Tag Archives: Red Wing

I Love Farmer’s Markets
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I Love Farmer’s Markets


Who doesn’t enjoy a farmer’s market?  I simply cannot image anyone that would not.  The hustle and bustle of it all make the market a great place to spend some time.  The wonderful smells of food and flowers, the diverse individuals milling about and the sights and sounds of consuming local wares all contribute to the experience. The Saturday before Mother’s Day, Cyn and I made our way to the St. Paul Farmer’s Market.  We had been earlier in the season, but things were setup in an alley and there were not many vendors present.  This was our first trip of many I imagine.  Right now the market is void of fresh produce, but there is so much more to a farmer’s market than produce.  There were many things available:  lots of flowers, plants, meats, cheeses, sauces and breads to hold my attention for a while. At one point during our walk around the market it began to snow!  It was short-lived and everyone had a good laugh.  Thankfully, that has been the last sighing of snow in our area. I wish we lived closer to St. Paul as I could go every weekend; it is my Saturday morning cartoon equivalent.  We are lucky to have a nice farmer’s market in Red Wing as well.   I foresee a trip there this Saturday in search of The Grateful Bread – I’ve missed it over the Winter season.

In 1853 St. Paul was indeed a frontier town. Dirt streets, log cabins and steamboats were the order of the day. As early as 1852 the Minnesota Pioneer newspaper called for an organizational Farmers’ Market. A Market House, a two-story brick building, was constructed at Seventh and Wabasha streets. It was St. Paul’s first public market. While fresh produce was only available during the season, dairy products, flour, cakes and candies could be purchased year-round. For over 150 years The St. Paul Farmers’ Market has been proud to enjoy the support of the community.  That tradition of support continues today.  For more information regarding the farmer’s market, please visit http://www.stpaulfarmersmarket.com/

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The American Queen 3


Up and at ‘em early to shoot the queen on its way to Red Wing.  That was the plan anyway.  I thought it would be interesting to see her in low light coming down river a lit up.  I didn’t have a clue how I would approach shooting that, but I just wanted to give it a whirl.  As we drove across the bridge to Wisconsin it became evident that our plans needed to change.  Instead of arriving at 8 a.m. this morning, it apparently arrived at 10:30 p.m. last night.  Bugger.  What are you gonna do?  Oh yes, I complained about it considerably before shutting up.  We had a nice sunrise shoot around our beautiful town’s waterfront.

Upcoming Red Wing riverboat schedule:

American Queen
October 18—Dock at 10AM, Depart at 5PM
October 21—Dock at 8AM, Depart at 5 PM  <- apparently it docked on 10/20 around 10:30 p.m.
October 23—Dock at 10AM, Depart at 5PM
November 4—Dock at 8AM, Depart at TBD
November 6—Dock at 10AM, Depart at 5PM

Queen of the Mississippi
October 26, Dock at 2AM, Depart at Noon
October 27, Dock at 7PM, Stay Overnight
October 28—Depart at Noon
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!@#$ not responsible for the accuracy of this schedule as it is subject to change and is likely not even remotely close to being accurate !@#$
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The American Queen 2


The American Queen was back in town again yesterday.  I grabbed a few more shots as she made her way up-river to St. Paul.

Upcoming Red Wing riverboat schedule:

American Queen
October 18—Dock at 10AM, Depart at 5PM
October 21—Dock at 8AM, Depart at 5 PM
October 23—Dock at 10AM, Depart at 5PM
November 4—Dock at 8AM, Depart at TBD
November 6—Dock at 10AM, Depart at 5PM

Queen of the Mississippi
October 26, Dock at 2AM, Depart at Noon
October 27, Dock at 7PM, Stay Overnight
October 28—Depart at Noon
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The American Queen


American Queen

There was another reason for going to the farmer’s market the other weekend.  The American Queen is said to be the largest river steamboat ever built and it was docked at Levee Park.  It is always fun to see these riverboats come to town.  These boats usually draw a pretty good crowd.  That can make it a bit challenging to shoot with people everywhere.  They are grand floating structures to say the least.  I have only had the pleasure of being one of  these paddle boats once - The Mississippi Queen; that was back in the last 1990′s.

Cyndie & Linnae on the RipRap

Cyndie and I shot the queen from Levee Park, across the river, from the Eisenhower Bridge and also just down stream [and wind] of the waste water treatment plant.  That is where the last seven shots where from as it backed its way under the bridge and then swung around to head downstream.  The smoke stacks where still down at this point and only one was completely up as it passed by Colvill Park*.

We should have just called it a day from there, but we didn’t.  I really wanted a photo of the American Queen on the river and away from the levee with both smoke stacks up.  Not sure why, I just did.  We headed down river to a favorite location in Old Frontenac to wait for her to paddle by.

My Double Knee

Old Frontenac has a nice public boat landing to park at and you can walk along the beach for a pretty good stretch.  This stretch of beach leads out to a point; that’s where we were going to wait.  At this point, there is a pretty good size rock pile.  Nothing insurmountable; not even close to what we walked down at the waste water treatment plant (pictured above; our photo friend Linnae joined us).  The rocks weren’t as big either, but my oh my did they leave a mark.  I am not even completely sure how it happened, but I took a bit of a spill.  I had a camera in each hand at the time of the tumble.  There were no hands breaking my fall.  Cameras came through mostly unscathed and one lens hood was broken.  It probably would have been two lens hoods, but I already broke the other one earlier in the day :-/  Bad day for lens hoods.

My Double Knee
Cyndie & Linnae

Upcoming Red Wing riverboat schedule:

American Queen
October 18—Dock at 10AM, Depart at 5PM
October 21—Dock at 8AM, Depart at 5 PM
October 23—Dock at 10AM, Depart at 5PM
November 4—Dock at 8AM, Depart at TBD
November 6—Dock at 10AM, Depart at 5PM

Queen of the Mississippi
October 26, Dock at 2AM, Depart at Noon
October 27, Dock at 7PM, Stay Overnight
October 28—Depart at Noon
aa
*Colvill Park in Red Wing, Minnesota is named for Colvill, and he is represented by a statue in the Minnesota State Capitol. In addition, a section of Minnesota State Highway 19 from Gaylord to Red Wing is named in his honor.
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Foggy Rainy Day


It was a misty and foggy day in Red Wing.  A perfect day to not rush anything; just sip coffee, mill around town a bit and enjoy the morning.  No Saturday a.m. is complete without stopping by the local farmer’s market.  There are still plenty of fresh vegetables there, but a loaf of tasty something-or-other was in order from The Grateful Bread.

The Fall Festival of Art is this weekend (Sat & Sun) and Red Wing was buzzing right away this a.m. with artist setting up their booths and displaying their wares.  The on and off sprinkles did not make for optimal browsing weather – tomorrow should be nicer.

Red Wing Shoe Company is having their 1st annual tent sale.  Awesome deals to be had there.  I added two pair of boots to my collection, but no luck on cold weather boots for Cyndie :-(  Fall is in full-gear and Winter will be here soon :-/

Oops

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After we departed the tent sale we witnessed a boat tangling with some power lines while being transported through town.   Traffic was hosed up for a while – it was already slow due to the art festival.  When the boat hit the wires, they popped from the poles and building along a two block stretch.  That didn’t look like any fun.

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Much to do.  Falling behind on photo processing.  Two shoots from last weekend to do yet.  Busy busy busy as usual.  Since we were already out and about we decided to shoot some more.  The foggy, misty day served up a variety of opportunities.  Life is good.  Happy weekend.

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Holiday Stroll Parade – Red Wing, MN


Each year, the day after Thanksgiving, thousands of people stroll the streets of downtown Red Wing to experience a true, old-fashioned Christmas.  - The 10th Annual Downtown Red Wing Holiday Stroll

It was a great evening for the 10th Annual Down Town Red Wing Holiday Stroll parade.  The mild weather no doubt contributed to spectacular turnout.  I was perched on the window sill on the second floor above Hanisch Bakery & Coffee Shop; an excellent vantage point as the parade turned the corner of Bush and W 3rd Street.