RED WING

I started out in my new boots in the morning and made good time into Red Wing, MN. It was a 15 mile trip and started out flat, but increasingly became hillier. My boots held up great, but I did get a new blister directly below the dressings I had on my old blister. Great. I will see how it holds up.

Walking into town was amazing. Trees lined both sides of the highway and the weather was consistent with how the weather has been over the entire trip. Mostly sunny with highs in the mid 70's during the day and mid 50's at nite and it look like this weather will hold for the next few weeks.

I walked into town on Hwy 61 and it appeared as though this would be just another highway town full of strip malls and food franchises, I was about to be proven completely wrong.

Upon entering town, I saw several hotels, but I was looking for a campsite to get off of this damn highway. I continued on and walked about a mile thru town and wasn't feeling good about finding a place to camp, so I went into Caribou Coffee, purchased a cup, and inquired about where I could stay in town. The nice lady informed me that there were several hotels at the West end of town (which I have mentioned) and one more at the far East end. She also said that the park was also located near there. I asked how far away the park was and she stated it was another 3 miles and an additional 3 to get to the campgrounds. I did not feel like walking another 6 miles and then have to walk the same 3 miles back out to the highway so I can start out on the road again. This would result in 6 unnecessary miles.

I made the decision to walk all the way back to the hotels I had passed on my way into town and ended up walking thru the old pottery district. They had taken all of the old original brick buildings and turned them into a shopping district. This is where Red Wing pottery is made. I hadn't even realized that. http://www.redwingpottery.com/ This district and the hotels were located on West Main St. My assumption was this was the old downtown district and had been replaced by the highway community.

I found a hotel, The Rodeway Inn, and checked in. Removing my card key, I noticed an advertisement for 10% off at Liberty's Restaurant in the historic downtown district. Again, I thought I was in downtown, so I called the restaurant and asked about their location thinking it would be one of the brick buildings nearby. The gentleman explained that they weren't located near me, but were about a mile from me. That is about 3 blocks from the Caribou Coffee shop I had stopped into and gotten information. Now I would have to walk all the way back into the real downtown to get a meal. I was now a little frustrated, but anxious to see a historic downtown. I was then told that someone on the restaurant staff would drive out to pick me up and also ensure I got home in the evening. I took him up on that.

The car pulled up, we drove back down the highway about a mile and into one of the finest, attractive, and completely restored downtowns I have ever seen. This sets the standard very high for all the other small towns I will visit on this trip. I believe the Red Wing Shoe Company has a lot to do with the success of this district. http://www.redwingshoes.com/ We pull into the parking lot of Liberty's Restaurant and I am seated by the window and enjoy a fine meal of prime rib. http://www.libertysonline.com/ My waitress, Lori, is very pleasant and informs me of most of the history of the town. She also offers to show me the main sites tomorrow. I accept.

After dinner, I take in a few sites, stop into a couple of pubs, and then unfortunately head back out of this beautiful old town to my modern hotel room a5t the other end of town. I will have to explore much more of this great town later.