Spring in Prescott

Southern section of St Croix River Byway

The St Croix Scenic Byway stretches all the way from Askov to the Great River Road near Prescott, at the confluence of the Mississippi and St Croix rivers. I like to look beyond the railroad bridge there, where the rivers meet and the St Croix disappears into the muddy Mississippi.

When I first moved to Minnesota nearly 32 years ago, teenagers from the Twin Cities would head across the border to Wisconsin to party in Prescott. Bars still line the main street just up the hill from the river, and we've certainly been to a few of those establishments for a beer on a Sunday afternoon. On most days, though, we simply make a stop beside the public dock and watch the people and their boats.



Railroad bridge at Prescott

On Friday, Prescott seemed like a good destination, less than 30 minutes door-to-door. We took off in the Corvette, happily soaking in the sun and enjoying unseasonably warm mid-April temperatures in the mid-seventies. Boaters and fishermen were on the river, but the heavy summer boat traffic is still weeks away.

St Joseph Church, Prescott

I had half hoped to see late migrating birds but I suppose most of the waterfowl have already flown north for their summer nesting places. A few bald eagles glided above the tree line, too far away for photos or decent viewing. A kid -- late teens or early twenties -- stopped to talk to Bob and pointed us in the direction of a peregrine falcon nest high in a tower of the railroad bridge. The falcons weren't in evidence, but I'm looking forward to sightings later in the spring.

The trees were "greening up" along our route and a few early cherry trees competed with the magnolias, now in full bloom. It was another perfect day.