Walk on the Wild Side: Thursday Night Hikes

Interested hikers and walkers are invited to join the Walk on the Wild Side Thursday Night hikers, an aggregation of hiking enthusiasts from the Minnesota Rovers, the North Star Ski Touring Club, the Sierra Club, and others, for an evening of hiking, conversation, and conviviality.

The group schedules hikes every Thursday night throughout the year, rain or shine and cold or hot, except for Thanksgiving. The hikes are open to any interested hiker or walker. Hikes begin at 7:00 P.M. and conclude at approximately 8:30 P.M. There is no cost to participate in a hike. Hikes are moderately paced and typically cover between three and four miles during a 90-minute hike. After each hike, interested hikers are invited to reconvene at a nearby restaurant for dinner/dessert and further conversation.

Questions about the hike schedule can be directed to Larry Martin, at l_a_martin@lycos.com.

Click on the applicable hike name to obtain further information, directions (either driving or transit), and maps to hike locations.

Upcoming Hikes

November, 2009 Hikes
November 5, 2009: Crosby Lake Regional Park Hike (St. Paul) +Join Larry Martin for a post-Halloween hike through the extensive prairie habitat and flood plain forest of the Crosby Lake Regional Park. In 1858, at the age of 28, a young English immigrant, Thomas Crosby, with his wife Emma, staked out 160 acres in the southwest end of today's Crosby Regional Park. Crosby's frontier farm was the largest and longest running in the West End/Highland Park area. Cattle, dairy cows, horses, pigs and chickens were raised on the farm and potatoes and apples were grown. After Crosby's death in 1886, a succession of families ran the farm until 1962, when the Saint Paul Port Authority purchased the land. The park recently expanded with the addition of 10 acres from the 40 acre former Texaco tank farm brownfields parcel that has been redeveloped as a business park by the Saint Paul Port Authority. The Crosby Farm Nature Area preserves a natural flood plain area of the Mississippi River. During seasonal floods of the river, fish and other aquatic animals gain access to the Upper Crosby Lake, Lower Crosby Lake, and all the ponds scattered throughout the Nature Area's forest. Nearby, Interstate 35E has been expanded and resurfaced, with the addition of a 10 foot bikeway/hiker lane that connects several regional trails, including the Big Rivers Regional Trail in Dakota County; the Samuel H. Morgan Trail which extends from Highway 5 to Battle Creek Park; Lilydale-Harriet Island Trail; Hidden Falls-Crosby Farm Park; Mississippi Gorge Trail and the I-35E trail to downtown St. Paul.
November 12, 2009: North Mississippi River Regional Park Hike (Minneapolis) +Join the group for an exploration of this joint Hennepin Regional Parks System/Minneapolis Park Board park and for an amble along the west bank of the Mississippi River. Nearby Dowling Avenue was named for Michael Dowling (1866-1921.) At age 14, Dowling was caught in a blizzard, spent the night in a haystack, froze his arms and legs, and ultimately had one arm and both legs amputated. Undaunted by this tragedy, Dowling went on to become a teacher in Yellow Medicine County, Minnesota, in 1884, principal of the East Granite Falls, Minnesota, public schools in 1886, principal of the Renville, Minnesota, public schools in 1887, co-owner and co-publisher of the Renville, Minnesota, Renville Star in 1889, insurance salesman in the Upper Midwest and in Canada from 1890 to 1892, owner of the Renville Star and the Renville Farmer in 1892, assistant clerk of the Minnesota House of Representatives in 1893, the elected secretary of the National Republican League in 1895, co-owner of the Renville, Minnesota, bank, chief clerk of the Minnesota House of Representatives in 1897, the Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives in 1900 after being elected to the Legislature, owner of the Olivia, Minnesota, bank in 1902, Olivia, Minnesota, mayor from 1912 to 1914, the Superintendent of the Minneapolis Public Schools, the Education Commissioner of the United States, and the President of the Minnesota Bankers Association. The hike is just across the river from the Minneapolis Water Works, with the original plant built between 1913-1918 and being replaced by a new ultrafiltration plant adjoining the original plant. The Minneapolis Water Works pumps 25 billion gallons of water annually (70 million gallons per day on average; 180 million gallons per day at peak summer output) through 1000 miles of water main. The Minneapolis Water Works was established in 1867 to provide water for firefighting and began providing drinking water in 1872.
November 19, 2009: Northern Bruce Vento Regional Trail Hike (Maplewood) +Join the hiking group for a hike along the northern portion of the Bruce Vento/BNSF (Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad) Regional Trail in northern St. Paul and Maplewood. The trail is a "rails-to-trails" trail developed by Ramsey County. The trail follows a former Burlington Northern rail line. U. S. Congressman Bruce Vento (1940-2000) was a 12-term liberal Democrat from St. Paul who championed environmental and homeless causes, including efforts to ban oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, efforts to preserve tropical rain forests, and efforts to make it easier for the Hmong who fought with the U.S. in the Vietnam War to become U.S. citizens. Vento died of malignant mesothelioma, a cancer apparently caused by inhaling asbestos fibers as a young worker at a St. Paul East Side manufacturing plant. The BNSF dates back to 1849, initially as the Aurora Branch Railroad. The Burlington Northern Railroad (BN) was created in 1970 by the merger of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company (CB&Q), the Northern Pacific Railway Company (NP), the Great Northern Railway Company (GN), and the Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railway Company (SP&S). In 1980, the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway Company (Frisco) was merged into the BN and the merger in the late 1990�s of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway is reflected in the choice of the current name of the railroad. The BNSF is an aggregation of a total of 330 prior railroads.
November 26, 2009: Thanksgiving +There is no scheduled hike tonight. The best to you and to your favorite turkey.
Tentative Schedule of Future Hikes
For planning purposes and to allow interested hikers an opportunity to suggest alternative hiking locations, here is the tentative schedule of future hikes:

December, 2009 (to be finalized November 15, 2009)
12/3 Bredeson Park Hike (Edina) (34)
12/10 East Summit Avenue/East Portland Avenue Architecture/House History Hike (St. Paul) (35)
12/17 Midtown Greenway, West End, Hike (Minneapolis)(88)
12/24 Christmas Eve: No Hike
12/31 Linwood-Lower Crocus Hill Architecture/House History Hike (St. Paul)(108)
p> January, 2010 (to be finalized December 27, 2009)
1/7 Shingle Creek Parkway Hike (Minneapolis) (107)
1/14 Gateway Trail, Eastern Terminus, Hike (St. Paul) (51)
1/21 Minnehaha Creek East Hike (Minneapolis)(63)
1/28 Lambert's Landing Hike (St. Paul) (6)

If any hiker wants to suggest a different hike than the tentatively scheduled hike, please e-mail Larry Martin at l_a_martin@lycos.com.

Local Weather and Related Information
Twin City weather conditions
Twin City weather camera
Twin City weather radar
Twin City weather satelite photos

Traffic Condition Links
Twin City Traffic Cameras

Twin City Traffic Flow Maps

Listing of Hikes
Thursday Night Hikes hike directory (alphabetic)
Thursday Night Hikes hike directory (geographical)

Thursday Night Hikes hike directory (seasonal)

Table of Past Thursday Night Hikes

Architectural Hikes House Information and Histories
Capitol Hill/Cathedral Hill Architectural Hike

Capitol Hill/Cathedral Hill Architectural Hike Details and Route

Capitol Hill/Cathedral Hill Architectural and House History Information, Part 1
Capitol Hill/Cathedral Hill Architectural and House History Information, Part 2
Dayton's Bluff Architectural Hike
Daytons Bluff Hike Directions and Route

Dayton's Bluff Architectural and House History Information, Part 1
Dayton's Bluff Architectural and House History Information, Part 2
Fair Oaks Architectural Hike
Fair Oaks Architectural and House History Hike Route and Directions

Fair Oaks Architectural and House History Information
Irvine Park Architectural Hike
Irvine Park Architectural and House Hike Route and Details

Irvine Park Architectural and House History Information, Part 1

Irvine Park Architectural and House History Information, Part 2

Irvine Park Architectural and House History Information, Part 3
Lake of the Isles Architectural Hike
Lake of the Isles Architectural and House History Hike Route and Directions
Lake of the Isles Architectural and House History Information, Part 1
Lake of the Isles Architectural and House History Information, Part 2
Linwood Avenue/St. Clair Avenue Architectural Hike
Linwood Avenue/St. Clair Avenue Architectural and House History Hike Route and Directions
St. Clair Avenue Architectural and House History Information
Osceola Avenue/Linwood Avenue Architectural and House History Information
NorthEast Minneapolis Architectural Hike
NorthEast Minneapolis Architectural and House History Hike Route and Directions
NorthEast Minneapolis Architectural and House History Information
St. Albans/Lower Crocus Hill Architectural Hike
St. Albans/Lower Crocus Hill Architectural and House History Hike Directions and Route
St. Albans/Lower Crocus Hill Architectural and House History Information, Part 1
St. Albans/Lower Crocus Hill Architectural and House History Information, Part 2
St. Albans/Lower Crocus Hill Architectural and House History Information, Part 3

Summit Avenue East Architectural Hike
Summit Avenue East/Portland Avenue East Architectural and House History Hike Route and Directions

Summit Avenue East Architectural and House History Information, Part 1
Summit Avenue East Architectural and House History Information, Part 2

Portland Avenue East Architectural and House History Information, Part 1
Portland Avenue East Architectural and House History Information, Part 2
Summit Avenue West Architectural Hike
Summit Avenue West/Portland Avenue West Architectural and House History Hike Route and Directions

Portland Avenue West Architectural and House History Information

Summit Avenue West Architectural and House History Information
West Side St. Paul Architectural Hike
West Side St. Paul Architectural and House History Hike Route and Directions
West Side St. Paul Architectural and House History Information, Part 1
West Side St. Paul Architectural and House History Information, Part 2

West Side St. Paul Architectural and House History Information, Part 3

Pictures of the Hiking Group and Hikes
(Photos courtesy of William Clark Photography)

Picture of the hiking group from the Boom Island Hike
;Picture of the hiking group from the Minnehaha Creek West Hike

Picture of the hiking group from the Thomas Lake/High Line Hike
Picture of the hiking group after the Richfield Wood Lake Hike, Part I
Picture of the hiking group after the Richfield Wood Lake Hike, Part II
Picture of the hiking group from the Lake of the Isles Hike
Links to Other Outdoor Activities
Minnesota Rovers
St. Paul Hiking Club
Superior Hiking Trail Association
Hiking Primer
Twin City mountain bike trails
North Country Trail Organization
Kekekabic Trail Organization
Collection of Twin City Architecture and Walking Tour Sites
Anoka County Regional Parks
Carver County Parks
Dakota County Parks
Suburban Hennepin County (Three Rivers Park District) Parks
Ramsey County Parks
Scott County (Three Rivers Park District) Parks
Washington County Parks

Links to Special Hiking/Backpacking Locations
Hiking in Auyuittuq National Park, Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada
**Additional information on hiking in Auyuittuq National Park**
Hiking at Lapa Rios, Peninsula de Osa, Costa Rica
Hiking the Appalachian Trail (AT)
Hiking along the East Coast Trail, Avalon Peninsula, Newfoundland, Canada
** Pictures of Larry and his son, Andrew, hiking the East Coast Trail in August, 2006**
Hiking around the Cuillins, Isle of Skye, Scotland, United Kingdom
** Pictures primarily of the Cuillins and Camasunary Bay **
Hiking in Gros Morne National Park, Newfoundland, Canada
Hiking in the Lake Louise/Plain of the Six Glaciers Area of Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada
Hiking in Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta, Canada
Hiking in the Grand Canyon National Park
Hiking in Isle Royale National Park
Hiking in Chaco Canyon National Historic Park
Hiking in Fundy National Park, New Brunswick, Canada
Hiking in Hecla Island/Grindstone Provincial Park, Interlake Region, Gull Harbour, Manitoba

University of Minnesota Golden Gophers: 2002 NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Champions
University of Minnesota Golden Gophers: 2003 NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Champions

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Webmaster: Larry Martin

Email the Webmaster: l_a_martin@lycos.com
Last Updated: November 4, 2009.