Road trip up north

Road trip up north

By Allan Olson

It was another road trip this weekend; this time up north to Lake of the Woods to attend the confirmation of one my many awesome nieces. She sent the invitation to us last week, and after some discussion, we decided that we should attend this special event for her.

We were awakened at 6:15 a.m. on Sunday (15 minutes prior to my alarm going off) by Alivia, with this announcement: “Daddy, it snowed!” Well, usually just a dusting of snow will get the kids excited, so I didn’t think anything of it. I went downstairs to start waking up the other children. When I glanced out the window, it certainly appeared to be more than just a little snow. Although it was still dark outside, I was going to give it the benefit of the doubt, at least until I opened a door to peer out. After I got sleepy bones Marcus out of bed, I did open the door and was very surprised – I was actually going to have to get the shovel out of the garage so the kids and mom could wear shoes to the van. We had at least four fluffy inches of the white stuff!

We left the yard a few minutes ahead of schedule, just over an hour after we were wakened. The trip north was uneventful, aside from the occasional deer sighting and an aggravating daughter who, for some reason, was unhappy that morning and decided to take it out on her twin brother seated next to her. We made it to our destination and took our annual family photo at the rapids, and after a short before-church visit, it was time to go in.

After church, we gathered back at my in-laws’ for a glorious feast fit for a king and prepared with much more love than a servant’s hands could ever provide. The menu was excellent and everyone’s plate was heaping, and it should have been enough to stuff us all – but it wasn’t. We all had to find room for one more course – dessert. A cheesecake pumpkin pie with homemade whipped topping, and/or chocolate cake and chocolate frosting. Oh, what a tough decision! I took the easy way out and had both. I indulged in a nice-sized piece of pie and an ample serving of whipped topping, and a smaller piece of cake, and “suffered” through every delicious bite. The real suffering came later; I was so full I could hardly move. But it was worth it, every last scrumptious bite. (Get ready folks, Thanksgiving’s not far off.)

Throughout the afternoon we hardly saw the kids, except for the youngest nephews and the girls, who got too cold playing outside. The boys didn’t even come in for dessert (although, to tell the truth, I’m not sure that anyone let them in on it). The afternoon was filled with laughter as we visited with relatives who had made the trip on a cool October morning. The whole afternoon went by way too fast, and before we knew it, it was time to go.

While we didn’t get any geocache seeking done this weekend, we did hide our second cache not too far from where my wife grew up, on the banks of the Rapid River near a canoe access. The name of this geocache is “Not So Rapidly Paddling.” Perhaps by the time this column hits the press, the cache will be approved and already found by a local geocacher.

The ride home was extremely quiet (especially compared to the morning trek). Abigail was passed out, possibly before we even hit the highway, and slept all the way to Blackduck. And thankfully, all four tires remained inflated, and there were no deer on a collision course with our van.

Hopefully, next weekend I’ll be able to catch up on some Zs in my deer stand while waiting for that 30-point buck to align itself with the crosshairs in my scope.

If you’re heading out in the woods to hunt this weekend, please remember this simple rule: “Be sure of your target – and beyond.” Please watch out for the buses on the roads, as they are carrying our children. Thanks for reading, and have a great and safe week.