Wednesday, November 18, 2015

The Sweet Little Towns on the Mississippi River

In last week's travel post, I wrote about the advantages and disadvantages of living in Wisconsin and small town life.  What I didn't mention was that I live fifteen minutes away from the Mississippi River and a lot of historic, cute, fun towns.  Two of the towns near me are Alma, Wisconsin, and Wabasha, Minnesota.

Alma, Wisconsin is a sweet little town known for it's lock and dam, fishing, and bald eagles.  It sits at the base of a hill right next to the Mississippi river.  Eagles are as common as robins around here, for they come to fish from the great river.  It is also a migratory stop for tundra swans, white pelicans, and other waterfowl.


There is not a single home in Alma I wouldn't love to live in.  They all have gorgeous views of the Mississippi and are very colorful with lots of unique charm.


Isn't this just the cutest bakery?


The town nestles in the foothills of the bluffs, but homes also are built on the winding streets above the main street.


The motto for the city of Alma is "Step into Living History".  You can certainly see why by these buildings!


Don't you just love all the color?


I was absolutely stunned to discover that this is an actual eagle's nest.  I know eagles are big birds, but this is huge!  It's made mostly out of drift wood.


I stood next to it to give you an idea of the scale.  It's absolutely amazing!


Wabasha, Minnesota is just 15 minutes away from Alma across the Mississippi River.  Here is one of the bridges you can take to cross the state border.


 Wabasha is most famous for the location of where "Grumpy Old Men" was filmed.  It couldn't have been a more appropriate place to film this movie.  Every time I walk into the Kwik Trip in Wabasha, I see nothing but grumpy old men lined up on the counter drinking coffee and dressed like they are ready to go hunting.  It's so funny!


Of course boating and fishing are very popular in Wabasha because of it's location on the river.  It is also the home of the National Eagle Center.

This pretty waterfall was located near the Eagle Center on the Mississippi River.


This ten foot bronze statue is made in the likeness of Chief Wapasha II.


The Mississippi River is so gorgeous in the north.  When we were in Memphis a few years ago we noticed the Mississippi River was mostly brown.  Our tour guide said it was because everything from up north, comes down the Mississippi and muddies the water.


If you follow me on Instagram you may remember this little guy.  My husband and I were walking down a city street when the owner of a house stepped onto his front stoop with this beautiful parrot in his hand.  It was such a treat!  Isn't he just a sweetie?


That's all I have for this week.  I will be in Florida next week and we have lots of fun activities planned.  I can't wait to share my next travel adventure with you!

Have a great day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE and Travel Tuesday!


7 comments:

  1. Such an adorable little town!

    Annessa
    www.seekingsunshine.com

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  2. Gorgeous town! Crazy how large the eagles nest is, I never would have known!

    HashtagFabLife

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  3. How cool to be so close here! I think small towns are so fun to explore!
    www.amemoryofus.com

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  4. I read this post when it was posted but never had a chance to comment! Love all the pretty colors of this town, and the buildings are gorgeous. That eagle's nest is huge! Great photos!

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  5. Wow Amy! that is such a fun town and I can not get over that Eagles Nest. have fun with all your travels!!! Take care, Tara

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  6. Delightful shots of an amazing place, Amy! Would love to visit it...
    Thanks for taking part in Travel Tuesday, hope to see you back soon!

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