I rode close to 40 miles today (Wed., 9/6), from Floodwood to Hill City, MN. The route was mostly on roads like Highways 2 and 200 with higher speed limits, but this was through a lightly populated area, so traffic was minimal and there were generally pretty wide shoulders. The sky threatened rain most of the day, but it never did, so unlike yesterday, I stayed dry. Fall seems to be arriving early in this part of the country. Even as our friends out east and elsewhere are experiencing another heat wave, temperatures were in the 50s and 60s, and some of the trees are starting to change color.

I crossed the Mississippi River near Ball Bluff, MN. Here is what it looks like in this part of the state–much expanded from the narrow stream at its headwaters about a hundred miles to the west at Itasca State Park, but not nearly as wide as it becomes further south.

I was curious about how the unincorporated town of Ball Bluff (pop. 274) got its name and learned that it is a corruption of the name of a tall hill nearby, Bald Bluff. The hill was created several thousand years ago by glaciers. It is rocky and covered with grass rather than trees–hence the name “bald.” It is not clear how the name of the town came to be a “corrupted” version of the name of the hill. Perhaps it came about as a result of a typographical error or poor pronunciation.

I stayed at a motel over a mile north of Hill City, MN (pop. 619), where the only restaurants in the area are located. On my way there, I stopped at Knucklehead’s Bar and Grill, where a sign on the window said, “Bikers Welcome.” Although I soon learned this was a reference to motorcycles, not bicycles, I was treated well there, and served some excellent broasted chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy.

I’m planning on an early start tomorrow to ride over 60 miles from Hill City to our family cabin near Hackensack, MN. You’ll get a report on that soon.