There are very few places in the world where “cross rocks,” also known as “fairy crosses” or “fairy stones” are found. The only known places are certain parts of Georgia, Virginia, New Mexico, Idaho, and across the pond in regions of both Switzerland and Norway. And wouldn’t you know it, we also have them right here in Minnesota.  Cross rocks, technically known as staurolite, are found near the Blanchard Dam on the Mississippi River near Royalton, just northwest of St. Cloud. Continue reading →

It feels like forever since a new Minnesota roadside attraction has popped up on the radar, but this spring a few new ones have surfaced, including this beauty – the brand new, state of the art, World’s Largest Sugar Beet.  It is found in the heart of Minnesota’s Red River Valley of the North, in tiny Halstad- about a half hour north of Moorhead. Continue reading →

 A recent vacation led us to the Garden State and a couple of days in the southernmost city in New Jersey, the seaside resort town of Cape May.  Most East-Coasters know of this gem of a city as a popular summer vacation spot on the Jersey Shore but many of us back in the Midwest likely haven’t heard of it.  Far removed from the madness of the iconic Jersey Shore boardwalks and tourist traps, Cape May hails itself as “America’s Oldest Seaside Resort Town,”  and is home to the second-largest collection of Victorian homes in the US after San Francisco. Continue reading →

In the rolling, pastoral fields of southeastern Iowa, the farming community of Riverside (just outside of Cedar Rapids), has become something of a mecca for sci-fi fans far and wide over the years. Some 200 years from now, the iconic Captain James Tiberius Kirk of Star Trek fame is set to be born there. They’ve marked the birthplace with an engraved monument, and Trekkies can explore the town and its other Star Trek-related tourist attractions.  Continue reading →

If you’ve ever wanted to step back in time 160 years, there is a place in Minnesota you can literally do so.  Old Frontenac, a small enclave of historic homes set on the shores of Lake Pepin, dates back to the 1830’s, before Minnesota was even designated as a state.  As time went on and Minnesota progressed along with the rest of the world, amazingly, the town of Old Frontenac somehow remained untouched, unaltered, and unfazed.  Continue reading →