Captain Robert C. Vavra, Maiden Voyage Tours – A Driftless Icon I grew up along the Mississippi River in Iowa. After high school I worked on the river commercial fishing, clamming and trapping as a way of life. Unfortunately, the day of the hunter-gatherer on the River came to anContinue Reading
By Rick Pedersen – Americans have always had a romantic fascination and attraction to distilled spirits dating back to the days of prohibition. The location of these Speakeasy joints was often secret and hidden. Visions of Al Capone come to mind and packed businesses full of eager customers dancing theContinue Reading
Ed Chapman, Balloon Ascensions Unlimited Balloon Ascensions Unlimited has the finest balloons and pilots available to carry you wherever the wind decides. The quiet serenity of lighter-than-air flight is a truly majestic experience – a form of poetry. You can float tranquilly over the countryside at treetop level picking leavesContinue Reading
World’s First Pete Gengler is happy that his family and its company, Sno Pac Foods, Inc., got into the organic food business early. Touting itself as the world’s first grower/processor of frozen organic vegetables, Sno Pac, located in Caledonia, Minnesota, is in its third generation of ownership. Pete Gengler’s mother,Continue Reading
Andrzej (ahn-jay) Zalasinski, Executive Director of Lanesboro Area Chamber of Commerce, Recipient of the National Institute Scholarship Completes First Year at Institute for Organization Management A Leadership Training Program Produced by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Jan 9, 2020 WASHINGTON, D.C.- Institute for Organization Management, the professional development programContinue Reading
Cedar Valley Resort – An Interview with Larry Johnson – Owner About Cedar Valley Resort Our Family Resort has 11 beautiful log sided Cabins ranging in size from 1,400 sq’ to over 5,600 sq’ and will accommodate from 2 to 38 guests! Lanesboro MN, named one of America’s Prettiest TownsContinue Reading
By: Rick Pedersen – The rise of small-batch distilleries has pumped new life into the small towns they have set up their operations in. Such is the case of Harmony Spirits located in Harmony, MN, where they have sourced local grains that are artfully distilled with care by Larry, Andy,Continue Reading
What is your best childhood memory here in the Driftless.I remember going to Whitewater State Park while in daycare. All of us daycare kids would go on a hike followed by a swim. We’d always have a picnic lunch. Just thinking of those days makes me smile. I can justContinue Reading
First, a little history … Katie Lange is Farm Operator and manages all aspects of the farm. Katie will be taking over as Owner as Jim and Joyce retire. She is learning numerous aspects of the farm from pest control to customer service. Katie was born and raised in WinonaContinue Reading
What made you choose this type of business?When my late wife, Adrianne, passed in 2006, Havencrest Castle became dark and quiet. She had always given wonderful events for our anniversaries, birthdays, and Christmas. I don’t have her talent for such things, but when friends encouraged me to open my homeContinue Reading
By Nolan Arentz – Kombucha … Maybe you’ve heard of it, maybe you haven’t. Technically speaking, this simple tasty drink consists of tea, fermentable sugar, a colony of bacteria and yeast working together, and whatever kind of natural flavors one so desires. For ex-Engineer Jake Haneman, and now owner of BootleggerContinue Reading
So, what’s your story? Where were you born? How long have you been here in the Driftless, What keeps you here? Bree and Eric (The B and E of B&E’s Trees) were both born in the Driftless. Although Eric left for college and then a job, the long-term goal, fromContinue Reading
By Keewaydin Farms – If you would have told me I would become a farmer when I was younger (or even live in the country for that matter), I would have laughed in your face. My father can confirm this. Born in Driftless dairy country, I couldn’t wait to driftContinue Reading
Driftless Music Gardens, was created in the fall of 2015. It was created out of the concept of turning a hobby into a possible passionate career.Continue Reading
Sean Brown – Impact CoffeeA Driftless Interview What is your best childhood memory?Canoeing the Upper Iowa or taking the pontoon out on the Mississippi If you had a chance for a “do-over” in life, what would you do differently? That’s tough. I would probably pick a different college besidesContinue Reading
Toppling Goliath Talking with Sarah Hedlund – Marketing Director of Toppling Goliath So, what’s your story? How long have you been here in the Driftless, Were you born in the Driftless, What keeps you here in the Driftless? I grew up in southeast Iowa, went to the Minneapolis College ofContinue Reading
By Matt Schumann – Let’s widen the focus way back before we zoom in on Emma Big Bear. Trying to describe the life of a centuries old Ho-Chunk woman, through a web essay – to generations B, X, Y and Z – is perhaps an exercise in folly. We inContinue Reading
Carl’s earliest memory of being in a canoe was on the Sugar River, near Brodhead Wisconsin sitting on the bottom of his family’s first canoe, just a little in front of his Dad, who was paddling stern. his brother was in front of the center thwart and Mom was paddlingContinue Reading
By Rick Pedersen – Growing up as a kid, I always thought I was invincible and never gave thought to the possibility of contributing to my own demise. As an adult, I think back to past deeds and have second thoughts about invincibility. I consider myself a spiritual person, andContinue Reading