Minnesota....south dakota

Left Madison later than I wanted to, around 3.

Saw this on the way out of town....

I'll do my best.


Then I headed off across the west of Wisconsin towards  minnesota.

Crossed the Mississippi River, the traditional dividing line between what is west and east in the US for more than a hundred years.  I've seen it down south by New Orleans, the area of the country that it is traditionally associated with, but never so far up north.  It's amazing to think of all of the things it flows through before it gets to the gulf - and what I would see if I just got on a raft stayed there for a month.

Alex, this one's for you:

And Laura, for you:

One would think that with teams like the Wild and the Timberwolves, minnesota would be hilly, forested and remote, perhaps with lots of lakes.

Not southern minnesota.

It mostly just looks like this:

Flat, with not many people and with Lots of corn.
Which isn't all that surprising when you think about it.
After all, the state to the south is Iowa.

One other thing: I have never in my life seen so many god-damned wind turbines as I saw driving across southern minnesota:

There must have been at the very least 500.  And then it got dark, so I don't know what I missed.

Spectacular clouds that night:

After it got dark, I had to stop for gas.  I got off the highway and pulled into this little station in the middle of nowhere and filled up.  While I was inside paying and using the bathroom I saw this:

Those of you whom I have talked to about my new work and who have seen some of it will know why I really love this image.

Finally stopped in Sioux Falls, South Dakota for the night.  There were some kids younger than me having a wedding at the Holiday Inn Express there and the groom was very concerned that I enjoy Sioux Falls while I was there.  Then he seemed more interested in taking his bride up to their room for the night.  He seemed to be in surprisingly ok shape when I saw him the next morning.

Woke up in madison... and met Oliver.

So after sleeping a lot on a nice couch...

I met Oliver, Lisa and Dylan's son....

Hung out with Kalijah for a bit:

Then Dylan and I decided to go find a photo store and get some food.  I bought all of the 120 color film in the store (Albeit he only had five rolls) and hung around in downtown Madison for a bit.

It seems like a nice city, not big enough to have crazy traffic or have anything really fucked up happen, but also not so small that you would have to  leave every time you wanted to go have fun or buy something slightly obscure.  (for example, 120 film)

Like Dylan says, "It's like Davis but with something to do".

Also, the architects that designed this courthouse were watching way too much Back to the Future II.

I wish Biff would come crash into it.

After that, Dylan and I said our goodbye and I got back on the road.

And I arrive in Madison!

Ok, so after I finished freaking out about the fireworks place and staying until they closed, I drove on around the bottom of Lake Michigan.

Gary, Indiana, the town right at the tip of the lake that was founded by US steel as a company town, was lit up with a million green and orange metal vapour lamps and the huge flare of blue flame from the main steel mill in town was a sight to behold.  It just reminded me of the tremendous amount of energy an physical force necessary to make every bit of the most important and widely used metal on earth.

And it smelled real funky.

After that, I hit Chicago:

I apologize for the shots of downtown being kind of lame, but I was trying to drive and shoot at the same time.  Not the smartest thing.

In actuality, Chicago is really impressive.  The density and size of the downtown core is astounding, especially the height of some of the buildings.  It must be second only to new york for this in North America.

After Chicago, I drove about up to Madison, Wisconsin, to stay with my friend Dylan who I haven't seen in almost 2 years.  After I got there, we went out to a bar and played a game of pool, and I had my first pint of PBR in months.  Hit the spot.  

Then deep couch sleep.

On the road, cutting off the hand of the lower peninsula of Michigan and then Indiana....what's this? The world's largest....

After Detroit, I headed west across the bottom of Michigan, towards Chicago.  On the way, one passes through indiana for a few miles.  While going through, I just happened to spot this....

What's this you say?  Oh yeah, the WORLD'S LARGEST FIREWORKS STORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'll let the pictures do the talking.

Needless to say, I indulged:

They have shopping carts.  Just like a grocery store.

Finally Saw Detroit!

So, I've always wanted to see and visit Detroit.  Not just to photograph some of the spectacular ruins there, but also just to feel a city that is the most visible and glaring representation of the decline of American industry.

So I finally saw it on friday morning.  Didn't have much time to stop, but I did get to see the massive River Rouge Ford plant and the abandoned Michigan Central terminal from the ambassador bridge and the customs gate.

Wish I could have taken more images from the bridge.  The view was incredible.  I'll go back soon

Morning in Guelph!

So, after my night in Guelph, Ontario, I woke up and went to breakfast.  I noticed there was a Cora's across the street and went in, expecting a nice, scrumptious omelette.

Instead, this is what I got:

As far as I remember, an omelette is supposed to have the ingredients folded inside, especially the cheese.  At least it tasted ok.  Better than some of the other stuff I will eat on this trip.

So then, fashionably late at 11 am, I got on the road headed for Windsor and then Detroit!

(also bought a toothbrush)

Day 1 1/2: Leaving Guelph

Finally got on the road at around 10 last night.  Drove until 3, stopped in Guelph to find a motel.  About to leave my room with a noisy air conditioner to get some breakfast.

Hope to make Madison tonight.