Ever since I found out I would be spending my summer in Duluth anyone I told (in Minnesota who knows Duluth) would say, “Duluth in the summer?! You are so lucky!” Then we came up here and the first weekend, Memorial Day weekend, was gorgeous and I thought they were totally right. Then we went through some rainy, cold (highs in the upper-40s and low-50s), and windy weather and I started to doubt. But the last two weeks or so have been amazing and I have been enjoying my summer up in Duluth.
The first weekend was spent getting acclimated to Duluth.
Tessa’s mom came up to visit and we went to see the famous lift bridge and the lighthouse down in Canal Park (the touristy area of Duluth).
The next day Tessa and I went on a hike. We drove about 20 minutes south and tried to read a map at the trailhead, but then got really confused, but then luckily ran into a couple who pointed us in the right direction to hike to the top of a peak which had gorgeous views of Minnesota and Wisconsin.
The next weekend I headed back down to St. Paul, since my roommates were going to be out of town, and there was the Grand Old Days celebration happening right outside my apartment. I had heard how crazy Grand Old Days was, but my friend Rachel and I enjoyed watching the parade and then walking up and down the closed street looking at the booths, entering to win prizes (which we won none of), and trying the food.
The following weekend, back up north, Tessa and I did another hike at Gooseberry Falls. The falls themselves were gorgeous and then you could walk about a mile from the falls to a beach along Lake Superior (I put my feet in and lasted about 10 seconds before I thought I had frostbite). I absolutely love Lake Superior and hearing the water lapping along the shoreline.
The weekend after that was the event I had been waiting for: Grandma’s Marathon! I love watching marathons and Grandma’s is a pretty famous one here in MN. Tessa, her boyfriend Soren, and I walked down from our house, about a 30 minute walk, to mile 22ish and started cheering (well, eventually, we were wrong about the start time so had to wait a little for actual runners).
We were across from a group of children playing string instruments and some teenagers in costume from a local historical site. It was pretty funny. It was also incredibly hot. I felt so bad for the runners as I was sweating just standing there.
That weekend we also visited (for the second time and actually the night before Grandma’s) a brewery called Thirsty Pagan in Wisconsin. Tessa and I had gone the weekend before just for beers, but when we saw their delicious looking pizzas we knew we had to go back for dinner, too. So we brought Tessa’s boyfriend, Carly (our other roommate), and Carly’s boyfriend, Jay. Their beers are so good (probably some of my favorite I’ve had in MN) and the pizza was good (not as great as I wanted it to be).
The next weekend was pretty packed. We started out by going to Bent Paddle Brewery. I had tried their beers down in the Twin Cities, but it was fun to try more of them and the brewery itself, although small, was a good atmosphere.
Saturday morning we went to the Rhubarb Festival where we got to hang out with local celebrity, Rhubarbara. I also had a burrito with rhubarb salsa (delicious!) and rhubarb lemonade (fine, but I wouldn’t get again). After that we went for a hike in Chester Park, which is only a few blocks from the hospital, which was very nice and peaceful for being in the city.
Sunday we headed up to Split Rock Lighthouse, about an hour or so north of Duluth, with another intern with us at the hospital, Mary, who’s doing a different internship program but who Tessa knows from undergrad. I had been looking forward to Split Rock since someone told me it was a must-see. Sadly it was $10 to go on the lighthouse tour or be on the lighthouse property, which was too much for these poor interns so we opted to hike around Split Rock.
Much of the hike is right along Lake Superior, but we also hiked up to Day Hill where you had gorgeous views of the lake. There’s also a mystery chimney. The story is that a wealthy man was engaged and built the chimney as the start of a house for his future wife, but then she left him and he never finished it. It was a pretty good hike to get to the top of the hill and it’s all rock up there (as you can see) so I believe she thought it was impractical and left him.
At the top of the hill we met a couple who told us their favorite hike was actually a little ways away at the Split Rock River. We decided to drive that way (it was on our way home) and try that hike. It was a great recommendation and I liked that hike more than any of the ones we had been on by Split Rock. Unfortunately, it had rained the night before and the trail was so muddy. It started out fine, but the farther we got the worse it became. People kept passing us heading back and they all said the trail was terrible and they had turned around. We tried to keep going (I wish I had gotten a picture!), but eventually it was too much and we turned around, too. We did pass a few gorgeous waterfalls and I would love to go back before I leave when we can actually do the hike.
On our way back from Split Rock we stopped at the Rustic Inn for pie, which was delicious. I got the blueberry and gooseberry a la mode. I wasn’t quite sure what a gooseberry was, but when I saw them I think I described them as “the kind of thing you see on a trail and don’t know if it will kill you.” But they didn’t kill me and were quite tart and delicious!
Maggie in Minnesota 