My husband is a big fan of going and doing - meaning he doesn't really enjoy sitting still. So, going on a family vacation is sometimes a bit of a mixed bag because while I don't necessarily feel the need to see and do all the things, his list isn't as short. During this vacation, for fear of being bored in one spot for too long, we had several stops across the state - each only lasting a few days.
After our first stop in Minneapolis, our second stop was Lake Itasca in Itasca State Park, Minnesota. The lake is a glacier lake that is famously known for being the headwaters of the Mississippi River, which we can see anytime we go to downtown St. Louis. We found a cabin called Big Timbers that was right across from the park and had a beautiful view out our back window.
On our first full day, we hit the lake and did some family canoeing in the morning. Not pictured? The rather loud argument my husband and I had as we tried to navigate the canoe together. The details were all pounded out and we both made it back to the shoreline dry and alive. In the afternoon, we went to the headwaters and joined all the people walking across them. It was a pretty neat and sort of surreal experience.
Big props to my husband for taking those shots of me walking the headwaters with our kids. Again not pictured: as I was walking back across, I step backward off a rock and sliced my toe. Diabetics and foot injuries don't mix well (hence the reason I really should have been wearing water shoes). The headwaters are about a 15-minute walk and my foot was in no shape for walking. I left behind some blood in the waters and on the bank, but thankfully a mom with a baby in tow also had wipes and I was able to sit for a few minutes with my foot elevated and stop the bleeding. Then I got to enjoy the view out our cabin window for a bit while the family went swimming.
The next day, we decided a pontoon might be best for my foot. My son goes camping every summer, sometimes multiple times. He has had so many opportunities to do all the water things and it was obvious as we navigated through our trip. It was pretty cool to see him take the skills he's been using in Scouts for what feels like his whole life and use them with us. He helped us back out with the pontoon and got us out of a couple of sticky situations with the seaweed.
Having Nani along for this trip was good for us all. While she was no less of a responsibility while vacationing (we may have forgotten her water on a few hikes), she tagged along many of times that it made sense and loved all the extra time.
Emma and I both loved the cool patterns that the seaweed made as the water rippled the lake. But my favorite part of being on this lake was realizing that the very place we crossed the headwaters could be seen from our pontoon (as seen in the bottom picture)!
Lake Itasca did not disappoint, and we aren't even done with the park! If you missed day 1 of this trip or our pit stop to check out the Bridges of Madison County on the way in, make sure to go check them out! I'm excited to share more with you from beautiful Minnesota!
Until Next Time,