A few nights hammocking up north

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08-13-2019, 19:58
Nodust

A few nights hammocking up north

My youngest son is in a Drum Corp International competition band. They were performing in Minnesota, Wisconsin,Iowa, and other places. The wife was traveling with the band as a volunteer cook. So me and the eldest son figured we would fly up, see a few shows and do a little hammocking when possible.

Flew into Minneapolis then a drive into North Dakota. We did a good bit of driving but had never been to any of these states so were checking things off the list.

Found a great campsite in the Shyenne National Grasslands.
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Next morning off to Bemidji
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We were going to camp in Itasca State Park but the mosquitos had other ideas so we bailed after fording the mighty river.

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Did a little urban hiking in downtown Minneapolis next day.

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I would recommend the Mill City Museum if you are there. Very nice. That night was watching the band play.

Next morning a long drive to see Michigan and Lake Superior. Porcupine Mountain State Park has some nice trails with views.

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Nice camp spots and mosquitoes were bearable.
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Next day I took a rather quick bath in Lake Superior. Think it was too quick for my son to get a picture.
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That was it for hammocking. Next few days were down to south Wisconsin and watching the band perform a few times and helping cook for them.

Beautiful states. Can’t wait to make a more prolonged visit. The amount of farmland we saw was astounding.

I didn’t have a camera for a good pic. My son getting ready to perform in Lucas Oil Stadium for the Championship. He is putting his trombone in position for a trio.
He is lower right.
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08-13-2019, 20:20
Nodust

Also saw the worlds biggest twine ball.

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Tough to get a pic with the reflections. What is it with the Midwest and roadside attractions. I wish I could see them all.
08-13-2019, 20:52
alifeoutdoors

Great trip, glad you made it up north. The porcupine mountains are my favorite place on earth.
08-13-2019, 21:08
Nodust

Quote:

Originally Posted by alifeoutdoors

Great trip, glad you made it up north. The porcupine mountains are my favorite place on earth.

I would love to see them in the fall. Beautiful.
08-13-2019, 22:10
NOBOZax

Nice! World largest ball of twine [emoji38] That kinda stuff always makes me think Lampoon's Vacation "only 3 short hours away" [emoji38] Nice report and looked like an awesome way to spend time with the family

Sent from my LM-V405 using Tapatalk
08-14-2019, 09:10
Watertooner

Drum Corps and hammocks are a great combo no matter how you arrange it. Enjoyed the pics of the woods and the field at Lucas Oil Stadium. My wife and I traveled to a show in Murfreesboro, TN in July. I'm so leery of getting a comfortable night's sleep in a hotel bed that I packed my hammock stand and used that for three nights in a hotel. Slept great and that helped me enjoy the show after we delivered home-baked cookies to the Blue Stars' food truck.

Drum & Bugle Corps experiences are great for our youth. Helps them grow up in a good way and keeps music in an elevated place in their lives. The same is true for hammock experiences when done well. Ya done well on your trip.
08-14-2019, 12:46
Nodust

Quote:

Originally Posted by NOBOZax

Nice! World largest ball of twine [emoji38] That kinda stuff always makes me think Lampoon's Vacation "only 3 short hours away" [emoji38]

Sent from my LM-V405 using Tapatalk

I normally don’t see the touristy things but this was pretty fun reading about.
08-14-2019, 12:47
Nodust

Quote:

Originally Posted by Watertooner

Drum Corps and hammocks are a great combo no matter how you arrange it. Enjoyed the pics of the woods and the field at Lucas Oil Stadium. My wife and I traveled to a show in Murfreesboro, TN in July. I'm so leery of getting a comfortable night's sleep in a hotel bed that I packed my hammock stand and used that for three nights in a hotel. Slept great and that helped me enjoy the show after we delivered home-baked cookies to the Blue Stars' food truck.

Drum & Bugle Corps experiences are great for our youth. Helps them grow up in a good way and keeps music in an elevated place in their lives. The same is true for hammock experiences when done well. Ya done well on your trip.

Cool. I think we saw the Blue Stars in Lafayette Louisiana. My kid had a great time. It was tough. He was already in good shape but he looks ripped now they worked so hard.
08-14-2019, 14:12
xMagnolia

I can't think of a better combo- Marching Bands and Hammock Camping.
These are two of my favorite things

Charlotte
08-15-2019, 04:23
Watertooner

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nodust

My kid had a great time. It was tough. He was already in good shape but he looks ripped now they worked so hard.

They call it "body by drum corps" which is the opposite of "body by hammock"!