Day 26 June 24 Thru Grand Forks, Milton and to Devils Lake

milage 338
total milage 8147

camping fee $15

Lots of trains went thru the campground last night, something to remember. I got up at first light, as usual, took a shower, packed my gear and left. Note, campgrounds are getting very nice, most have showers and lots have washers and driers. As I started thru town I saw a laundrymat so pulled over and took my stuff inside.

Timing is everything....the skys opened up and the showers went on until the drier quit, then the rain quit. What did I say? On to Fort Abercrombie....pretty much how I remember except most of the stockade is gone and what is there is 8-10 ft tall. It used to be 6 ft. The blockhouses are still there and they have now marked where buildings were,

I drove up to Grand Forks and got pictures of many places that I lived, the park, the houses that my dad built. Grandmas house, much smaller than I would have thought. Then off to the cemetary. I found grampas' and grandma Graces' graves just about where I remembered from 1957. I noticed that in Grand Forks the kids still ride bikes to school, the parks, everywhere they go. From GF I rode NW up close to the Canadian border. I found the very small town of Milton and found two ladies talking so I pulled up and asked where the cemetary was. They said "Luthern or Catholic?" I thought and said Luthern. They sent me off on a wild trip. Down the gravel road, past the dump, into and out of a coulee (a ravine) and finally looking for the lone pine tree as a signal of direction. odly enough I found it and found my grandma Mary Torrance Andersons' grave. It's there Irene! Not Osnabrock. I also found in the same plot my Great grampa James Torrance and great grandma Agnes Torrance (had to remove some grass and clean the markers to get the names and dates.



I now headed South heading for Sturgis, SD but could tell there was another storm coming. I stopped at a gas station in Devil's lake and asked for directions to the campground. We got talking so much that he forgot to charge me for the gas and I had to return :)

It's funny Dad used to take us to Devils Lake to a cabin in the summer. It is one big lake and the campground is on an island. Because of the flooding there is only one road to it now, the other part of the road is a boat ramp. Had a nice couple from Wisconsin camped by me and they invited me for smores. The two girls 4 yrs and 6 yrs told me how to cook the marshmellow, a great time. They come to ND to camp because so many oputsiders from MN and MI are overrunning WI. The storm missed us. just a few drops fell on my head.

That smore was my only dinner, it was 20 miles each way to town. All day on just breakfast.

See the photo link for all pics.