The North woods area of Minnesota extends across a very large area of the state, and recently we stayed at a small “mom and pop” resort near the small town of Dorset- this town is famous for “electing a mayor” once a year (it’s unincorporated with no city government) during its street festival. The last mayor was a 4 year old boy, and this year his brother won in the polling (it costs a dollar to register). A famous Mexican restaurant had burned down here within the last year here in this community with some strong retail directed at tourists, but the town was packed on this no too hot sunny day. State Highway 226 is actually closed to traffic during the summer gathering, with horse mounted police diverting cars and motorcycles to detours on the gravel roads that make up the town’s “streets”.

 
At the 5 cabin resort, it’s quiet. There is not a lot of development on the lake, and jet skis are prohibited. The boating is limited by the size of the lake, although a floatplane landed a few times, attesting to the relative remoteness of the place- the last 2 miles of roads to the entrance are gravel. Our remodeled cabin was up a hill with excellent views of the water, it was perfect for reading, thinking, listening to some music, or just contemplating life. The cool nights contributed to the experience, generating some great conversation and storytelling as well around the fire.

 
The two and half hour drive home furthered this reflection riding through the tall pines, aspens, and birch along the rolling hills. Eventually, the forest gives way to a much different topography. As now it’s nothing but faraway visible horizons in all directions ahead, I sort of unexpectedly shift to think about the huge Lake Agassiz glacier that was here tens of thousands of years ago, larger than the Great Lakes combined. Extending from its nether Artic reaches down across Manitoba, Ontario, the eastern Dakotas, and Minnesota, it crushed down the area that is now the Red River Valley of the North. Along its periphery, low level rolling hills were formed, some rocky, part of the transition from forest cover. Shaped by changing climate, it formed the many lakes and rivers, including the Mississippi, whose headwaters aren’t far from here. Recently, I saw many fossils from this area in a special exhibit at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum in Washington, D.C. that caused me to think back on this drive and my other explorations in our area.

 
Cruising across the flatness of the wide valley toward the city, we get off of the 4 lane to take the old highway across the southern and eastern portion of East Grand Forks, crossing some of the last remnants of the glacial era, the Red Lake and Red Rivers, separated by a few hundred yards and to our home a few blocks to the west in North Dakota, connecting the collective memory of the prehistoric past to my recent experiences.

 
And think about running for mayor of Dorset next year.