Gooseberry Falls State Park and Split Rock Lighthouse State Park on Lake Superior were fun stops on our recent Northern Minnesota vacation trip.

My mother had the reputation of making the best butter. Settlers in those days had a couple cows and they'd make butter. If they didn't have a cream separator, they'd skim it off the milk. They'd make their butter.

We arrive at the village of Pocpa around 1 p.m. Rodrigo tells us to wait by our gear and wanders off into the village. Downstream from where we stand several ladies are washing laundry in the river. He returns after a while and tells us a truck will take us further up the road to where we can camp for the night. He says someone will show up with mules the next morning.

We climb into the back of a truck, along with a few other local people and their children. Kjirsten had thought they were taking us just a short distance up the newly constructed road. This short distance continued to grow and after about a 45-minute, slow ride we realize we have just gained another 10 miles and about another 3,000 feet of elevation we will not have to hike and climb. Our initial disappointment of not having donkeys for day one turned into a much more pleasant surprise gift of time and energy.

Photo © Sheldon Swenson
Kjirsten riding in the box of a truck from Pocpa to Matacancha.

Mitzi's Journal

In Pocpa, we pay a local woman for camping and eat leftover banana pancakes from the Café Andino in Huaraz for lunch.

"Countryside gave way to estates and farms, to cottages and roadside homes, and to Tyringham, Massachusetts. Downtown. The next water and wooded area lay five miles ahead.

"'Any rooms or places to camp nearby?' I asked the postmistress, who was also keeper of the general store.

"'None that I know of,' she said.

"'I'd hoped to find something so we wouldn't have to walk after dark to get out of town.'

"'People have camped across the way a time or two.'

"'Thank you,' I said.

"We pitched our tent under an immense weeping willow just off the library lawn. Cars passed regularly on the town's main road fifty feet away. Occasional pedestrians stopped, glanced our way, and walked on. After dark, a street light shone in our front door. Then rain came, dripping in great, thumping drops from branches overhead. We passed the night undisturbed.

"'The dog takes the cat, the dog takes the cat, hi ho the derry oh ...'

"Kyra was singing The Farmer in the Dell. I wouldn't have thought it unusual, but it was six-thirty in the morning.

"'Are you okay, Kyra?' I asked.

"'The cat takes the mouse, the cat takes the mouse ...'

"'Amazing.'

"'Let's go before the library opens,' Jerri advised.

"'The mouse takes the cheese ...'

"'By all means,' I replied; 'an Early Start!'

"We were on our way at 6:45." --from Walking North, by Mic Lowther.

Photo © Jerrianne Lowther
Tenting in Tyringham, left; camping with a U-Haul van, right.

Miss Hetty's Mailbox:

Here is a picture of the boys, Aiden and Austin, taken yesterday. Austin will be three on Tuesday. We had a fun afternoon and evening with Anne, Julian and the boys. Austin's gifts largely had a fireman's theme to them. Today they are going to Disneyland.

Photo © Dan Mellon
Aiden & Austin Montford.

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Thank you so much for Sully's birthday e-card. He loved it!

Thank you for the e-card. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Keep Us Posted!

Please drop Miss Hetty a line and tell us who, and what, we've missed. And how about a report (photos welcome) of YOUR special celebration?

'Many Thankse
Everyone!

Miss Hetty

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I just had a friend call wondering why her e-mails to me were coming back. Yesterday Russ' cousin sent me some old photographs she had scanned, which needed to be shrunk ... they took a zillion "bytes" or whatever ... plugged up my mailbox, I guess. So I went to The Bulletin Archive ... and yes, there is one for this week ... my mistake. Mailbox too full ... sorry! I did miss The Bulletin today, though! Thanks again for all the work you do!

We had been to the iron mines, and it is so vast. Seems like such a lot of land used up, but likely it produced necessary iron ore. Roy was fascinated by that huge truck, too, so we bought a toy one in the gift shop there. However, it is pretty big to keep anywhere but the storage closet. I thought he had to have it at the time, though.

I had to smile to myself, wondering which relation to the Morgans that was riding the wake at the family retreat. I looked at the pictures on Ryan's web site at the XL size -- 72 of them. It told the story in pictures of a wonderful time for a wonderful family.

Thanks, Cap'n Jack, for the Update on Virginia again. It's a good thing she is so patient, as well as yourself, as this is getting to be a long ordeal. Things that seemed so important, like lawn and flowers and garden, are having to take second place now.

The Update of Don and Dorothy's company was bringing us up to date on the Johnsons. We had been wondering about them, and the next work project. It sounds like it will be the opposite end of the States. All new experiences, and new friends, but you will meet some old friends mingled in there, I'm sure.

It was very special to see the family table at Perkins, and to see the glowing faces of all. We hope to meet Don and Patty soon; although they are not too far away from us, it still is not likely we will cross paths.

Now, that was a rare treat! To see the picture of Kyra as of now. We have been following her "10-year-old" pictures, so no wonder we were pretty thrilled to finally see a recent one. The scones were supposed to be the focus of the picture, but they weren't.

I was wondering how those grandkitties could ever behave so well as to trust them home alone? Were they confined to an area? Oh, we have heard of beautiful, magnificent Banff National Park in Canada all our lives, but never have gotten near there. Mitzi would be a good one to discuss hiking with!

Como Zoo was our entertainment most of the time when we had friends visiting the cities in our young years. So, it was fun to read that it is still a main attraction.

Mimi's cyber-kitchen was so detailed that I got lost in thought and imagination scanning it. I looked up a couple recipes, but thought I had better finish my LTTE first and then go back and research it. I need time for a nap, too, this Sunday afternoon before we leave.

I wouldn't have thought Bruce McCorkell could write such a detailed diary of the "Old Days," but it seems people were all doing the same things in that day, without electricity and modern equipment. Hard, long, toiling hours in the sun and in the barn.

The Travelogue has some excellent photo work. The depth of the scenery as well as the close up characters was so clear and sharp. I hope they don't lose that camera -- it is remarkable. Like in the Appalachian Trek, they look so groomed and rested. They just couldn't be, but it looks that way on the picture. I see where they were getting a rest here and there, though. Would have to be very weary to sleep on those slabs of rock. Good thing they have a doctor and a nearly doctor with them.

It often comes to mind how proud and interested Donald B. Johnson would have been to observe his children being so adventurous. I have a feeling Twila was just as happy to be home by the stove and oven.

A Long Time Ago keeps getting more and more understandable with the pictures included, as they are. I had read about this Mrs. Fischer in the book Walking North, but never pictured her to look like this picture. My vision of Rainer Ober was a tall, slim, sort of withdrawn, scruffy-looking, middle-aged person. So, I was surprised to see that he was that young, clean-cut person on the picture! Also, packing food into the backpacks at the post office -- I had visualized Mic was doing it at the counter inside the post office, but here it is outside. A picture is worth a thousand words.

To my shock and surprise, there was a picture of all THREE of the Appalachian Trek celebrities. Finally, a picture of Jerrianne, too. She looks so young on that picture. What stamina, and what determination to ever complete that trek.

Wasn't that just the cutest picture of Hunter and his horse? I loved the caption, SONS up ... rise and shine. For sure, when the son gets up, the day is definitely started so you might as well rise and shine, too. That picture had better be put in Hunter's keepsakes.

In my Dear Miss Hetty letter, I had mentioned our computer problems. Well, we are still having them. We are on our second new computer now, which we are hoping will work like we want it to for e-mail and card programs. It is not trouble free yet, but Rich (my brother) has spent many of his valuable hours trying to solve it for us. Having had a crash actually two times, I am paranoid about hitting any keys.

But I see it has cooperated in the writing of this LTTE, which I hope can be another THANKS to our Editor and Photo Editor for one more grand keepsake, Bulletin #320.

Betty Droel and Roy