Posts Tagged With: Red Wing MN

March 27, 2025 Reads Landing, Minnesota.

Yes, we are back. It has been a while. 2024 and the first part of 2025 had limited travel. The trips we took were of very short duration in Minnesota or to visit family. We chose not to put those on the blog. More extensive travel was postponed due to various health issues. Hopefully, the health issues are all past and travel will regain its priority in our lives.

Today’s trip is also of limited duration, but it’s a trip designed to get our toes in the water again, check out our stamina and ability to hike, etc.

We are starting with a four day, three night trip to a bed-and-breakfast along the Mississippi River in Reads Landing, Minnesota. Reads Landing is a small town just south of Lake Pepin and about a half an hour north of Winona, Minnesota. The B&B has an optimum viewing location that allows us to see eagles, ship traffic on the river, and trains.

The day began with a visit to the Anderson Center in Red Wing, Minnesota. The Anderson Center has an interesting history. While it is currently houses an art museum, alternative school, and some local offices, it began its existence as the home to the inventor Alexander Anderson. Anderson was born in the rural area just outside of Red Wing. Some of you who are old enough may remember Quaker Puffed Rice and Quaker Puffed Wheat. Anderson developed the process to puff grains into a cereal. Even though those cereals no longer can compete with sugary and chocolate cereal brands on the market, he made a lot of money from it. Anderson continued to develop other food related products and continued to obtain patents. He built the Anderson Center which was where he lived after he made his money.

Other connections to the Anderson Center include Central Research Laboratories which provides remote and sterile handling devices for nuclear and hazardous manufacturing processes. It was begun by three MIT graduates who relocated to Red Wing due to the wife of one of the founders being a daughter of Alexander Anderson. CRL had a unique product that won US government approval and continues to be an important manufacturer today.

We have been to the Anderson Center previously. It has several small gallery rooms with artwork from extremely well-known artists. Today, we came to see an exhibit of puppets. Minnesota is home to numerous puppet masters. This exhibit shows off their work in hand, tabletop, mask, and full-size puppets.

After the Anderson Center, and then lunch, we drove through the rural sections of Goodhue County to the Jarrett Rock Garden. This is one of those gardens/grotto’s with a series of sculptures made of stone or metal. Off the top of my head, I can recall at least three others that we visited in Wisconsin, one in Iowa, and one in Kansas. Seems to be a minor theme of our travels.

The Jarrett Rock Garden was completed about 60 years ago by a bachelor who did his work over three decades without communicating to others the meaning, purpose, or origin story behind his efforts. Now the sculptures are maintained by a local couple and are visited by back road wanderers like us.

After the rock garden, we drove to Lake City Minnesota. Lake City is at the center of the west side of Lake Pepin. Lake Pepin was formed by the sand dam created by eroded soils coming down the Chippewa River. When the fast flowing waters of the Chippewa River hit the Mississippi and its slower pace, the sand and soil dropped out, creating a barrier that backed up the Mississippi River creating Lake Pepin.

When the water of the Mississippi spreads out across the wide surface of Lake Pepin, it slows down. Likewise, at the end of the lake when it passes the sand blocking the exit of the lake, it speeds up as it goes into the narrow Mississippi River channel. This faster flowing water does not freeze during the winter. This makes it an ideal area to see eagles on a year-round basis. Just south of here in Wabasha, Minnesota is the National Eagle Center. It has wonderful exhibits and year-round viewing platforms to see eagles along the river. 

Lake Pepin and Lake City are also the acknowledged home of the beginning of water skiing. A local gentleman, Ralph Samuelson, in his late teens, sampled several different processes to be able to ski on top of water, similar to snow skiing. It took a while, but he was successful. He ended up traveling around the US giving water skiing demonstrations. The US Water Skiing Association recognizes Samuelson and Lake City as the origin of water skiing. We just took a little while to walk along the shore and enjoy the beautiful day and the sight of the lake hemmed by the 600 foot bluffs on both sides.

After Lake City, we stopped at LARK Toys in Kellogg, Minnesota. This is an amazing toy store which sells every type of new and old style book, puzzle, wood carved toys, dolls, Legos, etc. We did not buy anything, other than dessert of ice cream. The store is still family run and has been rated one of the top 10 toy stores in the world by USA Today.

Finally, we arrived at the River Nest bed-and-breakfast in Reads Landing, where we will spend the next three nights. Dinner was at the Reads Landing Brewery just up the street. Entertainment has been watching multiple trains go by, still waiting for the daily westbound Empire Builder, however.

Ed and Chris, March 27, 2025