Troutbirder II

Troutbirder II
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Saturday, January 2, 2021

Geography Quiz

It's been quite a few years now since Barb MrsT and I  went over to our friends, Steve and Jewels, farmhouse to pick them up . Fact is both Steve and Barb have since gone to a better place. Back then we had headed off to Pikes Peak. It’s a fairly long drive from Bluff Country (southeastern Minnesota) but we left early in the morning. We stopped for lunch at a Red Robin before arriving at our destination about 1:30 in the afternoon. From the top we looked out over a vast and beautiful landscape. Take a look.
Later, after dinner at Brietbach’s, the oldest restaurant in the State, we headed home arriving there about 9:00 P.M. the same day.
The test question is "how did we do it in one day?" I’ll give one hint: Yes, it’s true, I did get a speeding ticket ( 73 mph in a 55 mph zone). It’s not a regular practice on my part as this was the first ticket in several decades. There are no prizes for answering the question correctly except for the knowledge that you are in the top tier of American geographers. Did you know that Iowa has its own Pikes Peak? It was Named after the same explorer, and that theirs was there first? That’s right, as Zebulon Pike was moving westward, he stopped in Iowa, and the place where he viewed the area from a bluff high above the Mississippi River is now named after him. He identified the bluff, about 400 feet above the Father of Waters as a good site for a potential fort. Perhaps then it looked like the following painting when he was there. That's the Wisconsin River entering across the valley.

16 comments:

  1. Another great outing for you! What a view in that last photo!

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  2. These photos of the Mississippi remind me of the Grand Rivers area of Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley. A world of water-

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  3. oh, i hate it when i get busted for speeding!!! but i try to space them out over several years as well. :)

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  4. Indeed I did not know about Pike's Peak in Iowa! It is really a lovely site and it seems a good time was had by all.

    So sorry about the speeding ticket. Sometimes I think they drop the speed limit to 55 just to get revenue.

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  5. Sorry to hear of the speeding ticket. I've been up the Colorado version of Pikes Peak, but not this one. Interesting information!

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  6. I have biked this and the CO Pikes Peak.It is the toughest trail in IA.I really enjoy this view each time visiting and enjoy birding on the trails.

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  7. I thought you were talking about Pikes Peak Co, but after I saw the view, i knew it was somewhere else. Interesting that there are two places with the same name.

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  8. Certainly doesn't look like your typical place in Iowa. Couldn't talk the trooper out of the ticket..perhaps you should have had all the women cry:)

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  9. This looks like a fun trip. I might have to go there sometime -- but then, I'd have to actually leave the farm, right? :)

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  10. Hi troutbirder, thanks for your tip!! It's been a Very Long Time since I've been to Iowa's Pikes Peak. And probably longer since I've been to Colorado's! :-)

    It's a beautiful view. I especially liked the tip about the restaurant. I'll tuck that away in the memory bank (or perhaps I'd better write it down!) ;-)

    Btw: I've personally never experienced seeing the fellows in your last "photo!" ha.

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  11. sorry to hear about your ticket, but... you were kinda speeding! haha

    could be me!

    And i was wondering since i have no idea about where you live or where you where, is there always so much water???

    Hope you have a great weekend
    Leontien

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  12. Old Zeb got around--you had me going there. Strangely enough, MT Highway Patrol seems very tolerant about speeding in the mountainous west--but every time I edge over 80 (75 limit) on the flat prairie around Billings it seems I get the obligatory $20 ticket.

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  13. Fun to recall outings with good friends! :)

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