Minnesota Monday: Ely

Two weeks ago my family went to Northeastern Minnesota and stayed in a lake cabin. While there, we spent one morning in a small town called Ely (pronounced Ee-lee). Originally Ely was home to many iron ore mines, but now it's a popular entry point for the Boundary Waters Canoe Area.

The town is small (at about 3,500 people), but it's a hopping little town! The summer brings a wealth of tourists. Main Street is lined with camping outfitters, fun little shops and restaurants.

 

Everywhere you look, you see canoes & kayaks!

 





The downtown is built on a hill.

We ate at the Chocolate Moose Restaurant--a popular favorite for visitors and locals. See the canoe on the van behind the girls? See, they're everywhere!

We stopped at a quaint little ice cream shop before we headed back to our lake cabin. Ely is also known for its lake resorts.

 

We stayed in Babbitt, Minnesota, just fifteen miles away from Ely. Embarrass, Minnesota is nearby and often makes the news for being the coldest place in Minnesota! The average annual temperature in Embarrass is only 34.5 degrees Fahrenheit. Brrr! That's cold! But, don't feel too bad for them. Today's forecast (for Monday, June 17th) is 72 degrees. It's not cold there all the time.

 

Your Turn: Have you ever been canoeing or kayaking? 



A Big Splash

David and I shortly after the canoe incident ~ 1997

My husband David and I started dating when we were seventeen. He was my first serious boyfriend. The first boy I kissed. The first boy who brought me home to his parents' house. The first and only boy who I've ever loved. I look back on all those first and I still smile.

One of the big firsts for us took place two months after we started dating. I was invited to David's house to meet all of his aunts, uncles and cousins for a little family reunion. I love meeting new people and I enjoyed them even more because they were David's family.

Everything was going well, but David and I wanted to get away for a little while to be alone. His parents live on a lake, so he asked me if I'd like to take a canoe out to a beautiful island not too far from their house. I readily agreed, having very little canoeing experience, but he had practically grown up in a canoe, so I knew we were safe.

The day was cool for August and the sky overhead was a brilliant blue. The sun shimmered off the lake as we skipped rocks, shared a few kisses and talked about the upcoming school year. All too soon it was time to go back to the Meyer house, so we boarded the canoe and paddled back.

As we glided up to his parents' house, a handful of David's younger cousins ran down the dock toward us. David pulled the canoe up to the edge of the dock and told me to be careful as I climbed out.

I was a bit unsure how to get from the canoe to the dock gracefully, so I stood, placed my hands on the dock and tried to pull myself up.

The canoe began to slide under the dock and I didn't have a solid handle on it, so as the canoe slipped under, I lost my balance and, with arms flailing, went backwards into the lake! The worst part was my legs were still stuck in the canoe, my head was underwater and my shirt slipped up to my neck. For a split second I didn't know what to do. I was hanging upside down in the water giving David, and his young cousins, a show. I quickly realized the only thing I could do was pull my legs out of the canoe and go completely under.

So that's what I did.

When I finally pulled myself out of the water (I considered staying there forever), I'll never forget the stunned/bewildered/sympathetic/comical look on David's face. I must have looked like a drowned rat. But I smiled. I smiled at him. I smiled at his cousins. I smiled at his parents and his aunts and uncles. There was nothing left to do, but smile and laugh at the whole situation.

David gave me an over sized sweatshirt and pajama bottoms to wear as my clothes dried - and we had another good laugh. My one consolation was that his relatives would never forget me.

And, because of how calmly and gracefully (his words) I handled the situation, I won David's heart forever.

What about you? Have you ever had an embarrassing moment on a date? Did you end up marrying that person?