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Fun Things to Do in Minneapolis

13 Can’t-Miss Activities for New Residents Hi everyone. I’m sharing a nice article by Julia Weaver that appeared on the blog of the real estate company Redfin yesterday mentioning Offthebeatenpagetravel.com. Whether you’re a new Minneapolis resident, a visitor, or if you’ve lived in the City of Lakes a long time, you’ll find plenty of good ideas. Thanks to Redfin for including us. What was once…

What to Read Before a Safari in Africa

Where to Find Native American Culture in Minneapolis

Visit Author Louise Erdrich’s Bookstore, Taste Indigenous Cuisine and Be Dazzled at a Native American Pow Wows. The historic Stone Arch Bridge in downtown Minneapolis. From here you can see St. Anthony Falls and the “the place of the falling, swirling waters.” (photo credit: MeetMinneapolis) Standing on the iconic Stone Arch Bridge in downtown Minneapolis, the Mississippi River rushes below. A…

Seneca Falls—a Women’s Rights Landmark in New York’s Finger Lakes Region

Travel to Seneca Falls, New York, the hub of women’s history in the U.S. for an education on the history of women’s rights and a hefty dose of historic charm. The struggle for human rights never seems to end. Yet, in Seneca Falls, New York, you’ll find inspiration when you learn about the historic leaders of women’s rights. Located in New York’s Finger Lakes region, at the tip of Seneca Lake,…

A Wyoming Road Trip and Books for your Cowboy State Vacation

A Wyoming vacation delivers gorgeous western scenery, Native American art, cowboys, polo players, hiking and open spaces.  Read these great books to conjure up the spirit of the west before you go. You won’t find many people in Wyoming. At about 600,000, the Cowboy State tallies the smallest population in the U.S. That’s around six people per square mile. Cattle outnumber humans by far. So, if…

Travel to the world of Ernest Hemingway’s youth in Michigan

It’s not as exotic as Ernest Hemingway’s other famous haunts — Paris, Cuba or Africa, for example. But travel to Walloon Lake in Michigan, and you’ll experience the outdoors and love of nature that set Hemingway on his path to a Nobel Prize in literature. As a youth, Ernest Hemingway spent summers at his family’s cottage on Walloon Lake in Michigan where he learned to revere the outdoor life. A…

Though it’s called “driftless” the terrain of southwestern Wisconsin makes an ideal road trip for people who love to drift and explore.  

Kayaking, swimming, fishing and more in Wisconsin’s Driftless Region

Ten thousand years ago, the Ice Age took a detour around southwestern Wisconsin.  That’s why it’s called the Driftless Area. Without the glacial deposits of rock, clay, sand…

A Literary Road Trip Across South Dakota

Visiting South Dakota State and National Parks on a Road Trip from Minnesota to Wyoming

Geese float peacefully among the cliffs of Palisades State Park.

South Dakota seems synonymous with family road trips, summer vacations and heading “out west.” Every time we drive that direction from Minneapolis, there’s a feeling of anticipation as the landscape gradually changes from hills, to flat…

eight travel Tips for road trips during the corona virus pandemic

A report from the road on what to expect when you travel now.

The famous faces at Mt. Rushmore don’t wear masks to avoid the Corona Virus. Neither do the tourists who visit.

We tossed our masks aside.  The wind blew through our hair.  We were hitting the road, headed to wide open spaces of the Great Plains, we expected to find few people but quite a few buffalo. 

My husband and…

Travel to the World of Author Louise Penny and Inspector Gamache

In Quebec, Canada’s Eastern Townships, fans of mystery writer Louise Penny step into the world of Three Pines and Inspector Gamache.

This painting illustrating Louise Penny’s murder mystery Still Life is at the Brome County Historical Society in Knowlton, Quebec, Canada

It’s a sunny day on the village green in Knowlton, Quebec, a.k.a. “Three Pines.”  It’s the real-life place that inspired…

Book and travel ideas to inspire “outdoor therapy” and to plan for #travelsomeday.

Springfield, MO: The Edwards Cabin at Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield sits in a lush field just outside Springfield, Missouri. www.nps.gov/wicr/incex.htm : Instagram: lovespringfield

Shut in because of the Corona Virus pandemic, opportunities for quiet contemplation, soul searching, and spiritual…

What to read when you’re stuck at home: guidebooks for travel through your house.

You know I’m pretty desperate when I resort to cleaning and organizing my house.  But like so many during the Covid-19 pandemic, I’m Corona cleaning. Fortunately, I own two of Marie Kondo’s books The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing and Spark Joy: An…

For anyone who is already burdened by the holidays—the cooking, cleaning, entertaining, putting up with difficult houseguests—I’m offering a bit of perspective.  I’ve been reading Bill Bryson’s latest book At Home: A Short History of Private Life, and I must say we don’t have it that bad, no matter how laborious our holidays seem.

In most of his books, Bryson recounts in hilarious fashion his…

A visit to The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City

The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Missouri, celebrates the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Negro National League in 2020. 

The Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Baseball Leagues started it all.

Most people know that Kansas City is a great sports town—go Chiefs! But not everyone knows that KC is where the country’s first successful organized black baseball league got…

Four Favorite Frank Lloyd Wright Destinations

Frank Lloyd Wright’s Allen House, Taliesin, Taliesin West and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum are just a few of the places to see Wright’s all-American architecture.

Frank Lloyd Wright has been having a big year. Sixty years after his death in 1959, both his life and his architecture continue to fascinate, influence and inspire.  So much so that the United Nations Educational, Scientific,…

A Road Trip Through The Flint Hills of Kansas: Part Two

The second half of a road trip through the Flint Hills of Kansas reveals more about modern life on the prairie and the pioneer spirit of the ranchers, entrepreneurs and artists who make the Flint Hills their home.

In my previous article, I covered a few of the surprises that await travelers to the Flint Hills if they leave the freeway and explore the tallgrass prairie of Kansas. But, the fun…

A Road trip through the flint hills of kansas: Part One

On a road trip through the Flint Hills of Kansas, travelers experience the otherworldly beauty of America’s prairie and meet the people who make the Flint Hills their home.

 The middle of the U.S. seems like a featureless place, “Flyover Country” and for road trippers, “Drive-By Country,” that’s easy to dismiss on your way to a more interesting destination. Even though I live in Minnesota,…