Travel Tips for the North Shore
Story by WTIP Youth Volunteer August Kintop
If you live in a place like Grand Marais, you are bound to have at least one four-hour drive every few months. Whether you are heading to the Twin Cities, heading into western Minnesota or driving up into Canada, getting anywhere takes a lot of time. These rides can be very boring and tiring. It’s hard to make them 100% enjoyable but as someone who goes to the Cities and back at least every other month I have figured out a few tricks. The first thing is try not to leave the lakeside. Now this one is more of a personal preference but I have found that without the lake to provide nice scenery and a distinct landmark the journey becomes way more painful. The second thing is to download some audio media. Whether its music or a podcast, you should download some audio. While further down south you can rely on cell service if necessary up north there are some dead zones. One very important thing that I have found makes travelling way easier is to pack a sleeping mask. Just slip it on, put on some headphones, get some music going and relax. Unfortunately, this won’t work for the driver for obvious reasons but I don’t have much experience in that matter.
A big thing to make trips more enjoyable is to figure out how to minimize stops. One thing that helps is to figure out good places to grab food to go. Gas stations and fast food places are ideal. Two Harbors and Duluth are the best places to grab a meal on the drive to the cities. If the weather is nice, you can try to get a little mini hike in at a place like Gooseberry Falls or Tettegouche. However, if the weather isn’t good just stretch your legs and keep going. Be careful what snacks you bring for the trip. First, don’t bring food meant to be served hot. Even if you find it good cold it is hard to eat in a car if you are tired and food stressed. Chips are fine, however, do not bring a giant bag as if you just eat them passively you will feel a bit crappy once the trip is over. Jerky, Meat Sticks and other preserved meats are good snacks that can hold you over until a meal. Try not to get too much candy as you will eat it all out of sheer boredom and feel quite bad afterward. Keep plenty of drinks on hand, as being dehydrated in a car is horrible. I recommend bottles of water, as it is easy to guzzle them to avoid dehydration.
Kalli Hawkins July 22, 2023
