The Lutsen Honeymoon Journal

By Nate

The day after the wedding I came down with a cold. It happened just after the gift opening at Stacey's mom's house. For the rest of the day I did not move much, but rather slept. I think lack of sleep and traveling took its toll, but luckily it held off until the day after the wedding. We had the gift opening on Monday and were scedualed to leave for Lutsen on Tuesday evening. Stacey, River, Forest, and I slept on Monday afternoon from about 3 P.M. to 7 in the evening and I think that did everyone a lot of good. I continued to sleep for the rest of the evening after everyone else got up for dinner.

We stayed at Stacey's mom's house on Monday night and took our time on Tuesday to get things together before heading back to Minneapolis. We loaded up the car at about 4 PM and headed home. Once there we unpacked and took care of the things that could not be left until after our return, and then we packed up for the trip up north. I was concerned on Monday evening that I was not going to be well enough to make the trip, but all the sleep did me good and I was ready for the vacation by the time Tuesday night rolled around. We had plans to mostly relax once we arrived in Lutsen anyway. At 9:30 PM we loaded up the car and headed for Two Harbors. The trip went very well and with clear highways we made great time. The boys were out within the first hour of leaving. It took us under 4 hours to get to our hotel, The Voyagers Motel, in Two Harbors. When we arrived both boys stayed sleeping while we got them into the motel. Before long we were all down for the night.

In the morning I was the first one to wake up. I took a shower to try to relieve my cough and then went for a short walk outside the motel in the cool morning. When I returned I roused everyone so that we could check out on time. After paying the bill we headed through town and stopped at a great morning cafe where we had a hearty breakfast. After the pancakes, eggs, sausage, and muffins were gone we hit the road for the trip to Lutsen. We had a few stops to make on the way. River was happy to be on a trip and before long we had arrived at Goosberry Falls where he ran around the rock faces and waded in the shallow water along the river. We climbed all over the rocks for about an hour while Stacey and Jessica wandered about the falls area. Next, we walked across the river and hiked the short trail that leads up to the new bridge. We then headed back to the visitors center where River watched a video about the area before we hit the road again and continued north.

At about 1 PM we reached Lutsen while a slow drizzle started to come down. Our room was not ready yet so we lounged in the indoor pool of the Eagle Ridge Resort that we had booked at. River and I went swimming while we waited and Stacey and Jessica took Forest to look around the facilities. The swimming pool had a divider to allow people to move between the indoor and outdoor pools. That was nice. There was also a large hot tub that I enjoyed during our stay. At 3 our room was ready so we checked in and unloaded our things from the car. The room was a one room suite with a kitchenette and dining area. The furniture was designed in a rustic log cabin manner that Stacey likes, but I was disappointed in its pre-fabricated and processed appearance. The room was nice none-the-less. A small porch extended off the back of the living room, lending a nice view of the ski hill and birch trees that filled the hills. Stacey took some time to unpack things before we all headed down towards the lake again for dinner. We stopped for groceries at the bottom of the hill and asked for directions to the area restaurants. We ended up driving about 30 miles north to Grand Marais for our meal. The town was different than I remembered it from when I worked in Tofte. It had a much greater "Seaside" character than I recalled. We made reservations at a small fish and chips restaurant and then Stacey and Jessica went for a walk while I sat with River on my lap while he slept. After a short while he woke up and we went down to the rock beach in the bay near the restaurant and played with toy airplanes and parachute men in the midst of sailboats passing. Seagulls inspecting the odd items we were tossing into the sky. They lost interest quickly after realizing the little plastic floating men were not appetizing.

Stacey and Jessica had returned at about the time our reservation was called. It was getting cool as we sat down for dinner. The sun was getting low in the sky. This made for some nice pictures of the sailboats in the bay. Jessica and I ordered the wonderful Fish and Chips baskets, River got grilled cheese, and Stacey ordered a trout salad that she was very happy with. The restaurant served a lot of organic foods and really paid attention to the quality of the items they served. I was very happy with our meal.

After dinner we went back to our hotel. Stacey, Jessica, and River went swimming soon after we got back and when they were done we lounged around the room and watched "16 Candles" for the rest of the evening.

We were all slow the next morning and we got a late start in our plans for the day. After cereal for breakfast we piled into the car and headed down to Tofte and then up the Sawbill Trail for the trek up the long gravel road to Sawbill Lake and the outfitters at the end of the road. When we arrived we rented a canoe for the rest of the day. The sun was out and it was about 85 degrees. Perfect canoeing weather. I had fond flashbacks to the summer we spent up at Lake Sawbill just after graduating from Carleton. I really miss being in such a beautiful area and doing something completely rewarding and physically challenging. We had a small lunch of sandwiches and juice from the outfitters and I bought a waterproof camera bag for the canoe trip (I learned my lesson in Florida with Dave after dripping my Digital Camera in the ocean!) When we were ready and Forest was asleep, Stacey, River and I loaded up the canoe with a light pack and headed out across Lake Sawbill. It was a beautiful day for canoeing. River is still a bit uneasy in a canoe, but he is daring. After getting used to the sway of the paddle and roll of the water, he was exploring the middle section of the canoe. Stacey did not like this much, but I figured he was in a good life jacket and I encouraged him to explore and get a feel for the canoe. After a while he ended up crawling on my lap to get a better view of the lake and to help me paddle. Paddling gets a lot harder with someone on your lap, especially when they try to help. We pulled into the cove that had the Lake Alton portage and soon had unloaded the canoe for the short walk. I put the canoe on my shoulders. That really sparked River's interest! He walked the whole portage just one step in front of me, making sure he was under the canoe just like me. He thought this was a big help for some reason, while in reality it made me nervous to have him under the canoe. I have dropped them before. I was as careful and attentive as I could be, and we made it across just fine. We quickly loaded up again and were on our way towards the north end of the lake. We got no further than around the first bend before realizing that all the camp sites were full on the lake, so we pulled up to a rocky point near the portage.

For about an hour we explored the woods in the area and Stacey and River went swimming in the cold water. It was not crystal clear like it has been in the past. This was confusing and disappointing. Alton had been known for its clarity when I was working on Sawbill. I wonder what happened? It was still fine for swimming, and River enjoyed splashing around the shallow waters on the rock ledge, but he did not like it when Stacey took him out to the deeper water and let him float in his life jacket, so we stuck to the shallow waters. Stacey jumped off the steep ledge a couple of times and then I took a few pictures before loading the canoe up and heading back to the portage. At the portage we meet a ranger from Carleton that was part of this years summer Sawbill crew. We talked to her for a while and then finished the portage and paddled back to the Sawbill landing. On the way River fell asleep in Stacey's lap and she laid him on the bottom of the canoe for a nap. He stayed sleeping after we reached the landing. Forest, who had stayed at the landing with Jessica was still sleeping as well, so I stayed with the tired boys and skipped rocks off the landing while Stacey and Jessica paddled to the dock at the rangers cabin and went swimming for a short while. Forest woke up just as they returned, and Stacey and Jessica loaded up the car while I returned the rental equipment.

When we returned back at the Hotel we went swimming for a little while before going back to the room to make spaghetti for dinner. After dinner we went down to the campfire and loaded it up with wood until a nice bonfire was burning. River is usually fearless around campfires so we get nervous when he pokes sticks into the coals and pulls out a burning sword. He has not poked anyone's eye out yet, but we still try to keep him under control. He roasted a few marshmallows but I think he got more of the sticky goo on his hands and feet than he got in his mouth. The northern lights were incredible on the horizon, completely spanning the northern sky with streaks of white, blue, and pink. The bands of light shifted so fast you could see them move from one place to another. It was a wonderful backdrop to our campfire in the hills of the north shore. In the distance we could see stars glisten off Lake Superior. As the night progressed, the lights dimmed. At about midnight we headed inside for bed.

On the third morning of our trip we again woke up late. And again we had cereal for breakfast. By this time River and Forest had started coughing and were getting small fevers. We kept an eye on them for the rest of the trip and they did fine, but when we returned home they both got worse fevers and coughs. After we were home Stacey got is as well. I don't know if Jessica ever got sick though. Anyway, they were doing fine, so we headed out for the day again to a small lake north of Lutsen with access to the Superior Hiking Trail. Stacey and Jessica were originally going to swim but the lake was not so accommodating, so we instead went hiking for a couple of miles on the trail. River and I went ahead and hiked about a mile to a fork in the trail at a small lake. We waited there and threw stones in the water. Soon Stacey and Jessica caught up with us and they commented on the rough terrain the trail crossed at points. After looking around the lake a bit, Stacey, Jessica, River, and Forest headed back to the car down the trail we had just covered, while I continued on the trail back towards Lutsen. It was about a 7 mile hike. Along the way I passed several camps where people had set up for the night. I also arrived at a beautiful overlook that afforded a wonderful view of the valley north of Lutsen. It was a bit daunting to stand above it and realize just how far seven miles are when you have a chance to see the entire distance in front of you. From the overlook I could also see a river that cut through the valley, presumably on its way to Lake Superior. After descending the elevated ridge I hiked across the low lying valley floor across a much different terrain. The entire valley bed appeared to be flat and on the verge of being a marsh. The short wetland scrub gave the path an eerie presence, and the patches of marsh grass crowding the trail in places added to the strangeness of the surroundings. When I reached the riverbank I passed a few more camps before acceding the other side of the valley. At the top of the other ridge I again looked out over the valley and surveyed it from my new perspective. I had never hiked the Superior Hiking Trail before but after having covered that short distance I am hoping to explore more of it and am anticipating bringing River on some smaller trips, possibly next summer.

After cresting the ridge I passed the river that flows through Lutsen and made my way down the trail past the waterfall and to the parking lot, and continued strait to the resort and our room. I believe we had pasta and snacked on other food for dinner, but later in the evening Stacey and Jessica took River to the ski chalet restaurant for a late snack. Forest stayed with me while he napped.

When they had returned from the restaurant Stacey and I went down to the bonfire by ourselves and spent some time talking about the wedding and the week we had experienced. Before long another couple had approached the campfire and they struck up a conversation. They were nice people and both were full of character enthusiasm. They were in their late twenties. The guy was a bit air-headed but presented a very naive innocence, while his wife kept him in line and toned down his exaggerations about their vacations and adventures. She was a Russian immigrant who had come to the USA with her mother several years earlier. We was energetic while at the same time level headed and determined. This couple was a great example of how opposites attract and compliment each other. They had a two year old son who was staying with his grandmother, who spoke only Russian to him, for the weekend. They were prospecting some vacation property to purchase as a rental investment. They had many interesting things to say. At about 1am they said good night and Stacey and I headed back to the suite for bed.

In the morning the weather was dreary. Stacey and Jessica took River swimming one last time before we packed up and checked out of the resort. After getting on the road we stopped just south of Tofte at the Temperance River State Park and walked around the water falls for a short while before hitting the highway for the long haul back home. We had originally planned on stopping in Duluth but the boys were sick so we did not want to stop and see Stacey's friend Debbie and here family, risking getting them ill as well. Both boys were sleeping when we went through Duluth so we just continued on our way. We made good time and pulled into Minneapolis just after River woke from his nap. Stacey was disappointed we did not take the opportunity to stop along the way, but I was OK with returning and relaxing at home before having to go back to work the upcoming Monday. I had a good week but I did not want to jump directly back into work without having time to think about everything that had happened throughout the week and during our time up north.

Since the wedding I have been compiling the photos and cards and all other related information from the wedding. I have built the online wedding album along side the real album. In the end we are going to have a box with wedding memorabilia inside, containing all the cards, photos, music set CD's, programs, invitations, and other relevant items. After making the web site, however, it seems to be a great way to compile all that information because it is readily accessible to anyone who wants to see it, it does not sit in a corner somewhere and get smelly and dusty, and the pictures never fade. I am not sure how permanent the web site is, but it makes for a great way to remember everything that went on during our wedding. The only drawbacks are the lower quality of photos (This was done to reduce download and scanning time), and the long load time if you are using a slow modem.

If you read this and have anything to add, from photos to stories to additions to what has already been said, please feel free to send stuff to me any way you wish. We would be happy to include it in our album.