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What are your minute-by-minute logs of the road trip for your 2008 vacation in Minneapolis, MN?
Last updated: Sep 28, 2008
On the way to Minneapolis, and on the way back home, I kept a minute-by-minute log on what happened during the long drive. A summary is at the start of each section, including some details not in the log itself.
1 The long drive there
It's a mad rush, I tell ya, a mad rush. That's how September 13 started after I ate, did my last daily check for a week, then posted a notice on my site. September 13 was the day I was to leave. It first started with being unable to find my camera - it was in mom's car without me knowing it was there, and this costed time. Then, mom couldn't find her car keys which added another fairly lengthy delay. I realized that I forgot the RF adapter for the Sega Genesis so I had to go back and get it. Then, just as we got down the road a bit, realizing unusually low clouds, I noticed that I couldn't find my camera and I thought I left it on top of the white storage thing. Unfortunately, I didn't, but found it, unexpectedly, in my luggage bags (the one with my clothes (the other has my console systems - the Genesis and Gamecube)). We finally left upon that. Unexpectedly, without realizing it, we took the wrong road - highway 2 instead of 52, of which added a lengthy delay. We grabbed some maps along the way at travel information centers and rest stops. I was the one reading off the maps and guiding mom. To prevent my mom from getting too sleepy, I played Hangman a bit while there to keep her mind active. Then, 2/3 of the way there, I realized I forgot something else, my metal detector. Oh well. In the Saint Cloud area, signs were misleading - a sign in one direction didn't tell where I-94 was but in the other direction, after making a circle, it was - confusion set in. Upon arriving, it was about an hour's worth of speaking (I was mostly left out of it, though I still listened) before I did some unpacking. The rest of the unpacking followed early the next day.
8:45 AM: Left at last, after 2 massive searches (my camera and mom's car keys)
9:27 AM: Granville reached
9:45 AM: Towner - mom got snacks for awakeness - she was getting a bit sleepy (woke up early)
9:59 AM: Left Towner
10:15 AM: Rugby
10:39 AM: Leeds
11:00 AM: Devil's Lake
11:13 AM: Rest stop - noticed we were going the wrong way
11:20 AM: Left with map and a photo - inside had a map of Devil's Lake and the surrounding area around the lake
11:33 AM: Lakota
11:47 AM: Petersberg
12:19 PM: Grand Forks
12:24 PM: Stopped at gas station
12:33 PM: Left
12:40:14 PM: Entered Minnesota
12:53 PM: Rest stop
1:03 PM: Left with Minnesota map and directions - go to Crookston and head south toward the freeway (as I suggested 2 hours ago)
1:15 PM: Crookston
1:40 PM: Beltram
1:56 PM: Ada
2:00 PM: Gas station stop (no gas, but for mom to go to the bathroom and get coffee)
2:08 PM: Left
2:51 PM: Interstate 94 finally reached
3:20 PM: Rest stop at Iverson Lake
3:30 PM: Left with photos
4:02 PM: Alexandria
4:50 PM: Gas station in St. Joseph or St. Cloud
4:57 PM: Left
5:08 PM: Lost in St. Cloud - wrong turn made
5:18 PM: Confusing and/or missing signs caused troubles, returned to I-94 at this time
5:57 PM: Elm Creek rest area
6:03 PM: Left with photos
6:26 PM: Arrived at destination at last
7:18 PM: Began unpacking
2 The long drive back
September 21 was the final day, but this time, we didn't have much trouble, other than the fact we left late and took long at a mall in Albertville. Eating was first, followed by the final good-byes. Mom really wanted to stop at this very long-spanning mall in Albertville (a bit northwest of the Minneapolis area). We took exit 202, but mom said it didn't look right. Exit 201 was closed off for some unknown reason so it meant taking a loop-de-loop spanning a total of 15 miles (and taking the eastbound exit 201 (which was open). A long (93 minutes) look at the mall there followed, then we left. I discovered an error in the map. The map marks the exit as 205, but it's actually 204. The rest of the journey went without too much trouble, until Jamestown where a hidden sign caused us to miss the turn to get on Highway 52. In addition, an hour earlier, it was raining (fairly lightly - level 3 green on Doppler Radar). Around Carrington, it got quite dark out where I began playing Hangman with mom again to help keep her awake (keeping her mind active).
10:32 AM: Left for home
11:03 AM: Gas station in Rogers
11:11 AM: Left
11:23 AM: Albertville with returning to the highway - "didn't look right" said mom
11:36 AM: Returned to Albertville - found error on map: exit 205 on map is actually 204
11:40 AM: Stopped at mall
1:13 PM: Finally left
2:01 PM: Passed by Albany - saw Kraft factory (a drive by)
2:34 PM: Rest stop near Alexandria
2:41 PM: Left
3:24 PM: Furgus Falls - Pizza Ranch (slow, weak service, but good pizza)
4:01 PM: Left
4:47:18 PM: Entered ND
4:57 PM: Gas station at West Fargo
5:05 PM: Left - not cheap (Ethanol - oy!)
5:38 PM: Rest stop (exit 303; Criska)
5:45 PM: Left
5:57 PM: Valley City
6:00 PM: Gas station
6:54 PM: Highway 52, after more sign troubles (hidden) in Jamestown
7:33 PM: Carrington
8:36 PM: Martin
9:25 PM: Velva
9:42 PM: Entered Minot
9:59 PM: Home at last
My September 2008 trip to Minneapolis, Minnesota
Introduction
Travel logs - Minute-by-minute details of the trip there and back.
Photos introduction
September 13: Rest stops (7 photos)
September 14: Other (1 photo)
September 15 page 1: Mall of America Shopping (11 photos)
September 15 page 2: Other (1 photo), Mall of America aquarium (2 photos), Mall of America theme park (3 photos)
September 17 page 1: Wisconsin scenic views (10 photos)
September 17 page 2: Ice cream (1 photo), White Bear Lake (4 photos), Manitou Island (1 photo)
September 17 page 3: Mississippi River (8 photos, 1 panorama of 3 photos)
September 19 page 1: Rest stops (5, 2 panoramas of 3 then 5 photos), Clouds (2 photos)
September 19 page 2: Duluth scenic views (8 photos), Lake Superior (4 photos)
Videos - Videos available on YouTube involving select parts of the trip
Return to Sep 2008 blog
Footnotes:
None
