A majestic bull elk and his harem of 20+ stole the show at the buffalo roundup.  They got swept up with the Bison and disrupted the whole process.

A single rider appeared on the far ridge.  Before long bison appeared; first in small groups then as a mass of brown dots pouring over the hilltop across the prairie.  In a closer valley another stream of bison came into view.  We had anticipated a thundering herd it was more like a meandering bunch.  Before long it was clear why.  The bull elk appeared on the ridge standing tall and proud wonderfully outlined against the sky.  He stood there just taking in all that was happening in front of him: thousands of people and 50 or so riders, probably 10 pickup trucks, all trying to direct this huge mass of bison.  Then the cows and young elk appeared but they didn’t stop to consider the happenings.  They kept running and headed right down the valley that split the bison herd.  They encountered fences but still ran.  They were chased up over the far ridge by a pickup truck, they ran.  But, they circled back right into the center of the herd again.  All the wranglers (and all the spectators) could do was wait until the elk herd eventually raced back the valley and out if sight.

We turned our attention back to the bison who by now had settled into munching on grass and milling about in every direction.  There were a few false starts but ultimately the riders won and the bison were pushed on into the corrals.  It was not as dramatic as I had envisioned with all the stops and starts but it was still a great experience.

They day had warmed a bit from the 40s at 6AM so we wandered over to the holding corrals.  We enjoyed BBQ buffalo and some cowboy beans for lunch and stayed to watch them handle a few bison; health checkup, shots, ear tags and brands for the new ones, and the ultimate determination, “herd” or “lot number xxx”.  There is an auction in November when they will sell off animals of every age group to maintain the herd size the park can support.    The bison get some rather rough treatment and I am a bit uneasy about the eventual plight of those with a “lot number” sticker but the event is exciting to watch and it is necessary they manage herd size somehow.  This approach at least gets more animals out into more herds and encourages the preservation of these magnificent creatures.

This is a pretty cool little town to visit.

They have dinosaurs.  6 life sized concrete dinosaurs roam a city park on a ridge high above downtown.  They are the product of at 1930s Works Project and have been carefully maintained.  You can see them standing watch over the city as you enter from the North, you can go wander among them, and yes, even climb on them.

They have presidents.  Life size bronze statues greet you at every downtown corner.  There are 42 of them (they get a statue once they are a past president) and they are amazingly detailed.   Attire, pose, and props all serve to tell the greater story of each man.

They have a Norwegian Chapel.

Well actually it is a replica, from the pegged construction to the ornate carvings, of an 850 year old Church in Norway.  With a close-up look, the construction and handwork are amazing.  With a deep breath and a moment of silent presence, I’d have to say that they achieved their overarching goal, to connect those who enter with the loftiness of Faith.

A small Black Hills log house houses a museum packed with mostly everyday items seen in homes of early settlers.  Most unique to me was a yeast ring, a wreathlike wall hanging made of interlocked pieces that had been dipped in yeast and dried then stored as part of this wreath until the yeast was needed for bread.   Fantastically ornate carved spoons and needlework rest beside simple wooden shovels and chairs made from hollowed out tree trunks.

They have lots of local artists.

There is a gigantic studio filled with First Nations’ Peoples work carrying powerful messages of mans’ connection to nature.  A huge work-in progress sculpture garden fills the Main Street square and we watched them cutting and polishing to bring images of the Black Hills out of great slabs of SD granite.  Artisans create Black Hills Gold jewelry and pottery accented with the subtle tracings of Bison hair.

They have airplanes.

Just outside the main gates of Ellsworth Air force Base is the SD Air and Space Museum.  They have a great collection of aircraft both indoors and outdoors.  A display provides a very detail account of the Minuteman missile story.  It is big here; there are silos all around this part of the country.  Exhibits also include flight training and simulator cockpits, full chronological accounts of the Korean and Vietnam Wars, flight suits, emergency gear, and a tribute to the many who have served based here out of Ellsworth.  It is a great “proud to be an American” stop.

Steam Tractor PULL.  He could have pulled the sled into the next county, no problem.  He toyed with the more modern(antique) tractors by stopping then starting near the end of pull, where they were running out of traction and power.

How do you tow a broken steam shovel?  With a steam engine of course!

A tour through the campground (well, actually, hayfield).

Through the quiet evening air I heard the rhythmic chug of the piston and the clink and tink of small moving parts.  Over a rise in the field I saw a row of light puffs of steam hanging in the air tracing its movements.  Soon there was the grind of the heavy steel wheels across the earth then the sight of the ever busy hands of the operator working to guide the huge Scott-Garr for one last circle around the grounds.  It was certainly in its element here as it rolled along the open hayfield like it was ending a normal full day’s work.  It made for a nice take-away image of these grand old machines.

A workers camp is packed with probably 100 trailers, RVs and converted school buses; the visitor’s campground is equally packed.  We are parked in alfalfa field among row upon row of vehicles of every type.  Kids are running everywhere.  Teenage boys are “cruising” the grounds on tractors.  Who knew just how much interest there is in steam tractors?  Expected attendance is 200,000.

We are at the Western Minnesota Steam Threshers Reunion in Rollag.  It all started 60 years ago with a threshing demonstration using a Garr-Scott steam traction engine and has evolved into a celebration of all things steam driven.  It isn’t a static display.  Stuff runs, belches smoke, toots, and works hard, occasionally breaks down, and is magnificent to watch.  Yesterday’s parade of restored vintage equipment lasted over 1 1/2 hrs.  Early gas and kerosene equipment is here as well.  The tractors are huge.  The metal lugged wheels tower over head-high.

It was amazing to stand along “Main Street” as 10s of these vehicles moved around like regular traffic.  Coal dust and grease smeared faces are a badge of honor around here.  Bib overalls are the clothing of choice for all ages, both genders.  I don’t think the original inventor envisioned overalls over a tube top?!  Anyway, everybody really gets into it all.

We rode the steam engine train. 

Watched real STEAM shovels playing in their “sand box”. 

There is a real steam driven steam roller.  The carousel is powered by a steam engine.

There is some live horsepower here too.  Ten (10) horses, working as 5 teams of two hitched to a rotary hitch, powered a threshing machine.  It seemed no small feat to get them all working in unison.   Percheron pull wagons for rides and a Main street trolley car.  A ferrier demonstrated shoeing including a full pedicure.  He trimmed hooves and filed them for a perfect fit to the new shoes.  I never knew that the horseshoe nails came through the hoof.  He clipped off the ends to look like little rhinestones on the hooves.

The Spark Show

Only at a steam engine place could you have this nighttime closing event.  They fire the boilers with coal then throw in sawdust.  They pour on the power and sparks fly out of the head of the engine boiler and high into the air out of the stack.  Kent has the T-shirt that says it all.  “Steam Threshers Nightlife” over a picture of an engine spewing sparks.

It is a fun event that is held every Labor Day weekend.  I highly recommend seeing it at least once.

Bemidji, MN.  They take their Paul Bunyan lore seriously. They even have some of his fingernail clippings on display at the visitor center.  I talked on the Paul Bunyan sized phone!  It is worth a walk around downtown to see the sidewalk art and shops.

We walked across the Headwaters of the Mississippi River…about ankle deep.

Where the Mississippi River begins

It is amazing to think that this little steam here at Itasca Lake becomes that wide, mighty river.  We kayaked on waters that in just 90 days will be spilling into the Gulf.  What a cool thought.

Itasca Park also protects some of the last remnants of old growth red and white pine that once covered a huge swath across the northern US and Canada.  Preachers Grove includes trees over 300 years old.  They are not as big as the great Sequoias but the sharp smell of pine and the lattice of boughs reaching for the skies are awesome.  It’s impossible to image what it must have looked like when the loggers first arrived.

Hot, humid days kept us off the trails.  Maybe we will make it back one day and get out into the forest a bit more.

We checked out Rainy Lake, International Falls, and Ranier.  They are small towns up around the North side of Voyageurs and along the Canadian border.  It is all pretty developed with lots of Lodges and many private homes around the lake.  The water route of the Voyageurs is really the protected area for this National Park so that leaves the lakeshores open to private ownership.  It didn’t really feel like a Park.

We saw three fun (huge) statues:

Smoky

Vic the Voyageur

Giant Walleye