Quick Trip with the Parents to Pembina Gorge

When my dad told me he'd like to see Pembina Gorge sometime, I told him I had never heard of it. (I don't feel bad as I know many other North Dakotans who hadn't heard of it either!) In order to help make his dream a reality, I tried to schedule a weekend that my caregivers could come here to look after Faith. We settled on the first weekend in October. My mom decided to come as well. She said it would be the only nonmedical trip the three of us had taken together! We all hoped the fall foliage would be out in full force that weekend! 

In preparing to go, I had typed up 3 pages of instructions for Faith's caregivers, one of whom was a loyal respite care provider who has been with us for over 3 years and also my sister. Both of them are very experienced and resourceful, but I printed out the instructions, nonetheless. Faith has been trying a new kind of food so that was a bit of an adjustment for them. 

After dropping Faith off at her day program in the middle of a wind advisory, I met my parents in the parking lot, and we set off for our little trip. 

The first stop was Jamestown, where we felt like we had entered the Twighlight Zone. Mom and Dad's phones were acting up, plus I had never experienced placing my order on the big screen inside a McD's before, so that was new. We noticed a lot of the elderly people needed help with the digital menu, but it was a breeze for the youngsters. 

My Dad and I at McD's in Jamestown aka the Twilight Zone!

None of us had really ever been to the little towns in the Northeast part of the state before, so it was fun to see some of the towns, realizing that the Watford City Wolves had played many of their teams in football and basketball. I got a kick out of Hoople - Tater Town, USA! 

In Larimore, we saw some huge, very bizarre buildings with no signs or windows, just one large overhead door and an American flag out front. Dad figured they were storage shops for potato equipment. (If anyone knows, please let us know!)  

Then as we attempted to find a gas station in Finley, I realized I had missed a call from my sister. I quickly called her back and she said the key fob I had given her for the van was not working. It seemed the batteries had died. She needed to go to Mandan to pick Faith up from her day program. She almost panicked but then realized the fob had to have a key in it somewhere, which she managed to find, and all was well. She just wouldn't be able to use the fob to open the doors or let down the ramp. Thankfully, she could still use the buttons inside the van for all that. 

After finding a gas station, we headed to Cavalier where we would be staying the night. On our way to the hotel, I spotted what looked like Jason from Halloween and ET riding a bicycle in front of a haybale. Rather odd, I thought. But as we found our way to the only open restaurant in town, we saw many more decorated hay bales. Maybe it was some sort of fall contest or something for homecoming? 

Strange sighting near our motel in Cavalier. 

After a great meal in a wonderful small-town restaurant called Thompson's Cafe, we headed back to our motel. I did a video chat with Faith, who was doing great with Auntie Dawn. They even went to the library together (which is something Faith and I normally do every Friday). I was super proud of her for being willing to change up her routine and having Dawn take her to the library instead of me. Now all Dawn had to do was get through the entire page of Faith's good night routine! As for me, I was super excited to be able to go to bed at 10:30! 

The next morning, Dad and I had the continental breakfast of cereal, toast, and coffee. When we went to get Mom (who doesn't eat breakfast) she informed us of the heartbreaking news that Israel was under attack. It was unbelievable, however the first words out of my mouth were, "The Rapture is going to happen soon!" As awful as the situation is, God's plan will come to fruition for Israel and all of humanity! 

It didn't talk long to reach the small but beautiful town of Walhalla, which happens to be the "Moose Capital of North Dakota." Without even knowing that, Dad was so sure we were going to see a moose! After not being really sure of where to go, we finally headed in the right direction toward Pembina Gorge. For miles, all we had seen was flat farmland, so it was a bit awe-inspiring to suddenly come upon the stark contrast of the Pembina Gorge. It was a beautiful sight, but we were a little disappointed to miss the peak fall foliage. A lot of the leaves had blown off as it had been very windy in the days leading up to our trip. We did notice, however, that North Dakota was unusually green for this time of year! 

Horseback riders on the flat land behind us. 

Hills and trees for miles in front of us.

Dad and I convinced Mom to take a road and drive down into the gorge. We found out there were several trails that people could walk on, as well as explore by horse or ATV. We also found out that it was much too cold for that. I think it was just over 40 degrees, cloudy, and windy when we were there. Thank goodness I had brought my winter coat! 

After exploring for a bit, we went on a little dirt road alongside some tall-standing corn where a white-tail deer came briefly out of hiding. It was the only wildlife we had seen up to that point. We eventually found our way to an incredible view called Tetrault Overlook. It was even more spectacular than the gorge, as we could also see the Pembina River. 

Heading down into Pembina Gorge. 

Dad looking for moose! 

Tetrault Overlook and the Pembina River

We then decided to backtrack a bit and head to Icelandic State Park. We didn't have a lot of time, so we didn't drive through the park, but we did check out the Pioneer Heritage Center, where we learned about the homesteading history of that part of the state. 

None of us had known that Pembina was home to the state's first General Land Office, which was established in 1870. We had also never heard of the Timber Culture Act, which encouraged homesteaders to plant trees. As you can imagine, it was hard to do in North Dakota! Despite their best efforts, North Dakota remains the state with the least number of tees! 

Icelandic State Park - we were very close to Canada!

Homesteaders Poem 

Finally, we ventured to Langdon, where we stopped at the Dairy Queen for lunch. As we headed south on Highway 1 toward the Interstate, our adventures included almost hitting a big deer that decided to sprint across the road to join his friends and sighting a strange pyramid-shaped building near Nekoma. Turns out the Great Pyramid was built in the 1960s to follow missiles from Russia and then shot down over Canada! Crazy, right? North Dakota certainly is full of history, mystery, and beauty! 

We ended up making it home just as the sun was starting to set. When we pulled into the parking lot, I saw Faith sitting in front of the window. When she saw me get out of the vehicle, she got so excited that I heard her from outside! It was a fun-filled tip and lots of memories were made but it was good to be home. Oh, and Dad never did see his moose!