Red Wing, MN

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Today my mom and I went on a road trip!

I told my mom we should do a girls-day-out while I was home! I let her pick what she wanted to do. She said she had never spent time in Red Wing, MN, so we took a little road trip to see the sights there today.

We started out by walking around downtown, going into the shops, and just perusing.


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Of course we had to make a stop at the Uffda Shop! (I am 25% Norwegian.)


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Some of the t-shirts cracked me up.


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Red Wing is known for their Red Wing Shoes and work boots.


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In the store downtown, there was a small historical museum that showcased how the boots are put together and how they have changed over time.

There was even a pair of work boots made specifically for Alaskans working in the harsh conditions of the oil fields.


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Where can the largest boot be found? Why in Red Wing, MN, of course!!


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Size: 638-1/2


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After a couple hours of “shopping” (we didn’t actually buy anything), it was time to get some food.

I spotted a cafe while driving around and thought it would be a good place to eat because

a.) there was outdoor seating, and I have to take as many opportunities to eat outside now because I never do in Alaska, and

b.) there were a lot of people eating there. Always a good sign!


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A walk up to the cafe’s outdoor seating on the rooftop at The Veranda!


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We had beautiful views from the rooftop!


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My lunch date.


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I enjoyed a very delicious salad!

Bib Salad

Marcona almonds, aged goat cheese, port poached cherries, pickled red onions, celery seed vinaigrette


It was very light, flavorful, and completely hit the spot!


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We had to eat pretty quickly because we wanted to catch the 1:00 p.m. Rusty’s River Rides boat tour down the Mississippi on the Sigh-Sea-Er II!


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The boat tour lasted 90 minutes and was very informative! We saw several sight along the way including bald eagles.


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Once again, beautiful views on a picture-perfect summer day!

Summer days in Minnesota are the best! That’s why people endure the long, hard winters.


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Barges going up the Mississippi River to the Twin Cities.

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The boat that was pushing the barges.

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What a fun and informative boat ride!

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Naturally it was time for ice cream afterwards at the Red Wing Confectionery!


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My mom had the blueberry waffle cone flavor! She said it was really good!

blueberry ice cream with a blueberry swirl and chocolate cone pieces

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I had the coconut joy flavor, which was amazing! One of my favorite flavors in a long time!

coconut ice cream with chocolate coconut and roasted almonds

I love hand-dipped ice cream!

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After a little more browsing, we drove through Lake City, MN and Wabasha, MN, which were also super cute towns along the Mississippi River.

Both my mom and I had a great day! I love exploring new places!

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Question

What was the last city you explored?

What was the last road trip you took?

Hi, I'm Michelle

I love running around the lakes of Minnesota, running after my two boys, and racing anything from the 5K to the marathon. I have been blogging here since 2010 when I ran my first marathon. I finally secured my sub-3 hour marathon after trying for 8 years.

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9 Comments

  1. 7.7.11
    Lisa @ Dishes of Mrs. Fish said:

    Looks like a great trip with your mom! The last city/area my husband and I explored was Washington DC last month! 🙂

  2. 7.7.11
    Lisa @ Dishes of Mrs. Fish said:

    Looks like a great trip with your mom! The last city/area my husband and I explored was Washington DC last month! 🙂

  3. 7.7.11
    the dawn said:

    ooooo, i love having girl dates with my mom!!! looks like you guys had a fabulous day. the mr. and i just explored another small town near ours this weekend. we were in search of a vegan restaurant…but it ended up only serving food from 11-3, so we missed out. so, we explored and found a yummy asian place instead.

  4. 7.7.11
    Rosie said:

    I have that same “fear the ear” shirt! Haha! I’ve driven through Red Wing a bunch of times, it looks like such a cute town. The boat tour looks super fun, too.

    Tim and I took a road trip to St. Louis over Memorial weekend – I had never been there before and wanted to check it out. We had a great time!

    • 7.7.11
      Michelle said:

      Actually the t-shirt is my sister’s. I like to borrow her clothes when I’m home. 😉

      • 7.8.11
        Rosie said:

        That is funny!! My mom got it for me after we graduated so it makes sense that your sister would have one.

  5. 7.7.11
    Michaela said:

    I was in England last month and we got to explore London and also a little town up the river called Henley-on-Thames. It was pretty much filled with bars, pubs, restaurants and expensive shopping, with a lot of boathouses and boat racing out on the river. Very cute.

  6. 7.7.11
    Chelsea said:

    Looks like you and your Mom had a great time! The last road trip I took was this past weekend over the fourth to North Platte, which is about four hours away from us. The last “real” vacation I took was to San Fran last summer, but I leave in just four days for Costa Rica!!

  7. 7.7.11
    Yolanda said:

    We leave in the morning but have explored Breckenridge, CO like we never have before, it has been an amazing and awesome trip!

    And this is a road trip as well, because it is 7 hours from home.

    My hubs enjoyed looking at the Red Wing pictures that you posted.