up a few ticks even though they only walked in the road, but it was manageable.
In the morning, we parked at a driving range and walked on the town bike path rather than fight the mosquitoes and get more ticks, which was very pleasant. We then continued north and west and found Itasca State Park, which someone somewhere along the line had recommended. It was well worth the stop since the main feature of the park is the headwaters of the Mississippi, so we got to take off our shoes and walk across the Mississippi. We also learned that the name of the park is not Indian, as everyone assumes, but is an abbreviation of two Latin words joined together: verITAS|CApute, which translates to “true head.”
We still hadn’t decided where we were going next, so we continued on towards the Minnesota/North Dakota border. Driving through western Minnesota is driving through a whole lot of nothing, and we couldn’t find a good place to pull over to get the dogs out for a rest stop. Finally we saw a small hospital with a walking trail around it, just before the turn into North Dakota, so we pulled into their parking lot. Some hospitals can get touchy about non-hospital users using their space, so Tom ran in to talk to the front desk manager to make sure it was okay. Betty was super nice, and assured him that it was fine, and asked what we were doing. Tom told her a little bit about our trip and then came out and we took the dogs around the loop. When we came back and were loading them into the truck, Betty came trotting out of the building with a gentleman in tow, and told us that she thought what we were doing was so interesting that she called the local newspaper and a reporter named Frank came out to interview us, if it wasn’t too much trouble. It certainly wasn’t too much trouble, and we took it as the huge compliment it was, and we talked with Frank and posed for photos and showed him the camper. The article, which is probably the most accurate journalism I’ve read in years, is in this link: https://www.wahpetondailynews.com/news/getting-to-know-tom-and-marge-gallagher/article_a7c41fe6-0b01-11ee-9fc0-7324d9ca0a06.html. If it won’t open or is behind a paywall and you want to see it, let me know and I’ll figure out how to get it to you.
After a long day and spending more time than planned on our last day in Minnesota, we crossed the border directly into Wahpeton, which we found had a quiet Walmart that worked for the night. In the morning, we decided to do the extra loop and head for Pierre, South Dakota.
After a long day and spending more time than planned on our last day in Minnesota, we crossed the border directly into Wahpeton, which we found had a quiet Walmart that worked for the night. In the morning, we decided to do the extra loop and head for Pierre, South Dakota.