Monday, October 1, 2012

A weekend on the river...

What a bonus!  It was 80 degrees this weekend.  The Sun was shining, the Honeycrisps and pumpkins were ripe and the leaves were brilliantly colored.  We weren't even planning one more trip to our favorite pizza place. The Nelson Stone Barn.  But we were lucky enough to get a bonus weekend on the river.  Our first stop was for apples.  A whopping $50 for a big bag of Honeycrisps.  Holy Cow.  I guess you have to be a Millionaire to eat apples these days.  Then we hiked on over to Maiden Rock bluff.

Enjoy the view.  Then read this interesting tale about Maiden Rock...

Princess Winona (Princess We-Noh-Nah) is the central Native American character in a "Lover's Leap" romantic legend set at Maiden Rock on the Wisconsin side of Lake Pepin in the United States. Princess Winona leaps to her death from Maiden Rock rather than marry a suitor she does not love.[1]There are several variations of the story. Winona's father is sometimes said to be Chief Red Wing of what is now Red Wing, Minnesota or Chief Wabasha (Wapasha) of a village identified as Keoxa, now known as Winona, Minnesota. Rather than marry a suitor she does not love, Winona chooses to leap from the cliff of Maiden Rock to her death. Who the suitor is depends on the version of the tale. Some versions featured him as a French trapper; others say he is an Indian of another tribe.
In the traditional Dakota language, "Winona" is not a personal name, but a general term for a first-born child of any class distinction who happens to be female.
The concept of the central figure as a "princess" is in keeping with a European-American stereotype about Native American "princesses." In fact, the Sioux do not have an equivalent title for "princess" in any of the major dialects.[2]
Today "Winona" has become regularly used as a personal and place name throughout the United States.




A train chugs down the tracks.

A yellow explosion.

No Fall trip is complete without a visit to a pumpkin patch.


Who is this goofball?


A feather in Pepin.

Look at the sunset creeping down through the window of the old barn pilings.  A bottle of vino, a romantic setting and a fantastic pizza just pulled from a burning hearth.  Life is good.

12 comments:

Christina Rodriguez said...

Am I seriously asking MN/WI to send some of their weather my way?! Indeed, I am! We've had tons of rain out here and the trees are only just beginning to start changing colors.

I'll bet that pizza tasted so good after your hike. Pepin and the Nelson Stone Barn are two of my favorite places out there!

Unknown said...

Wow that was scarey high, could you even hear the boat from that high up?

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

I just saw some of your illustrations on your other blog - they are gorgeous!

Sounds like you had a fun weekend. Sheesh on the apples! I'd let you come pick from our 2 trees for free!

Marilia said...

Awesome post!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Linda Hensley said...

Love the post. Maybe I'll go out for apples too, but $50?! Yeeks! Congratulations on your book. Looks great!

DJan said...

So beautiful, with great pictures to go along with a cool story. (If it's cool to kill yourself for something like that.) I especially LOVE the yellow explosion! :-)

TexWisGirl said...

looks gorgeous, all the way around. :)

Arnoldo L. Romero, MLA said...

Sounds like you had a blast. Blessings!

Don Urness said...

I have never been up on maiden rock Now I have something new for my bucket list. Have you ever tried the Harbor View in Pepin?

Nancy said...

What a gorgeous weekend and that pizza looks amazing!

Serline said...

Beautiful view and colors!

Cat and DOG Chat With Caren said...

these photos are simply exquisite! I wonder...when my "Dakota" barks...is he speaking in the "Dakota" language? BOL!