I Pee in Beautiful Places

 

 From the mountains, 

 

                            to the prairies,

to the oceans 

white with foam...

I've peed there. 

 

We've traveled so far since we left Austin just over a month ago; across the dirty dirty where we battled Raccoons of Unusual Size (RUS'), then up the East coast where we mingled with aristocrats and ate crab cakes (not really because crab cakes are mad expensive).  From the Green Mountains of Vermont we skipped across the border to visit our wonderful neighbors to the North with whom I proudly and loudly share citizenship. After a few days and nights of eating nothing but poutine and spending some quality time with the Morrison clan, we crossed back Stateside. Oh, the Midwest, how I love you. Rolling prairies, rock bluffs, lakes, lakes and more lakes. 

Once back in my nexus, Minnesota, and after reuniting with our wonderful Austin Folk for some delicious pork burgers, a la Morrison Family style, we headed up North to the tall pines and crystal clear lakes to "live off the land," partially fulfilling Eva's life-long dream.

Wisco Dells - fun for all

Two nights at the cabin allowed us ample time to make all of the necessary preparations for the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA).  If it weren't for the bocce ball, bonfires, happy hour boat cruises and the Bananagrams falling into the lake, we would have actually prepared. Regardless, early morning of our second day in Minnesota we headed even further North of the cabin to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA).  BWCA, high on the list of Peter's Favorite Places in the World, covers the most northern area of Minnesota. With it's raw forests spotted with glacial lakes whose water's I'm going to bottle and sell for twice the price of Fiji, the BWCA is ideal for packing everything on your back and getting off the grid for a few days. And that's exactly what Eva, Dusan, Meg, Lacy, Evan and I did. 

Beaver Dam X-ing

Over the 4 days we spent in the BWCA we accomplished a lot. We overcame 3 beaver dams, made friends with a bird who loved our quinoa, canoed up 2 different rivers, across about 10 lakes, portaged like champions across some rough terrain in some rough weather, punched 39 meeses in the nose, caught, cleaned and ate fresh fish for every dinner, and found out that Evan's Spirit Animal is a slug and mine is a mole, invented Boundary Waters Hot Coco (Hot Chocolate & Whiskey, a necessity on those frigid northern mornings, ahem, I mean evenings).

our drinking water

Our last day in the BWCA was a real test of character. Soaking wet and cold (cotton kills!!), we decided to double the length of our trek for the day, cutting our last night of camping in order to spend one last night drinking cold Summits by the warm fire at the cabin. Evan, drunk from an overdose of activities (and a little from the "dog of the hair" that bit 'em), woke up first that cold, rainy morning and spent hours building us our final BWCA fire. Oatmeal, bagels (said with a Minnesota accent that all find so odd), and some BWCA Hot Coco (Patent Pending) were our fuel for the 4 portage and 2 beaver dam haul. 

Meg and Dus being super cool

Upon our arrival at civilization, we shocked bystanders in Ely, MN with our a) double-stacked canoes on the buiey, and 2) the rate and quantity of which greasy burgers, wings and barley-pops were devoured by the 6 of us. The next night at the cabin we got all hippy-like and made music around the fire. And let me tell you, Eva can rock the house with a tambourine. 

Jessie and me in the Sculpture Garden

By now the West was calling our names, but we couldn't leave Minnesota without spending one more day and night bumming around Minneapolis and getting some QT with the soon-to-be newlyweds (Attention Eva's people: my sister, Jessie, is getting married to Eric in December). We moseyed around the Walker Art Sculpture Garden (in which I peed! re: the title of this blog), had a few beers on a rooftop bar, and then later headed to Nye's Polish Bar for what we thought would be a night on the d-floor but we ended up being serenaded late into the night by some drunk karaoke singers.

chillin' by the Mississippi in Mpls.

Adios to the East and first half of our trip. Here are 10 things that we've learned in the East that we're taking West:

1. Books on tape are tyte.
2. Sometimes Mickey D's is completely necessary.
3. RV's and places they are suck.
4. Keep bike helmets and the like in plain view to maintain a wholesome look.
5. Never tell people what time you plan to arrive; punctuality isn't even in our lexicon.
6. Cotton Kills!
7. "Navy dudes are fat and nasty." - Hank the Marine
8. Stealth camping is the best camping.
9. Interstates are what's wrong with this country.
10. "Being famous isn't all the glitz and glam that people think." -Bandit psychedelic flame-thrower