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As happens so often, the weather is dictating our activities. The forecast for this afternoon sounded the best we’re going to have for a bike ride so that’s what we planned. Faced with a chilly morning, we made a “get acquainted” visit to the Mall of America while the temperature outside crept slowly upward.
Camp Snoopy is no more! The cavernous interior of the 4-story high mall now contains “The Park at MOA”. At seven acres in size, it claims to be the nation’s largest indoor amusement park. Shortly after opening on a weekday morning, it probably had the world’s smallest attendance:
The 500 or so retail establishments that make up the mall’s stores and restaurants are located around the outside of The Park on three levels, essentially. The fourth level contains the AMC Theater and a just a handful of other businesses. I doubt even the most fanatical shopper could take in the whole mall in one day. We didn’t try, expecting to return at least one more time.
The bike route we chose to follow is part of what Minneapolis calls the “Grand Rounds”. It’s a remarkable path, 50 miles long, that nearly encircles the city. One stretch is along the Mississippi River, another along a chain of lakes and still others follow creek beds and greenways. Wherever possible, separate paths are provided for pedestrians and one-way travel is mandated for bicycles around lakes. The surfaces we rode on were, almost exclusively, smooth asphalt. Assuming what we rode is typical, this is one fine bike path and a real asset to all residents.
The spot we selected to begin our ride was along Minnehaha Creek, a quiet retreat having more shade than needed this cool afternoon:
Very soon, we encountered Lake Harriet and rode around it, wondering all the while what those peculiar buildings on the far shore could be. Getting closer, their function was still a mystery:
Reaching the buildings, we learned that the largest building on the shore is a very attractive band shell. The building to the left contains a small cafe and restrooms and was open, to our delight. The hot chocolate we enjoyed there in the sunshine was most welcome.
Pedaling on, we later reached Lake Calhoun, which is about the same size as Lake Harriet. The Minneapolis downtown skyline looms closer across this lake:
With showers forecast to begin tomorrow afternoon, we’ll wait until the last minute before deciding where to head next in this huge metropolitan area.