Austin, Taragos: The Great Outdoors in the Spirit of RedWing

Minnesota is a great state. It has a little bit of everything, however everything is a little far away from the metropolitan area. Here in Austin, vineyards are less than an hour away, a Lake Minnetonka size body of water is less than a half-hour away, and parks and trails are in our front and backyard. I love the weekend trip traditions that still dazzle the October calendar of my family, however, this year, I took a break from Red Wing. The reason, here in Austin, it was 20 degrees warmer and walking through trails didn't require an airline ticket, nor even a hotel stay. Here is how Summer and I helped keep the outdoor tradition of Red Wing alive, even though we were many miles away.

Saturday Morning Bike Ride

The Map makes the trail look larger than it was and the temp makes it seem hotter but it was a great short ride. After this trail, we went through the trails on our apartment property which are quite long as well.

Sunday - 40 Walk. Background - there's a tradition where we picnic on top of a hill in this park and then either before grilling or after, we go on a walk. When it was legal for us to drink, we would bring a beer on this trail walk. However, once we were through the trail, down the hill, in the city, we had nothing to drink on the way back. A gas station/liquor store was discovered a few blocks after where the trail ends so a bonus tradition was born where we would purchase "40's" which in most cases are 24oz RedStrips but nonetheless, they are placed in a brown paper bag and are used to quench our thirst on the walk back. Therefore, I grabbed a few 32oz of Sol at the grocery store and we walked through the woods on the south side of our apt property and took a dip in the pool afterwards. This also doubled as a nice pre for the Vikings game. Which in after thought was a sad win. I hope we don't suck this year like we have in the years before last...

Got our brown bag beers

Look at the wide open practically private areas right in our front yard.

Summer takes a break at one of the many Picnic areas.

This is the 2nd pool area, not as well-kept up but serves its purpose none the less.

Our walk has almost come to an end.

In the tradition of the outdoors, I'd like to share with you our Front Porch area. Part garden/part relaxation area. All it needs now is a nice lil citrus tree.