A River Runs Through It

Midmorning was nice and sunshiny. I decided to check out Lilydale Tennis Club, to see what is happening to the place I played indoor tennis for 10 or 15 years. It was purchased for about $5 million a while ago to be razed and the land used for upscale condos overlooking the Mississippi. The buyer got caught in the real estate bubble and the property went back to the bank about a year ago. The building still stands and sits vacant today. There was no sign of any activity where 3 years ago, a thriving tennis community lived. So it goes.

So I walked down along the Mississippi in Lilydale Harriet Park, below the bluff. It's pretty wild territory for an urban setting. There were deer tracks and sign of geese and ducks and beaver. While I was walking in the wooded area along the river, one of the tourist riverboats was going down river towards the port of St Paul. The Smith Avenue Bridge is in the background. A good blogable photo, thought I. I walked a long way along the river on a dirt path in the woods until I reached the railroad bridge which used to cross the river into St. Paul. It's a swing out sort of structure that looks to be locked in the open position.


Then I had a look at Pickerel Lake across the road. I met some fishermen coming off the lake on the way to their car and they reported bad fishing luck today, but said that they had caught some large Northerns there in the past.

And this photo is here to prove that there are beavers in the area, ambitious beavers who, in this case, bit off more than they could gnaw. The tree is still alive and standing, but somewhat weakened by the beaver's effort.


Another beautiful day in east central Minnesota.