It wasn't long before we were back on the river and coming into Red Wing, Mn.
We pulled into Red Wing Marina (http://www.redwingmarina.com/) and were greeted and helped into our slip by Cindy. A colorful, friendly gal who happens to own the marina along with her husband. After settling in we inquired about the nearest liquor store. Cindy not only gave us directions, but also her car. Great service that enabled us to enjoy some of our acquisitions when we returned to the boat instead of taking a nap!
While the boys were at the liquor store the girls hoofed it the other direction to check out the shops downtown. Fortunately for us the damage to the wallet was light and they returned to Vagabond to scoop us up and head to the grocery store. Other than the jar of pickled herring that Kim & I were allowed to buy, our only contribution was in the role of mules to tote the supplies back to the boat!
Once we recuperated from our pack mule experience we decided to clean up and walk back downtown to Norton's Restaurant for dinner(http://www.thenortonsrestaurant.com/). Norton's has only been open about a year and is located right on the main drag in downtown Red Wing. A well stocked bar, great food, and great company make for a pleasant dining experience. We returned to the boat stuffed to the gills but happy!
Thursday 9/9/10 Because of our delay in getting to Red Wing regrettably we were only able to spend one night before turning the bow south. Our first stop today would be for fuel at Hansen's Harbor (http://www.hansensharbor.com/) located a few miles above Lake City, Mn. Hansen's is a typical river marina with a laid back attitude, friendly staff, the fuel is 10 cents per gallon cheaper than the other spots we passed coming up, and they have one of the best stocked ship's stores between Red Wing and Green Turtle Bay on the Cumberland.
Full of fuel. Full of water. And empty of ...well you know, other stuff, we continued south on Lake Pepin. Next stop Pepin, WI. to have lunch at the Harbor View Cafe (http://www.harborviewpepin.com/). Once within a couple miles of Pepin a call is made on the VHF to Dan's Pepin Marina requesting dockage. Being one of the more professionally run marinas on the upper river they respond with a few questions about size of boat and duration of stay then proceed to tell you what side to have your fenders and lines on for docking and what side of their transient dock to pull in to. Upon entering the breakwater they are on the dock to grab your lines and tie them, then coil the excess line on the dock. Impressive!
Just a short walk across the train tracks is the Harbor View Cafe. A small storefront restaurant that once inside resembles a cross between a bar and a library. The menu is written on a chalk board behind the bar and the food is excellent! The clientele ranges from the Birkenstock to the wing tip crowd and everyone in between. One other note of interest.....bring cash! Harbor View doesn't accept credit cards.
After a delicious lunch we got back on board Vagabond and with the help of Dan's staff, untied the lines and continued down the lake and back into the river. Two locks later we pulled into a sand pit just above Winona, Mn. and called it a day.
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