Little Travel Stories: 2016

A Weekend In: Minneapolis

Last weekend I flew to Minneapolis to celebrate Prince, the greatest musician of my generation, who passed away unexpectedly in April. His death felt very personal, perhaps because he shared so much of himself with us through his music. When I heard that The Revolution, Prince's early backing band, had three tribute concerts planned over Labor Day weekend, I knew I had to be there - to experience the music in the city Prince loved, with the musicians and fams who loved Prince.

I checked into the Minneapolis Hilton on Thursday night, noted the nice view from my 14th floor room, and promptly fell asleep. When I woke up in the morning, I opened the curtains and saw the Schmitt Music mural:

Prince's first photo shoot

This was completely unexpected, and an amazing way to begin the weekend.

After breakfast I drove out to Paisley Park Studios, Prince's enormous production facility and residence in Chanhassen, MN. The perimeter fence has become an ever-changing memorial wall covered with messages and artwork from around the world.

At the northeast corner of the property, the Riley Creek underpass allows pedestrians to cross under the busy main road. The walls of the tunnel have become a canvas of love and sorrow. Prince touched many lives.

First Avenue, the famous music venue in downtown Minneapolis, is closely associated with Prince. The song Purple Rain was recorded here, and the concert scenes in the movie were filmed here. In the words of Revolution drummer Bobby Z, it's Purple ground zero. I felt honored and grateful to be a part of this historic event in this very special place.

I was lucky enough to attend both the Friday and Saturday night shows. We laughed, cried, danced, and sang. Prince's spirit, like his music, filled the house. This article gives an excellent review of the three shows.

The line stretched around the block; close-up of Prince's star at First Avenue

replica Purple Rain bike

Va & De Angela pre-show selfie

Dez doesn't forget us folks in the corner; in the background, sporting the red hat, is Andre Cymone

Wendy rocking the house; in the background, Prince's famous Hohner guitar

On Saturday, I visited Electric Fetus, Prince's favorite record store. I was able to meet Susannah Melvoin, singer and songwriter, former member of The Revolution, current member of fDeluxe, and Wendy's twin sister. I'm hoping fDeluxe comes back to DC soon - that is a show I would definitely not miss.

Minneapolis is a great city - diverse, friendly, and only a two-hour flight from DC. I have a feeling I will be a frequent visitor in the future - just not during the winter, per the recommendation of every Minnesotan I met. I understand why Prince loved his hometown. So when you're thinking of your next summer vacation, consider Minneapolis.

Got questions about Prince? These websites have answers: Prince.org, PrinceVault, PrinceLyrics.

Just want to listen to some Prince music? Here's a video to get you started. All of Prince's studio albums are available on the streaming service Tidal. The set list from the Sept 1-3 Revolution shows is a great introduction to his music.

Ranch Week, Part 3

Friday morning was wet and cold. As we mounted up, I prayed the rain wouldn't get heavy. The plan today was to move the cattle up to new pasture. With ten guests plus wranglers on the job, these were some very well-escorted cows. We split into two groups to make things a little more manageable.

In short: we took the cows down a pasture, over a wooden bridge spanning McGinnis Creek, through another long meadow, across the road, and up through the trees to graze on the mountain on the northeast side of the valley. Two people rode to the left and right of the lead cow, several more on the left and right flanks, and one or two brought up the rear. The cool weather had the steers feeling fresh - they were leaping like baby goats as they got on the other side of the bridge. We had to stay far enough away to keep them calm, but close enough to keep them moving.

Once the cows were over the bridge and moving down the long meadow towards the road, Dori and I somehow ended up falling far behind. We set off at a trot to catch up. Really moving out in the misty rain, miles of green valley stretching out before me, was pure joy. Add to that the ease with which I posted for half a mile or more - this was one of the best moments of the week.

The real fun started when we got into the trees. Moving up the mountain, the cows stuck mainly to the road, while the horses tracked along side them in the woods. We had to stay much farther away from the cows than you'd think, which meant going through some very rough country. These horses will go through anything. I rode right flank most of the way up. When one of the cows began to stray, you had to get up and go. I'm pretty fearless when it comes to trail blazing, but this was something else. Roanie went through deadfall and thick brush, up and down steep terrain, like a tank.

Around noon we stopped at a tank so the cows could drink some water, and we could eat lunch. We were all pretty damp at this point, and I was grateful for the warm horse underneath me.

The water tank, behind the horses

After the little break, we got them moving again. The cows ambled up the road, steam rising off their backs in the chill rain. Wranglers and riders called out Yup, yup, yup! and Yip, yip, yip! to keep them moving. Horse tack jingled, and leaves and branches crunched under the horses' feet. Every so often, a steer would moo.

Once we got them to graze, we started the long trek back to the ranch. The rain was light most of the day, but when I turned onto the long driveway to the ranch the heavens opened. And not just with rain - I swear some of it was ice. Roanie was only too happy to trot that last quarter mile back to the barn, where he got his oats and I got a much needed cup of hot chocolate. That night as I lay in bed, I could still feel the horse moving - just like you still feel the ocean after a day at the beach.

You may not believe it, but take my word for it - 7 hours on horseback in rainy 50 degree weather was the perfect end to my week at the ranch. (Okay, actually the steak dinner was the perfect end.) I cannot wait to come back to this beautiful place again.

Ranch Week, Part 2

Before I get into what you're all dying to know about - cows - here are a few pictures of the ranch.

My lodge room was cozy and peaceful.

Every morning I woke up to this beautiful view.

The first few days I worked on horsemanship. For me this meant learning the correct way to ask my horse to move. Eden, one of the wranglers, was our excellent instructor. Lessons took place both indoors and out.

On Wednesday we combined the lesson with a trail ride. The views from the top were spectacular.

You can just glimpse the snowy peaks of the Cabinet Wilderness in the distance.

After three days, Rocket got a break - meet Roanie, another very patient horse.

Before mounting up, I snapped a selfie. He was not impressed.

On Thursday I had my first experience with cows. We tried our hand at sorting: two people slowly make their way into the middle of the herd and gently encourage one cow to move out of the bunch. All the other riders form a wall around the herd, to prevent them from following. It's important to be able to sort quickly and quietly - for instance, if a sickly cow needs doctoring. It is much harder than it looks. The steers are so sensitive to the horses - they react to the slightest movement. All it takes is a look at the hip or eye and the cow will move.

It was also amazing to watch the horses. Roanie is VERY serious about cows. As soon as we got into the corral, his attitude changed. He was the boss of those cows, and let them know it.

One of the exercises we practiced in horsemanship was leg yielding, or asking the horse to step sideways. I've never been very good at this. Opening and closing a gate while mounted is a fundamental farm skill, and leg yielding is key to getting your horse positioned correctly next to the gate. One of my goals for the week was to learn the leg yield.

In cow sorting, you often have to step sideways to fill a hole in the wall of horses that is containing the herd. This is probably more down to Roanie than me, but he was yielding over like a professional when we were part of the wall. I was so proud. One of the best things this week was seeing the practical applications of skills like leg yielding. When I began riding, I was taught how to do these things, but not why.

We spent an enjoyable afternoon with the cattle. With a little persistence - I'm looking at you, Blue 33 - we were all able to successfully sort out a cow.