Minnesota
Updates by Gary - See bottom half of page below as noted for Gary Sr's entries

Idleness Breeds Thought
For those of you who are not acquainted with my dad I’d like to share a few things so that you might know him better. Whenever I read the axiom above “Idleness – Breeds Thought” that dad coined over 30 years ago I laugh to myself. You see, dad is not one to be idle long, Think Felix Unger and you’d be getting close… My dad is a hard working, stubborn, kind hearted, generous, cooking, thinking and writing machine.

On past wilderness canoe trips that Dad and I have taken to the BWCA his show of hardiness and strength have continually amazed me. On our first trip to the BWCA dad was 66 years young. We humped 50+ lb packs over rocky trails for miles portaging our gear and canoe, Dad took it all in stride with a smile. He’s as tough as a bull! And dad is right at home walking barefoot among the dirt in a wilderness camp site.

There are other times that he surprises people, while painting and preparing my home in Omaha for rent before the start of my trip several friends were over helping clean and paint and my good friend Dan remarked “Your dad is a cleaning machine! He has worked harder than anyone else today!” That is my dad… When he has a job to do he just rolls up his sleeves and gets it done, and he doesn’t stop until he’s finished… Sometimes this works to his detriment but that’s another story.

So, thinking back when my Dad first espoused the idea that “Idleness – Breeds Thought” I now see the irony in his words. Having also studied Emerson and Thoreau I understand exactly what he means by the axiom but when I was a young man Dad was very fond of telling me over and over and over and over again that the way to succeed in life is to “Work Hard and Save Your Money.”

I discovered that it doesn’t quite work that way anymore… I now believe that the real key to success is to discover your passion, focus on your passion and make your passion happen. And sure enough, one can only come to this conclusion by Idle Thought, if all you do is work hard and save your money without stopping to think about what it is you want and how you’ll go about amassing those things, the money you earn by hard work will barely keep up with the rate of inflation.

And finally, Thinking while idle led me to a thought and a memory, as Thoreau said “There is no more fatal blunderer than he who consumes the greater part of his life getting his living.” Instead of getting a living merely to survive isn’t it better to find something that nourishes the soul firstly and merely provides a means to live secondarily? Like Dad, Thoreau was a smart man for he also said “Money is not required to buy one necessity of the soul.” Unless you have undertaken the type of Journey I now find myself on, you can never understand the nourishment this trip is providing to my soul! Idleness Breeds Though indeed!

Woodbilly’s Are Your Friend!
I lived in Northern Minnesota for 3 years during the mid 90's, after selling an electronics business that I had started in my early 20’s to my partner, we (myself, ex wife and son) decided that we’d had enough of the city (we lived in the suburbs of Chicago) and we needed a change. Minnesota is a land of extremes, extreme beauty, extreme cold (I’ve seen -50F true temperatures, that is cold!) extreme mosquitoes and extreme sized fish of every kind. But more than anything else Minnesota is one of the best summer getaways in the continental US. Summer temperatures remain mild and the sky is a deep blue, usually filled with high floating billowy clouds. And where else will you hear the phrase “You Betcha!”

So it was with a sense of nostalgia that I climbed on my bike and make the trek west to into Minnesota. I was in for some very rough going (said in jest,) my next destination would be a stop at another dear friend’s house in Grand Rapids. I’d love to say that I camped in his back yard and ate berries and roughed it but instead I spent a week with my buddy Bruce and a few local Woodbilly friends… I had the benefit of enjoying my buddies wooded hideaway for an entire week, talk about life on easy street!


Ok, so what exactly is a Woodbilly? Well, in these parts there are far more trees than people, in fact in Itasca County Minnesota it is reported that one can not walk in a straight line in ANY direction from ANY point within the county for more than 3 miles with out hitting water, be it a bog, pond, creek river or lake. Having roamed these woods on countless occasions myself I can attest that I believe this statement to be true, water is everywhere!

The term Woodbilly came about because, although this area is quite hilly (at an elevation of approximately 1400’) woods are the dominant feature, and the locals depend on these woods to make their living. And almost everyone in Itasca County hunts and fishes, but they do so more for sustenance than for sport. A Woodbilly is a hardy breed of person, they are as much at home with a rifle in their hands as they are an axe or a hammer, and after a hard days work beer is usually the norm. In name a Woodbilly is the northern equivalent of a southern hillbilly, however they aren't really Hillbillys at all, they are simply modern woodsman, yes they are educated, just like city folks, but they live with a lot less tension and at a much easier pace.

As an example, soon after relocating to town in 1994 I went ice fishing with a friend, I was introduced to a man holding his ice fishing rod in one hand and a can of beer in the other “that was the mayor” my friend told me as we left… There are few snobs and city folk in this part of the country, even fewer people wear a tie or suit, and the phrase “let’s meet around 9:00am” means sometime around 9:30am or 10:00am. Instead there are countless wonderful country folk who wave and smile at each other and strangers alike as they pass by on the road, they will stop to help you if your car breaks down and they never seem to be in a hurry.

Bruce's House
I spent my days at Bruce’s house playing with his dog Burt, a speedy Rat Terrier who has a great personality, I honestly believe that pets often take on the persona of their owners and their personalities are largely driven by how they are treated. Burt was a very happy and playful dog, he spent most nights sleeping next to me on the bed (probably because I gave him a bath and fed him so many treats!) I also spent the time recuperating from a nasty cough I picked up in Superior, (that cough didn't go away for another 2 1/2 months.)

Burt was extremely camera Shy!	Every time I tried to take a picture he became very nervous!

Bruce works nights so I’d nap during the afternoon so we could spend time hanging out and chatting when he got home. On more than one occasion Bruce got the wild notion to cook up a feast at 2:00am. My stay at Bruces was quiet and rather uneventful by "Bruce" standards, Bruce is like a playful St. Bernard Puppy, he is always trying to make you laugh or trying to pull a prank on someone, he is truly a 40 something 10 year old. He was unusually subdued during my stay.

While at Bruce's I received a call from a potential employer I had submitted a resume to 6 months earlier, I sensed the trip's end was nearing… my hunch would prove to be right.

The Ride West

Westward Ho!
I had a pleasant ride out of Grand Rapids on my way west to Bemidji, I had driven these roads countless times and knew them to be straight, flat and in good shape, the weather was perfect and the scenery was quite nice to... But yet again, the many days spent off the bike lazing around had taken it’s toll, I had began to soften once again! But not to fear, I knew that in a matter of days I’d be tough once again and would be ready to take on the Rockies of Montana.

During the ride on my last day in Minnesota I saw a bear cross the road off in the distance… Black bears are the only species to roam these parts and I'd seen hundreds of them before while living here. This would be the only bear spotted during the entire trip.

Nearing the not so mighty start of the Mighty Mississippi (this little stream is in fact Ol Miss!)	See...

North Dakota Here I Come