Shale Oil Fracking to Paul Bunyan and Babe!

August 23rd, 2014 We slept OK, except for 3-4 AM. The rain and wind were quite loud. Also a "local" diesel pickup with loud pipes seemed to be cruising the area. We got up at 7 AM. Bob went inside for coffee. One large cup and one medium was 75 cents! Total for both! The price stunned Bob but the cashier assured him it was correct. We finished breakfast and were off at 8 AM.

It was raining most of the morning. We had 50 more miles in Montana before crossing the N. Dakota line. For about the last 20 miles of MT and until Minot, ND we were in the oil shale fracking boom areas. About the only slowdown due to the building boom was in Williston. The entirety of Rte 2 in ND was divided Hwy.

The state coffers must love the boom. Many people have found a way to make money Bob is sure. Especially large property owners along the highway. The farm fields remained mostly Durham Wheat with a few corn, sunflowers or soy beans here and there. The recent rains were putting a hamper on harvesting. There were very tidy drilling/fracking operations of an acre or so interspersed along the fields.

R.V. Parks, Apartment houses and what may have been company provided "man camps" were plentiful. Some housing looked more like construction trailers. Others were like mini quanset huts. Bob supposed for locals and younger imports it would be a good place to work and save for a few years and move on when things slow down. Locals left out of the boom must not be too happy. Many must be earning more than they ever thought possible.

Our first surprise of the day was in Rugby, N.D. There was a monument in the town declaring it the "Center Point of North America." Who are we to argue. I got pictures For the most part N.D. was not very picturesque. Bob was happy to move into Minn. As soon as we crossed the border things seemed to get greener. The gentleman that Bob met in Polebridge who gave us the book on Key West was from Bemidji, MN. Route 2 passes right through town. He told us about the Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox statues. We went there for pictures.

Richard G., Bob's old route 1 postal carrier had brought everyone back a key chain from there years ago as well. Our 2nd surprise was just down the road from the Paul Bunyon parking lot. We crossed a short bridge over a small river. It was the Mississippi at its beginning headwaters our of Lake Bemidji. We drove on to Grand Rapids for another free night at Camp Wal-Mart.