We left Sioux Falls, south Dakota on Sunday, August 26 and headed to Minnesota. It was a very foggy morning however, about 20 miles in to Minnesota the fog lifted and the sun began to shine. As we drove through the countryside, it was again sad to see so many of the crops dried up in the fields as they had been in South Dakota. We we drove through St. Peter, Minnesota and along the Minnesota River, we noticed how very low the water level was in the river. This summer is so much different from last summer as the water levels in the Rivers, Lakes and Reservoirs are all so low.
Our first night in Minnesota and we stayed south of the Twin Cities at Lebanon Hills State Park. As we pulled into our spot for the night, parked across from
us were our friends, Gary and Cortney!!! They had not come out west this summer and had stayed in Ohio, Wisconsin and Minnesota so it was fun to see them!!!!
Monday morning and we left Lebanon Hills and headed north to the KOA in Maple Grove. The Maple Grove park is not the best, however it is close to Angela, Jeff and the kids as well as Keeth and Kristy.
Tuesday morning, August 28 and John and I headed to the Minnesota State Fair. The slogan for the fair is
"The Great Minnesota Get-Together". It is the largest state fair in the United States in terms of average daily attendance. It is also the 2nd largest state fair in the United States in terms of total attendance, trailing only the State Fair of Texas, which generally runs for twice as many days as the Minnesota State Fair. The fair is held at the state fair grounds, adjoining the Saint Paul campus of the University of Minnesota. The site is in Falcon Heights, MN., midway between the state's capital city of St. Paul and the largest city, Minneapolis, and midway between the North Pole and the Equator.
The first Minnesota State Fair was held in 1859, the year after statehood. Since then, the fair has run annually except for five different years. In 1861 and 1862, the fair was not held because of the Civil War and the Dakota War of 1862. Scheduling issues between the fair and the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago,Illinois caused the 1893 show to be canceled. The fair again closed because of was in 1945, as fuel was in short supply. It was again closed in 1946 because of an outbreak of polio.
Machinery Hill is a large area of the fairground, and we were there!!! For several decades, it held the largest annual display of farm equipment in the world. However, modern displays generally focus on cars, trucks, lawn mowers, and recreational machines and motorbikes.
Food is one of the primary attractions at the State Fair, and a wide variety of foods are to be had. Classic fair foods such as cotton candy and hot dogs are readily available. Many foods reflect Minnesota's agriculture; cheese curds, mild shakes, and corn dogs are popular favorites. Many foods at the fair are deep fried or come on a stick; from the classic corn dog to alligator-on-a-stick, deep fried candy bar on a stick and even "beer-on-a-stick". ( Have to admit that I did not see that one!!) However they did have fried dill pickles and that line was always long.
The mascot for the fair is an anthropomorphized gopher, named Fairchild. He was named by Gladys Anderson Brown for Henry S. Fairchild who advocated using the former Ramsey County Poor Farm as the permanent site for the fair. Dressed like an early barker on the midway with a straw hat and stripped jacket. Fairchild has represented the fair for decades.
We had a great time people watching and sampling some of the "fair food".
We will be in Minnesota until the end of September. More on our visit later, until then,
Love to all, Candy and Johnny
