We departed the Ingalls Homestead quite early on Saturday (6/5/21) with our destination being Blair, Nebraska. This was our opportunity to see a bit of Minnesota. We were only about an hour from the state line but were on such a "road less traveled" that there wasn't even a Welcome to Minnesota sign.
The drive was really pretty, rolling hills with lots of small ponds and lakes scattered about. Our first town in Minnesota was Lake Benton. A lovely little town with a large lake and very nice recreation area. It was a little disappointing that on a Saturday morning at 8:30 we couldn't find anywhere to get a cup of coffee. We spent a couple of hours wandering around a bit enjoying the scenery and eventually passed through Luverne, a larger town where we settled for a McDonalds cup of java!
Iowa was the next state line and honestly it looks very similar to eastern South Dakota and southwestern Minnesota but pretty none the less. As to be expected, there are miles and miles of corn fields.
We are always looking for interesting side trips and made a stop at Lewis and Clark State Park. There we saw a replica of the keel boat that Lewis and Clark used in their famous 1804-1806 exploration of the west. This park is very nice with a great campground and lodge right on the Missouri River.
We also discovered the De Soto National Wildlife Refuge that winds back and forth between Iowa and Nebraska. This is remote grasslands along the Missouri River with beautiful grasses, flowers and songbirds galore.
From there it was only a short drive to Blair, our Boondockers Welcome site for a couple of nights. Blair is an adorable little town. Our hosts live in the "town" area with brick streets, many lovely old trees and blooming flowers. Though we are in the middle of a crazy heat wave, the nights here cool down considerably and we did not need air conditioning for sleeping. All of our Boondockers Welcome stays have been nice and this one honestly exceeds our expectations.
Today we are traveling over to Eppley Airfield in Omaha to pick up our sweet Ashlea! She is spending this week with us as we explore Iowa and Missouri!
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