1993/07 Rockies trip - Blue Mounds |
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On getting home, we found out that the south of the state had had 48 hours of heavy rain, 8 inches in some places, so there were flood warnings out for the Minnesota River.
Tuesday June 22nd
Consequently, when we set out on the big trip, we had to avoid that whole area and head south to Albert Lea and then west on 1-90. Not as scenic a route as our usual 169, but it had the advantage of being above water. We camped at Blue Mounds state park, and were lucky this time that the wind wasn't blowing from the adjacent pig farm. 
Not that we were there long as we spent the remainder of the afternoon at Pipestone national monument, where the Sioux get the catlinite for their pipes. So we visited the Indian pipe carvers and then went out around the quarry area. With all the recent rain, even the little waterfall there was roaring.
On the way back, we stopped at Split Rock Creek state park. This was never a good park, as its only asset, the lake behind the dam, 
was polluted with farm runoff, but now all it has is mud and meadows. The flooding had taken out the earthworks on one side of the lake, leaving the concrete part of the dam standing. They must have been very close to losing the road and the bridge too as the road embankment had been partly washed away.
Back at Blue Mounds, we just had enough light to visit the buffalo paddock. (Yes, I know they're really bison, but I'm sure the 
buffalo think their name is buffalo. Whoever heard of Bison Bill, anyway?) Luckily, the herd thought we were interesting enough to invite us for dinner, so the Evanses got a close look instead of the usual bumps on the horizon.
We had a wild night of weather, with bits of tree down in the campground, but no damage on our site, as it looked like all the loose bits had already been torn off in an earlier storm.
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