Home > About this website > GN Finding Trips > 2003 - Part 3

2003 GN Finding Trip

Part 3

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Day 8, Thursday July 24: Havre to Plentywood

Well, the convention is over and it's back to work er.. vacation, er.., anyway, back to finding more GN stuff. After having a great time at the GNRHS convention it's time to take a last look at Havre and it's surroundings and head east. First I head to the bridge over Sandy Creek just west of town. After bouncing around on a sandy spur paralleling the track I get to the bridge and discover you can still make out some of the American Bridge Company lettering on it. I get my pictures and head back to town. I visit 2584 one more time to get some detail pictures, like of the hollow axle of the drivers (thanks Fr. Dale for pointing that one out). A short drive along the north side of the yard results in a picture of the local wrecker crane. A photo that I saw in the diesel shop showed this crane with a GN logo, but that's gone now. Although it has a built date of 8-54, I'm not sure it's ex GN. Anyway, it's time to head out of town. Today will involve a lot of (slow) gravel road driving, and I want to make sure that I will be able to see everything I have planned. I head east to Harlem, to turn straight north to Hogeland, the endpoint of the now abandoned namesake branch. The depot is an easy find, but is all that's left of the Great Northern in this town. It looked like it had been in use as a residence at one time, but it's empty now. I have been on gravel roads for about ten miles now and continue for another ten to get to Turner for the next depot. The road parallels the old right of way which is still clearly visible. Most of the shallow embankment has been reclaimed by nature, other parts by local farmers. Some parts of the embankment have been cut away to provide easier entrance to the farm fields, while other parts are even used for growing crops. The GN is slowly disappearing here. The Turner depot is at least still there, and looks in fairly good shape. The only paved road out of Turner leads into Canada, which is not the way I'm going, so it's more gravel roads for me to find the depot at Chapman. I'm a little anxious about taking this road since it is winding, and probably easy to get lost on. I figure I can always turn around if needed, so I start my adventure to Chapman. Armed with a Mapquest route description taken from the internet and the DeLorme Montana Atlas I discover that, although there are no signs, the turns the main road takes at intersections are clearly visible by the way the road banks. This turns out to be easier than I thought! I make it to Chapman earlier than expected. On the way over, I'm awed by the vast areas of grassland. Not much here except for cattle and an occasional deer. I guess the crews on the GN locals must have felt in the middle of nowhere working this branch. I get to Chapman and while the depot was reported to have been moved to a nearby hillside, it's nowhere to be found, and for that matter of fact the entire town pretty much underwent the same fait. So, I'm amazed to still find some people at the only remaining farm 'in town'. They tell me the depot has been gone for a long time, and that the only remaining memory, the depot name sign, vanished several years ago after spending many year against the fence bordering their property. I thank the nice folks and continue on my way to Loring for the next depot. After a short delay, taking a wrong turn, or better said, not taking the right turn, I find the road to Loring and even find the first (small and non standard) signs pointing to the different towns. The road gets narrower and less maintained but everything still adds up, so I continue and eventually reach blacktop shortly before entering Loring. The Loring depot is reported to have been moved to a local farm.  Not knowing where the farm is, I decide to ask at the Post Office. Luck has it that I'm talking straight to the owner of the farm. The lady doesn't have good news though, and tells me that she and her husband had moved the depot to their farm. They were in the middle of remodeling it when, during a storm several years ago, a tornado picked it up and threw it on its back, destroying it completely. What a sad end for the depot. So, time now to skip Loring, and head for the Whitewater depot, the next one on the branch. I hope I will get luckier there. I enjoy driving on blacktop, but all too soon I have to make a turn and it's back on gravel again. Although it's slower driving I'm kind of (secretly) starting to enjoy it. Not before long I reach Whitewater and a short drive through town gets me to the depot, moved and used as a garage, with a large door cut in the baggage end. Now I will have to decide on the best way to get to my next stop; Opheim. The shortest way would be straight east but that would mean  another 70 miles driving on gravel roads. The most comfortable way would be to head southwest to Malta which would mean mostly blacktop roads, but at the cost of a 70 mile detour. Not a very good option either. So I decide to go with a compromise and cut southeast on a gravel road to about 10 miles north of Saco (on US 2), where I can drive on blacktop the rest of the way to Opheim. This also has the added benefit of being able to get gas and lunch at a place where I know for sure it's available. I stop in Glasgow to get gas and lunch at Mickey D's. I eat my lunch sitting across the tracks in front of the depot to enjoy some mainline action. I get some shots of the depot and of a run-through Union Pacific SD9043MAC on a BNSF train, stopped at the depot for a crew change. I also get out my map to study the road north to Opheim and notice an abandoned line from Glasgow to a town north of it; St. Marie. I never knew the GN had a branch here! I'm amazed at the size of the town depicted on the map and decide to stop there on my way north, to see if anything GN remains. I get on my way and indeed notice the abandoned line following the road for a while. Just as it curves away to the east St. Marie comes in sight. The town looks a bit out of the ordinary though; rather modern looking homes and all built in the same style. Hmmm. I drive into town to look for the railroad and notice that almost every house is empty. I also see large hanger type buildings on the north edge of town. Ok, this might be or might have been an air force base. Not before long I get confirmation;  the road is closed off with large no trespassing signs announcing that this is called the Montana Aviation Research Site (MARS). Well, ok, I guess there won't be much GN history here, and I really don't need to find out that bad either, so I turn around and leave. Later I find out that this used to be an airforce base, but is now only used occasionally as a Boeing test field. I guess the GN branch was only used to supply or maybe even to construct the base. When I finally get to Opheim, I find the depot gone. Heading east I find more of the same; nothing. Glentana, Richland, Peerless (named after a beer) and Four Buttes (named after...well, you guessed it; they're there) all lost their depots. Bummer. This is not what I was hoping for. I keep on going to Scobey the current end-of-the-line where I'm sure I will at least find a GN painted caboose, although it is Northern Pacific, located at the local Pioneer Town. I find the Scobey depot also, still in use by BNSF. Well, partly in use, most windows are boarded up and their is a big sag in the roof over the baggage room. I'm not sure this depot will survive much longer. Heading out of town I notice the GN, in order to reach Scobey, needed to come down into the Poplar River valley using some sharp curves on a high embankment; wasn't Montana supposed to be flat? On their way east the tracks turn sharply to the north, away from the highway to join it again half way down to Flaxville; a town of controversy, at least when it comes down to the location of the depot. I have two reports; one says it's in use by the local rodeo club and located on the south side of Rt. 5., the other says that it has been moved to Whitetail, a town 7 miles to the north. I check the Rt. 5 location first but come up empty handed, so I decide to make the small detour to Whitetail where I indeed find the Flaxville depot, on a farm just north of town. Whitetail is the endpoint of the Dakota Missouri Valley Western and some of their ex Southern Pacific GP35e units are actually sitting right there in town. I take some pictures of them, standing next to a shed-turned ex-Soo Line wood reefer. Neat little town. East of Flaxville the tracks turn south away from the highway to join it again just before entering Redstone. Where the tracks join the road they pass over a neat little wooden trestle of which I just need to take a picture. There are sure a lot of these on these branch lines. The Redstone depot is a relatively easy find, moved to someone's backyard and in use as a garage. I manage to get my pictures from the road and the 'parking lot' of the  abandoned two-story school behind it. On to Plentywood. On my way I pass the site of the town of Archer, but there is nothing left. The depot was also raised in the 1950s, so lets keep on going. But, hey wait, that looks like the Archer depot sign. One remaining sign of railroad past; now in use as part of an advertising sign. A quick U-turn, a photo, another U-turn and I'm on my way again to Plentywood, where I will stay the night. I check in first and then  go looking for the depot. It's still at its original location and in use by BNSF. I get my pictures of the depot, as well as of a neat cabless SW1 switcher, which looks like it is remote controlled for use at the local elevator. It's still light out and I have plenty of time to look for more, so I decide to follow the branch further south (RR east) to check on the Antelope depot (gone), Reserve depot (gone), Medicine Lake depot (gone), Homestead depot (still there, but abandoned) and Froid depot (gone). Not a very fruitful trip, but at least I know the status of these depots now. Well, back to the hotel to enjoy a nice local meal and a well deserved sleep after a dusty and bumpy trip to discover the Montana branch lines. Tomorrow it's time to look for the same in North Dakota.

Day 9, Friday July 25: Plentywood to Minot, er.. Williston

Today I'm off to an early start since I will be losing a hour crossing into North Dakota and the Central Time zone. First though, it's time to make a phone call to reserve a room at my planned hotel in Minot. I call the national reservation line and ask to book a room. But the hotel is all booked up. Alternatives are all too far away so I decide to try the hotel directly. First it's 'sorry, no rooms' because it's the State Fair. Then, when I explain I really need a room since I'm just passing through town and don't intend to visit the fair, they all of a sudden have a room, but then at three times the rate! What!! Well, she might be thinking that she can make a fast buck, but not off me! No way! I'd rather drive a hundred miles out of my way then to pay that much extra. So I decide to make Williston my night stop and to leave early (again) the next day to make up for the extra travel time. Just great. I make sure to book the hotel in Williston right away, and off I go on my way to see the North Dakota branch lines. After being chased for a while by a tractor-trailer doing about 70 behind me on the two lane road to North Dakota, leaving me totally amazed when I see him, without slowing down, continue straight-on onto a gravel road where the main road makes a 90 degree turn, I reach the first stop; Grenora. The town of Grenora, which is named after the GREat NOrthern RAilway, is the end of the branch line that leaves the mainline at Stanley. This branch line has recently been abandoned and crews are busy tearing up the track. The tracks might be gone soon, but the depot is still there, moved off-line and with a new purpose; to serve as Grenora City Hall. I take the first photos of the day and continue east to Hanks. Hanks should be home to two depots, the Hanks depot which is reportedly moved off-line, and the Zahl depot which was moved to the Pioneer Trails Museum in town. I don't find the Hanks depot, but the Zahl depot is there, together with a nice old railroad crossing sign. The museum is not open, but looking at the size of the town I'm not amazed; I count maybe five homes. The roads in this part of North Dakota are nicely paved, so it's a quick drive to Corinth. Not knowing what size of depot to expect, I almost overlook it. It has been moved into town and turns out to be one of the small portable ones. As with so many small towns I see on my trip, this town looks like it is slowly dying and soon the empty houses will outnumber the ones actually lived in. I can't help wondering if this will be the faith of all the small towns in North Dakota? Well, time to move on and cross over to the next branch line; the Crosby line, situated more to the north, close to the Canadian border. Crosby promises to have several GN structures. The first two I find at the Divide County Museum on the west side of town. As expected they have the Paulson depot, and surprisingly also the Larson depot. The Paulson depot serves as a depot for the small live steam operation that runs around it, and the Larson depot is used for storage. Both are in pretty good condition. The museum is amazing in the amount, and sometimes size, of buildings they have, as well as the collection of tractors and steam rollers, one of which is actually being steamed up. I have a nice chat with the gentleman working on the steam roller and get to hear some interesting memories about growing up along the Great Northern and Soo line in Crosby. He also tells me about a wood passenger body that is supposed to be just east of Stanley on US 2. Strange, I must have missed it, when I passed by there before. I say goodbye and move to the other side of town for the Crosby depot, which was moved there. It turns out to be a relatively easy find. Then it's time to check out the wye in town, which used to house the GN one-stall engine house. Well it's gone, but in its place sits another one; a modern metal building and in use by the DMVW. I wouldn't be surprised if it was actually build right on top of the old one. Some equipment sits a little bit further down the track; a spreader and an interesting looking tender rebuilt into a snowplow. It's on to Noonan where I find the depot, reported to be still standing, gone. On the way to Larson I pass Strange Siding...hmmm...strange... I can skip the planned stop in Larson, and continue straight to Lignite where the depot is supposed to have been moved off line. I can't find it in town anywhere, so I decide to continue on to Niobe. About 16 miles into the trip my eye catches a depot near Perella on the corner of Rts. 5 and 8. It's sitting next to a closed truck stop, its front covered with new siding. I try to find any clues to where this depot this could have come from, but don't find any; could this be the Lignite depot or was it the Perella depot? I take some pictures and I'm on my way again to Niobe, another 'still standing' report. Not so anymore though. Reluctantly I make my rounds through 'town' to see if someone had moved it there, and actually someone did! Painted green, the baggage room turned into a two car garage and with a large addition in the back it still displays its depot sign with pride. Before leaving town I take a quick grab shot of the elevator switcher, a venerable SW1, and of the rather long wooden trestle just outside of town. It's time to leave the Crosby branch and proceed 40 miles east to Mohall on the Sherwood branch for the preserved depot there. The depot has been moved off line and sits together with other historic buildings at the Renville County Historical Museum on the east side of town. Next stop Lansford for the depot there. Also nicely preserved, I find the depot at the Lansford Threshers and Historical Association in a park on the south side of town. People really take care of history in this area! Well, this is as far east as I want to go today. I head down to Minot for the sights there, and will then head west to cover the rest of the branch lines in northwest North Dakota. In Minot I first visit GN Caboose X51, followed by the Minot depot, which is still in use by Amtrak. Next stop; the bridges over the Souris River. I continue east along the yard to look for any Rocky's in the yard and to see if I can get a glance of the cabooses in the park south of it. It's a good thing I did, since I did not only find the cabooses (one BN, one Soo) but also found two unexpected GN pieces of rolling stock. Sitting across the road from the yard on a short spur is  BN snowplow 972803, ex GN X1588! Sold in 1991 for scrap I'm amazed she's still around. She even looks to be on display. I get my pictures and continue-on along the tracks. I pass a nursery when my eye catches a passenger car sitting right in the middle of the plants and flowers. Now what is a passenger car doing in a nursery? I have to go find out. I look around the car, which turns out to be a combine and, although the car has been painted over and all the markings are gone, I do find some castings that say GN on it! Another GN car, wow! Then one of the employees shows up wondering what I'm doing, looking at the car and not at the nice shrubs like normal customers would. After I explain what I'm after, he's willing to share what he knows, which actually isn't all that much. He does show me the inside of the car though, explaining that they use it as their seedling nursery. He also tells me that the floorboards are rotting away badly because of the humid atmosphere they maintain in there (ouch!). He can't tell me anything about the history though, but does let me look around for clues and take pictures. Great. During my inspection I discover caboose type grab irons at the doors. Could this be one of the branch line cabooses? Since I find no other clues, I will have to look at some pictures when I get home. (Well, I did, and she differs in detail from the caboose-converts. She could have been a regular combine though. I noticed they were fitted with these grab irons also. Now, what car could it be?) After these nice discoveries it's time to get gas and have a late lunch and then head west towards Lostwood. I decide to follow US 52 to Rt. 50. US 52 parallels the Canadian Pacific through the Des Lacs river valley. When I enter the valley a short intermodal passes on its way south. A little bit further I notice another train moving north. Slowly I'm catching up to it. It's a grain train moving north and must have just left a siding where it had been waiting for a meet with the intermodal. The train is moving at a leisurely pace and I manage to pass it with ease so I can find a good camera position for a nice shot. A quick wave and some frames later I'm on my way again, keeping pace with the train for quite a while since, although it's moving at a slower pace, the train doesn't bog down in road construction like I do. Eventually I hit new pavement and start making up for lost time. Past Donnybrook I will have to take a left onto Rt. 50. Passing through town, I notice the local gas station. Boy, does it have a familiar look to it. I pass it and check my rear view mirror to see the other side. I see two tall boarded up windows and together with the high roofline it sure looks like it could have been a depot. I better go back and find out. Looking the building over, I could swear it is, but there is no bay window. I decide to go in and ask. I buy a candy bar and ask the lady about the history of the building. She confirms my suspicion; yes, it used to be a depot; the Aurelia depot from just up the hill to the west. Hey, that's on the GN Grenora line! Wow, another unexpected find! I'm feeling lucky today (save the hotel trouble, of course). The lady turns out to be the owner, and she and her husband had recently bought the place. They are remodeling it and are planning on naming it the Gas Depot. They even plan to have a LGB train running around the interior walls and underneath the gable outside. I will have to go back one day and check it out! I wish her succes and continue towards Lostwood. With a last quick glance at the now familiar CP train, which caught up with me again, I turn west onto Rt. 50. I'll be looking for the Palermo depot which has been moved to 'a farm northeast of Lostwood' but as with so many of these, this search turns out to be like looking for a needle in a haystack. I don't waste too much time searching and get back on the road to Powers Lake. The depot has been moved to the north side of town where I find it fenced off in a museum called Centennialville. I still manage to take some decent shots through the fence. Shortly after leaving Powers Lake I catch the first rays of sun for the day; it's finally starting to clear up. I drive through Battleview and Hamlet but they don't yield any depots. Too bad. Then the last stop for today; the Wildrose depot. I take the shortest route; the gravel road that parallels the tracks and after only a short drive I get to Wildrose. The depot has been moved into town but not far. It looks like it was used as a residence for a while but is now only used for storage. The depot is still in good condition, although the train order bracket has seen better days. Wildrose is the last stop for today, and it's only a short trip from here to Williston. I call it a night and turn in early for an early rise tomorrow to compensate for the extra distance to Minot. I have sure seen a lot today! 

Day 10, Saturday July 26: Williston to Grand Forks

With a feeling that the alarm clock went off way to early, I'm up and around and quickly on my way east towards Minot. No fooling around this morning and straight along US 2 to make up for the added distance, I'm telling myself. Apparently I don't listen well to myself because, with boredom setting in, I grab the first chance to break the monotony and turn off US 2 to admire the beautiful White Earth River valley. I had driven through it before and was hoping to get nice pictures of it now. This proved to be quite impossible with the early morning light. Oh well, I tried. Back to US 2 and on to Minot. Reaching Stanley I remember the late light in which I took the photo of the Stanley depot there and decide to go and try to take a picture of the other side which, because of the low light, was impossible before. I turn into town and make my way to the tracks to a point near the grey (Coulee?) depot I saw there before. Approaching it I see a depot building across the tracks, one I had not seen before. Now which one could that be? I decide to check it out and get some pictures. (I reported this depot before in this report, but this is when I actually saw it first) Although I can't identify it, I'm happy that I was able to pass here again to find it, and...no, I'm not going to thank the 'nice' hotel people in Minot for this opportunity either! I then get a decent photo of the Stanley depot from the other end and continue on my way. Just far enough out of town to let my thoughts drift off, I suddenly remember the old wood passenger car I was told of yesterday. I'm sure I must have passed it by now, and not wanting to waste more time I reluctantly continue on my way, when shortly down the road I see it sitting in a field. What a luck; I woke up just in time. To get to it, I would have to cross several barbwire fences so I decide to just take a photo from the road. I'm not able to identify it from a distance and she looks pretty beaten up.Too bad. I manage to drive the rest of the way to Minot without stopping and after a short stop for gas and some food I turn south east on US 52 to start my day checking out the Surrey cutoff. First it's off to Karlsruhe where the depot is reported as being moved off line. I looked all around town but fail to find it. Maybe it was moved to a farm. I also check out a bridge southeast of town which turns out to be a taller version of the familiar concrete design. Back to US 52 and on to Selz, where the depot was moved and is in use as a residential garage. The house that it's now attached to, doesn't look like it's inhabited anymore, although the grass had been cut recently. A lot of the residence-turned-depots are now inhabited, it seems. The original owners are probably deceased now and their offspring must have moved away or decided that living in a depot is not really what they want. I can't help wondering what will eventually come of these depots? Well, enough pondering. It's time to move on to to the other 'German' cities of Hamberg and Bremen. Both of their depots were moved to local farms and although I look around at several farms in the area, none can be found. This does not look good. On to New Rockford where the depot was moved to a farm also and, you guessed it, I can't find it either. Luckily the Brantford depot was moved to the Eddy County Museum in town and is in good condition. Happy that I found something again, I leave town to go to Grace City where the depot was moved to a local...well, you know to what, and you can probably guess the result also...indeed; nada. Grumble. Not deterred by these setbacks I continue winding along over blacktop and gravel roads towards Juanita. Just past Juanita Lake I see the road dipping under the tracks and decide to take a picture of the overpass. At least I got something on this part of line! And by the way; where are all those trains now? This is supposed to be the busy Surrey Cutoff, right? I haven't seen a train since I left Minot. I continue to Juanita, but it doesn't yield a depot either, but I know the next stop will! I checked it out already on the internet and a short drive to McHenry confirms it; the Glenfield depot is there and nicely restored serving as the depot for a local tourist train on the ex Northern Pacific McHenry loop. Two pieces of equipment make up the tourist train; a small Whitcomb diesel and NP caboose 10060. A Russell snowplow (BN 972025 - ex NP) completes the roster. The trip on the line is short and starts at the depot, runs around the loop and returns at the depot, but it's not running today. The depot is closed also, but not without activity. Walking around the depot I notice some birds flying overhead. Not paying much attention to them I go about my business and check out the depot and equipment. A big buzz near my right ear draws my attention, and when I look up I notice one of the birds had just buzzed me. Coincidence, I guess. I continue on when another bird flies right by me within twelve inches of my face. They have my attention now. I look around and see the birds flying in and out of nests built underneath the gable of the roof, and the snowplow. Ha, they must be protecting their young. I'm not going to have these birds chase me away. No way, I have a job to do! I point my camera and manage to take a shot of the caboose before...buzz, buzz, buzz...three more attacks follow and I decide to retreat to the safety of my car and take the rest of the pictures from there. This is the world up side down; now I'm in a cage instead of the birds. How crazy can it get? Well, anyway it's always better than having to explain to a doctor that the damage to my face was caused by a midair collision with a bird with a strong mother instinct! After this unexpected adventure it's time to head north to Hamar on the Casselton-Devils Lake line. Reportedly moved to the north edge of town I fail to locate the depot there and move on eastbound to McVille where I easily locate the depot still on site and in use by BNSF. I also grab a shot of the local elevator switcher and continue on my way to Aneta to look for the depot there, but my visit is in vain. Through Finley (no depot) I reach Hannaford where I even think to have the address for the depot, but no; not there either. This day is starting to feel a bit like a drag. Too many depots that can't be found. I hope I will be luckier tomorrow. Next is something quite different though; the other large steel trestle on the Surrey Cutoff; the Luverne Trestle. I cut straight east from Hannaford towards Karnak where a gravel road (more a dusty path) takes me to the Sheyenne River. Looking at the map I had guessed this road would take me riverside where a good view of the bridge must be possible. Well, I guessed right and take my pictures discovering that this bridge is so long that I can't even capture it completely, even with a 28 mm lens. Although the light is not perfect I get some nice pictures of the bridge in its beautiful surroundings. Then a surprise; I hear a horn blowing in the distance. A train? Finally BNSF decided to send me one my way and just when I'm at the Luverne Trestle. Cool. I get some train photos and then continue on my way towards the town of Luverne. I decide to take the southerly route and follow several gravel roads leaving a big dust trail to eventually reach Rt. 26 to cross the Sheyenne River at Sibley. From here it's blacktop all the way to Luverne. Nice. My luck must have changed for the better, since Luverne yields a depot moved to the local grain elevator and apparently in use as storage. I retrace my steps (or should I say tires) to Rt. 26 and head east towards Pillsbury where the depot is also easily found and in use as a scale house and office. BNSF must have opened the floodgates because another train comes flying through town and I get a nice shot of it passing the local elevator. On to Page for the depot there. I turn the town upside down but can't find the depot. A short trip south takes me to Nolan, which has an interesting collection of track connecting the Surrey Cutoff with the Casselton-Devils Lake line, but alas, as so many, the tower that once served this junction, is gone. I head further south to Ayr where the depot is supposed to be located at the Cass County Pioneer Village. When I see the size of the town it's hard to believe they have a pioneer village but they do and it's really a nice one. The Ayr depot is there, painted red and adorned with several signs of which the wood Great Northern Express sign really catches my eye. The depot is kept company by BN 10409, an ex CB&Q streamlined caboose. I get my pictures while being visited by several Minnesota state birds (yes, we're close to Minnesota here), and look around the village a bit. A small gas station across the street from the depot draws my attention, and I get some pictures of it. It might make a nice modeling project, one day. It's starting to get late and the light is already low so I decide to make a quick dash for Amenia where the depot was moved and converted into a residence. I take a picture of the only house in town that resembles a (modern type) depot and get moving north towards Mayville. I know there is a depot there and want to get pictures of it before sunset. Just before entering town I take a picture of an interesting steel girder wood-trestle-approach bridge combination. Downtown, the Mayville depot is still on site and an easy find. Quickly I take some pictures, since I also want to scoot over to Portland for the depot there. The Portland depot is also fairly easy to find, moved and in use as a bakery. I also check a bridge north of town which is similar to the one at Mayville. I kind of like these combination bridges. With not much time to spare before it gets to dark I continue north and decide to skip the Hatton depot which was moved off line, and go straight for the Northwood depot which is reportedly still on site. It indeed is and in the last light I manage to get some pictures with my trusty digital camera. It's now getting too dark and the pressure is off. I leisurely continue to Grand Forks where dinner and a hotel bed are waiting for me. It's been a long day with several disappointments but also some nice finds.

Continue to Part 4 of my 2003 GN Finding Trip.