Moeller Travels: Minnesota, International Falls July 6

International Falls, Minnesota the gateway to Voyageurs National Park. It is so beautiful up here in this part of Minnesota. So much so, we are staying an extra week. There is lots to do, the pictures in this blog are going to be many. Of all the places Kay and I have been to, we are putting this one in our top five. There is so much water and so many places to launch our kayaks from. The only bad thing, was the fishing was not that good. There was a very cold front that came through, and convinced the fish to not bite. But is was still so beautiful just being out on the water. The water level of the lakes was still about two feet higher than normal. As we kayaked we saw that the high water destroyed a lot of docks. The map of Voyagerurs Nation Park below will give you an idea of how massive the park is.

International Falls, Minnesota

Voyageurs National Park

Voyageurs National Park, was established in 1975. The park's name commemorates the voyageurs, French-Canadian fur traders who were the first European settlers to frequently travel through the area. The park is notable for its outstanding water resources and is popular with canoeists, kayakers, other boaters and fishermen. The Kabetogama Peninsula, which lies entirely within the park and makes up most of its land area, is accessible only by boat. To the east of the National Park lies the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

Arnold's Campground on HWY 53 is the best place to stay. This will be our home for the next two weeks. Pat the owner is a really nice person. We were having trouble getting our TV antenna to pick up the three satellites, so Pat got his saw climbed up on top of the camper and cut off some of the tree limbs so it would work. One night a very bad weather front came through, we heard a big crack and than a big thud on top of the camper. I went out to see what happened. A large dead tree limb had broken off the tree next to the camper and landed on the roof. The next day, Pat went up on the roof to check for damage and get rid of the branch on the top of the camper. What a wonderful and helpful person he was.

Our first kayak trip at International Falls, MN was in Tilson Bay, a part of Rainy Lake.

Looking up the bay at two islands in Rainy Lake.

The shore along Tilson Bay

Must be nice to have your own sea plane by your cabin.

The city of Rainy boat ramp, under water.

One of the roads in the city of Rainy. Might have to get my kayak out to get across.

One of the three visitor centers in the park.

From the Kabetogama Visitor Center, Kay and I took the Kettle Falls Hotel trip, our first boat trip. This one was about 4 hours, and past many islands with eagles nesting on them. At the hotel we had a very nice lunch. The little boat we went on holds about 20 people, and it was full. The park ranger told us about the area as we went along.

Ready to get underway.

Along the way, we stopped to see the eagles on some of the islands. They are such an awesome bird.

Kay got this one just as it took of flying.

You can just see the top of the head of the eaglet. The nest is about 3 feet deep.

Mother loon and her two babies. Loons will spend the whole summer on the water, except when they are nesting. The nest is not very far from the water, because it is hard for them to walk. Loons are one of the few birds that have solid bones. It takes them a long time running on top of the water to get airborne.

White Pelican Island.

Got them just as they started to fly.

Not a bad looking bird.

Once we landed at the dock at Kettle Falls, We had to hike up the hill to the hotel.

Of course being on the boat for that long, my first stop was to the little brown house.

Kettle Falls Hotel

The history of Kettle Falls is as colorful as the red roof on the hotel. Constructed by timber cruiser Ed Rose and reputedly financed by Madame Nellie Bly, the Kettle Falls Hotel has accommodated and entertained travelers since 1913. Robert Williams bought the hotel in 1918 for $1,000 and four barrels of whiskey. From its somewhat scandalous past, grew a long tradition of hearty home cooking and hospitality served by the Williams family. This historic hotel was renovated by the National Park Service in 1987 so you, too, can enjoy a hearty meal, relax on the veranda or spend the night.

Over the years, the floor of the bar began to sink. To level the pool table, the one side is built up about 6 inches higher than the other. I would not like to navigate this floor if I had been drinking a lot.

After lunch, we hiked up to the falls. Here are some of the pictures that Kay took along the way.

To get to the falls, we had to hike up more stairs.

Another road under water from all the rain.

Kettle falls. Half of it is in Canada, the other half in the USA.

This is the boundary marker between the USA and Canada.

At the Rainy Visitor Center, the staff put on an reenactment of the early voyagers. They dressed up in the original clothes that were used at that time. They gave us an hour talk on what they did and how they did it. Was very interesting. After the talk everyone was to board a canoe, but there were too many people booked to go on the trip. So like good Colorado people that we are, we gave up our seats to a young couple that had never been in a canoe.

This Voyager is holding a beaver skin hat.

The type of canoe the voyagers used to travel up and down the lake.

We stopped and had a wonderful lunch at this Resort.

This view of the Resort was taken a few day later from the kayak.

Now tell me this is not the greatest view of Rainy Lake to sit and have lunch.

Some of our lunch guests.

Some of the flowers around the Resort.

The county court house in International Falls, MN

On Wed. evening, they had music in the park. This trio was some local folks. Was quite interesting, the accordion player had about 6 different cords that he played for the whole night.

As I was sitting in my chair, leaning back on the back legs only, I lost my balance and fell over. Well this made the crowed give me a big cheer, so I had to stand up and take a couple of bows.

Getting ready to launch the kayaks at Ash River Visitor Center, Voyageurs National Park.

As one can see, the water was gone down a bit from the 2 foot high. At the high point it had covered the word Park.

View of the Ash River Visitor Center from the kayak.

Enjoy some more flowers.

Thought this was a good shot of Kay doing her thing.

What a big smile.

We came across this sign, so we had to drive down to see what it was all about. Was a nice little lake.

Kay walked the dogs up the road, while I got my fishing line wet. That is all I did was get the line wet.

Kay found this hawk sitting in a tree looking at the dogs. Guess Max and Zoe were a bit too big for her.

As we were driving back out, Kay had to stop and take more flower pictures.

This farmer was along side the road, in his garden.

Campfire night at the old homestead.

Zoe looking at us out of the dining room window.

We came across this NOvA site as we were driving to Ash River. It is a neutrino collection facility run by the state of Minnesota. The link below will give you more information about it.

http://www-nova.fnal.gov/media.html

I think we look good in hard hats.

A couple of picture inside of the facility. It was very large.

Ash River visitor Center building behind me.

What can I say about this picture, other than I am a very happy camper.

My first Walleye

Nice Northern Pike

Kayaking Ash River

Mother Redeye duck and her babies

This big spider fell into Kay's kayak. I had to get it out for her. She did not panic though, I was proud of her.

Our last boat tour was to Ellsworth Rock Gardens. This trip only took about 3 hours from Ash River Visitor Center.

Built between 1944 and 1965 by retired Chicago contractor Jack Ellsworth, Ellsworth Rock Gardens is a composite of terraced garden beds and rustic circulation features, punctuated by some 200 delicately-balanced native rock sculptures. Located at the northern edge of Lake Kabetogama, the site is now part of Voyageurs National Park, a 219,000 acre tract of forest, lakes, and waterways along Minnesota’s boundary with Canada. The garden’s setting is arresting: Ellsworth built many of its features atop the surface of a large gray granite outcropping, rising from a grassy meadow below. Garden elements extend seamlessly into the bordering forest, and the entire landscape is offset by expanses of water and sky. During its heyday (from the late 1940s to the mid ‘60s), the gardens bloomed with a profusion of perennial and annual flowers, drawing thousands of visitors across the lake to experience “the showplace of Lake Kabetogama.”