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The two RV Gypsies parked
their motorhome at Bemidji KOA in Bemidji, Minnesota. As with most KOA's
there were dirt roads in the campground. The pool was very small, but
as usual, the two RV Gypsies did not use it. Washing vehicles not allowed.
The two RV Gypsies had full hook-ups with 50 amp. Wi-Fi was fast. The
park had bike rentals, a game room, mini golf and a very small heated
pool. They did have cable TV. Cabins also on site. Shaded sites were
nice. Lee took a few nice sunrise photos from within the park. Bemidji
KOA had a campground cafe that delivered food to sites, so the two RV
Gypsies ordered a pizza and wings. The wings were over-cooked and really
tiny. The pizza was not cooked; the crust was totally raw and mushy. |
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Bemidji is
a city in Beltrami County, Minnesota, United States. Bemidji is the
principal city in North Central Minnesota and the largest commercial
center between Grand Forks, North Dakota and Duluth, Minnesota. Bemidji
houses many Native American services, including the Indian Health Service.
The city is the central hub of the Red Lake Indian Reservation, White
Earth Indian Reservation and the Leech Lake Indian Reservation. Bemidji
lies on the southwest shore of Lake Bemidji, the northernmost lake feeding
the Mississippi River and, as such, is deemed "the first city on
the Mississippi." Bemidji is also dubbed the "curling capital,"
of the U.S.
Its name derives from the Ojibwe Bay-may-ji-ga-maug meaning
"lake that traverses another body of water". On occasion, in
Ojibwe, the city of Bemidji is called Wabigamaang ("at the
lake channel/narrows"), because part of the city is situated on the
Lakes Bemidji/Irving narrows, located on the south end of Lake Bemidji,
and extends to the eastern shore of Lake Irving. Some people also credit
the name to Chief Bemidji, an Ojibwe chief. |
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Paul Bunyan and Babe statues
Bemidji Minnesota -
Bemidji is the hometown of busting out 1940s actress Jane Russell,
but to most vacationers it's better known for its postcard-perfect Paul
Bunyan and Babe statues. Bemidji has possibly the oldest shrine to the
legendary lumberjack in this Bunyan-thick land.
Overly broad-shouldered and boxy, the 18-foot tall, 2.5-ton Paul was
built in January 1937 by sun-starved Bemidjians. Companion Babe the
Blue Ox, once on wheels, was trucked around to Minnesota carnivals for
a few years before joining Paul permanently in 1939. The spot where
they congregate on the shore of Lake Bemidji is said -- by the Chamber
of Commerce, anyway -- to be Paul Bunyan's birthplace. |
BELOW: Karen
- pray tell - what are you reaching for ???? |
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Below: The adjacent Chamber
of Commerce building features a collection of Bunyan stuff -- Paul's
titanic boxer shorts, flyswatter, toothbrush, dice, playing cards, belt,
chocolate bar, lighter -- pretty much any slightly over-scale piece
of anything. |
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Below: Lake Bemidji and
scenery behind the Chamber of Commerce |
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Karen Duquette found Paul Bunyan's toothpicks.
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Below: Bemidji, Minnesota:
Green Mr. Hockey Statue - on 4th Street, NW, Bemidji - On the lawn in
front of Security Bank USA.
Nine feet tall and uniformly dark green, a 1970s-vintage hockey player
created by Wanda Reise Odegard looks ready to deposit a puck from the
grass outside of a bank. He is painted green so he won't endorse any
hockey team. |
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Below: One
memorial, but it took several photos taken at different angles to try
to do justice to the memorial. |
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Below: Chief Bemidji, namesake
of the city, is ignored in favor of Paul Bunyan and Babe who stand just
down the street. The colorful statue, made of wood and concrete, was
built by a retired lumberjack in 1952. He is Downtown, on the lake side
of Highway 197 Bemidji Avenue, directly across the street from the gas
station at the corner of Bemidji Ave. and 4th Street |
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Below: These
two giant oddities are in front of a store located across the street
from Paul Bunyan and Babe. |
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AFTER
you have seen all three sections above, please continue on to the
adventures of the two RV Gypsies in 
