When our grandchildren turn nine, sometime during that year my husband and I try to take them on a little trip for two of three days. T
his week we are enjoying a few days away with our youngest Elder granddaughter, Abbi. Many of the kids chose to go to the Mall of America and sites near there, but because she lives in Eagan, MN, only ten minutes from that large mall, she asked if we could go to Duluth.
Not only did Dan and I spend part of our honeymoon in this northern city, but I also received my Masters Degree in Education from St. Scholastica here in the mid 90’s. We were excited to return and see how the city has changed, and also revisit some of our favorite sites. We enjoyed some great food at Grandma’s restaurant last night, one of our favorite places from years ago.
We spent a major part of Sunday afternoon at The Depot in downtown Duluth. It holds not one, but three museums, and it is kid friendly with many interactive displays. Abbi had fun looking for twenty symbols that represented markings from days past when hoboes and bums would ride the rails and leave secret messages for those who would come after them. I told her I remembered some of them stopping at our house in Bigelow, MN, for some food or a cool drink on a summer day when I was growing up.
We got to see a new display for the summer of 2016 only, “ The Lonesome Train”. It is the only full-sized, exact replica of the railroad coach that was the pallbearer for our 16th president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. It is contained in seven coaches painted black. Impressive and solemn.
Another display is a Civil War era steam locomotive and the first train in Minnesota, “William A. Crooks #1”. This train museum is so full of history that it would take a week to really see and read all that is shown there. Abbi’s grandpa, Jack Elder and her dad, Ryan, both share a love for the history of trains. And she was just as excited to spend several hours there too! This three level museum is worth touring!
Today we are going to ride The Duluth Zephyr on a 90 minute ride through downtown Duluth and up the shore to Lester River. It covers a fourteen mile round trip. This is one of their North Shore Scenic Railroad train excursions. I haven’t been on a train since my senior trip in high school, so I am as excited as Abbi is for her first time!
It has been a fun few days of making memories. Soon it will be back to work in the garden and baling hay…so we are so glad we had the opportunity to go.
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