Geo-RoadTrip 2013: Minnesota Museum of Mining

What can be said about the Minnesota Museum of Mining in Chisholm, MN?  It has a HUGE amount of mining equipment and historical artifacts on display and is a must if you are traveling in the area.  Here are some pictures of of just a few of the things you can see there:

Video coming soon!

Geo-RoadTrip 2013: I am Iron Man!

If and when you find yourself driving into Chisholm, Minnesota you'll be greeted by the town's ambassador: The Invincible Iron Man!  Here's a look at his impressive stats:

As a monument to the area's iron mining industry and the men who worked the mines, he stands atop  a striking stack of iron girders with his trusty shovel and pickaxe.  Any resemblance to Robert Downy Jr. is purely coincidental (and probably imaginary):

Video coming soon!

Geo-Roadtrip 2013: Pit Stop Pt. 2

The Hull–Rust–Mahoning Open Pit Iron Mine continued to offer us a bounty of mining memorabilia with its menagerie of mechanical monsters. (That's some "Stan Lee" style alliteration right there folks!)  A short path leads visitors to where they keep the big boys:

This huge dragline bucket could scoop up 30 cubic yards of of dirt and at least one geologist:

Here's a drill bit on display:

Who hasn't fantasized about driving the big rigs from time to time:

Video coming soon!

Geo-Roadtrip 2013: Pit Stop Pt. 1

Not too far from our last stop was the Hull-Rust-Mahoning Open Pit Iron Mine.  It's one of the largest open pit iron mines in the world and is still in operation.

The mine is three miles long, two miles wide and 535 feet deep.  There's a great overlook, a nice little interpretive center and admission is free.  Can't beat that.  It's a definite "must stop" if you are in the area.

While the mine is no longer at it's peak, it still produces iron ore taconite (which, unfortunately, is not pronounced as "Taco Night.")  Although I still sometimes say it that way.

They've got lots of taconite samples on display as well as other displays inside.  You can even buy some souvenir samples in a display jar but be prepared to have a conversation about them with security at the airport.

And there's a ton of mining stuff outside which we will get to in our next blog entry.  Video coming soon too!

Geo-RoadTrip 2013: 50 Shades of Greyhound

In between the various geologic wonders and roadside brouhaha that we encountered on Geo-RoadTrip 2013, we occasionally stumbled across things that seem interesting yet difficult to classify.  It was on our way to to some iron mining locales when we happened upon the Greyhound Bus Museum:

It is located in Hibbing, MN, which is known as the birthplace of the bus industry in the U.S.  Unfortunately, even though we arrived during the museum's business hours, it was't open.  So we could only take some pics of the outside:

And off we went to our next location!  Video coming soon! 

Geo-RoadTrip 2013: Fish Story

There's nothing better than stumbling across a World's Largest something-or-other while on a road trip.  One of our first stops was in Rush City, MN to get an eyeful of the World's Largest Walleye:

A walleye is a fresh water fish that is served at practically every restaurant in Minnesota.  Before our trip was done we had a belly full of them.  This one is on display right off the highway and has a handy sign listing its stats:

It was apparently caught by none other than Paul Bunyan.  His handy work is all over the state as you will see soon as our journey continues...

Video coming soon!

Geo-RoadTrip 2013: Chasing Agate

Let's get started with the breakdown of Geo-RoadTrip 2013!  Minnesota's official gemstone is Lake Superior Agate.  One of the best places to get a look at some is at Moose Lake, MN which dubs itself the "Agate Capital of the World"!

And if you ever find yourself in Moose Lake, like we did during our trip, you will want to stop by the Moose Lake Agate and Geological Center at Moose Lake State Park.  Here's a look at a few of the many specimens they have on display:

And not too far from the Center you can see a specimen that is world's largest specimen on record at the First National Bank of Moose Lake:

Video coming soon!

Announcing Geo-RoadTrip 2013