Back from Fargo ... Mark Twain and Zebulon Pike

We are back from Fargo ... we attended the NHSACA convention in Fargo this last week for the Coach of the Year finalists and the selection of National Coach of the Year.  I was a finalist and one of a half dozen coaches representing Kentucky in various sports.  The softball winner was Don Menke of Iowa ... 950 wins over a 35 year coaching career ... pretty impressive ... he actually played industrial league fastpitch softball back in the day.  A great person and well deserved.

Sue Neal and I had several stopovers on the way to Fargo ... Hannibal MO to see Samuel Clemens boyhood home on the Mississippi ... we took a boat ride on the Mississippi River and visited the museums.

http://www.marktwainmuseum.org/

We stopped by Pikes Peak State Park in northeastern Iowa for some great views of the Mississippi.  It seems Zebulon Pike was there earlier before moving west ...

http://www.iowadnr.gov/Destinations/StateParksRecAreas/IowasStateParks/ParkDetails.aspx?ParkID=610141&idAdminBoundary=203

We stopped by Seed Savers and they were having the annual conference on heirloom seeds.  Lots of interesting projects and plants.  We also went to their orchard where they are saving and protecting rare apple varieties include a red (inside and out) Geneva apple.  They have a great catalog you can get for your parents or the gardener in your family.

http://www.seedsavers.org/

More later ...