Starting in Winona MN we traveled south on US-61 with the sunlight sparkling on the waters of the Mississippi River to our left and clouds shrouding the tops of some of the bluffs on our right. We crossed the mighty river at LaCrosse. It actually required three bridges, over Blue Lake, over a side channel, then over the main channel.

Once we got through the town of LaCrosse, we were in the rolling agricultural land in Wisconsin. Then instead of merely crossing into Illinois, our route took us over the Mississippi into Dubuque IA then back across the Mississippi into Illinois (Hello, Iowa, goodbye, Iowa! )

and shortly then into Galena where we were guided through the home of Ulysses and Julia Grant by a delightful and well informed guide, Georgie.

It gave us a little more insight into the man who grew up in Georgetown OH, graduated from West Point, served in the Mexican War, failed at business, led the Union Army to victory, and led the nation as president. And we learned more about Julia Dent Grant and their children. Now we’re settled in at Vel Terra Ranch, a tiny, delightful, independent campground where the owner truly makes us feel like guests!

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Winter Magic in Medina

Winter Magic in Medina

By deliberate choice we were in Medina for all the winter holiday festivities from Candlelight Walk in the days before Thanksgiving through A Christmas Carol and A Celtic Christmas as well as an Alex Bevan Concert and a historic house tour all the way through Medina’s 31st Ice Festival but perhaps the highlight was the town hosting hundreds of folks whose homes and lives were devasted by Hurricane Helene at the A Promise of Christmas Event the middle of January. It’s an honor to be a part of this amazing community!

Savoy at Sea 2025

Savoy at Sea 2025

The warmth we anticipated when we headed to the Caribbean in mid-January didn’t really materialize but the fun we had with our dancing friends and the great crew of the Margaritaville at Sea Islander more than made up for the not so favorable weather.