After a few weeks off, I start rehearsal for my next show tomorrow! In anticipation, my husband arranged for us to go “up north,” as we say. He has a former employee who works at a golf course about 4 hours north of the city, so he made some suggestions, and up we went!
We made good time, only stopping once for a late lunch at Tobies Restaurant and Cafe in Hinckley. About halfway between Minneapolis and Duluth, it’s the traditional stop for many commuters. It wasn’t terribly busy when we arrived, which was lucky, because with our bill came a box “on the house.” What was inside?
Free cinnamon and caramel rolls. They made a great dessert Friday night!
We stayed at Fortune Bay Resort and Casino. Part of the resort is The Wilderness golf course, ranked quite highly in the state. Since our contact up there works for the golf course, we got a private tour.
When designed, the dynamite budget for the course was $100,000. They spent a million. There are lovely spots with the natural rock exposed, and the woods blend in with the course. It was too cold to spend much time outside, but it was nice to have a little tour!
Saturday, we drove another 20 miles or so to Ely, home of the International Wolf Center. Guess what we saw?
He saw us, too. His name is Aidan.
The Wolf Center is being remodeled, currently, so their exhibits weren’t fabulous. The wolves get fed Saturday evenings, and we didn’t go back for that, but we did see a little activity.
After wolf-gawking, we had an appointment at the Pebble.
An hour and a half later, we were scrubbed, rubbed, toasted, and ready to go! Next up? Bears.
This is Ted. Ted is 12 years old and weighs about 740 pounds. He’s the biggest bear at Ely’s North American Bear Center. Honey was nestled in for a nap, visible, but not good for pictures.
Lucky, the 2 year old, was fairly active during our visit. We even saw him scoot up a tree! The Bear Center has a lovely facility, about two acres for the three bears, and lots of informative exhibits. If you ever find yourself that far north, I would recommend a visit!
I also gambled for the first time at the casino and lost $7 playing penny slots. It would have been nice to spend some time outside if the weather had been better (instead of SNOWING), but it was still pretty. It was nice to spend a weekend with my sweetie before our schedules are totally opposite again for the next few weeks.
How was your weekend?
