After we made a nice, large breakfast of sausages, mushroom & Swiss egg scramble, toast and coffee, we decided that since it was kind of cold and cloudy that we’d save Voyageur’s hiking for the predicted warmer Thursday and hit the Soudan Mine tour today. It was really cool! I was getting a bit apprehensive the more I thought about it, but I finally just calmed my mind and closed my eyes for the two full minutes that we were lowered in the elevator a half a mile into the earth. Once in the mine, it was much better because it was quite spacious and they have it all lit up. We took a train through the mine, then had to walk up a spiral staircase to a huge cavernous remnant of the mining days. I couldn’t believe how enormous this area was, and our tour guide demonstrated what it sounded like when all the miners would be working (Holy shit, it was loud!!!) and then also what is was like in the days before electricity as she shut off all the lights. Yikes, talk about darkness that would cause madness! I have always had a great respect for miners who go down there for their paychecks every day (despite my lukewarm feelings about the trade, environmentally speaking), and especially now knowing that the Soudan mine was one of the best mines to work in. Other mines were not as nice as that one, and our tour guide said that often miners have to work in several feet of standing, freezing cold water. It was 50 degrees down there, which was bone chilling enough, I can’t imagine standing there in water all day, added on top of the risks already associated with mining. All the while, I thought of my grandpa who was a miner for a time. Overall a great tour, and makes me so appreciative of my cushy work environment!
After the tour, we had lunch in the car, took a short hike around the park and came home to loaf a bit before firing up the grill. We had yummy walleye steamed with lemon, a little butter and dried sage, thyme and pepper along with corn on the cob. After that, we made sure to roast marshmallows for our decadent s’mores. We spent the dark evening out on the deck watching the stars overhead and listening to the jovial fisherman next door enjoying their fish fry and beer together.
Love & hugs!
R&J
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