Just returned from a weekend away and thought the highlights deserved attention. We chose New Ulm based on location and gas prices– close to the cities AND Mankato, where the rest of our party came from. There is lots to do in and around New Ulm, here’s a sampling of what we enjoyed. If you’re into small towns or German heritage, this place is for you.
Flandrau State Park is a nice little gem for visitors and locals alike. We hiked the dense trails along the Cottonwood River and saw lots of deer, turkey, red squirrel, and enjoyed the owls at night. I understand this is a great location to enjoy spring and fall bird migrations. Great stargazing and really nice bathrooms in the electric campground (be warned that they pack em in pretty tight, rustic campground was more spread out). Their sand bottom pool also drew crowds the whole time we were there.
Schell’s Brewery – previously only familiar with this place from their annual Bockfest celebration in February (too crowded now but here’s a good link - http://www.minnesotastuff.com/bockfest/tripreport.htm), we thoroughly enjoyed our tour of the 2nd oldest family-owned brewery in the nation. The tour was easy and informative, recommended for all ages (if you don’t drink beer, their root beer is a great alternative). I highly-recommend it for brew connoisseurs and cultural buffs alike. The landscaping on the grounds was beautiful and provided lots of shade on a warm afternoon. Hummingbirds were visiting the trumpet vines next to the hops plant. We were also lucky enough to get close to the new peacock chicks – the latest additions to the Schell’s family flock.
New Ulm – this is such a cute little town that not only maintains it’s heritage but keep it’s development in line with that. The old historic buildings %26amp; homes are incredible – we spent a couple hours viewing those alone! Of course no trip to New Ulm is complete without visiting Herman the German – a beautifully refurbished statue from the original Ulm, Germany. You can climb to the top and enjoy the view for a $1.25 donation. It did baffle me that they’ve not capitalized on developing their riverfront. However, since it falls in an active flood plain, that probably explains it.
A couple jewels worth mentioning on Minnesota St (the main drag) - Larkspur Delicatessen has a cute, comfy interior, a great place to hole up on a bad weather day. This was the only place I could find for snobby coffee, and probably the best scone I’ve ever had. They’re one of the downtown few places with a nice patio. We were also pleasantly surprised with the Kaiserhoff Restaurant, enjoying German wine %26amp; beer and their sampler platter – incredible! I purchased their famous BBQ sauce and finished off half the bottle at camp before heading home.
We plan a couple more future trips to New Ulm... 2009 is the 2000 year anniversary and there will be a city-wide celebration. Keep an eye on http://www.ci.new-ulm.mn.us – it appears they’re building the event site now. Also, Schells is having a large 150th anniversary celebration in 2010, where they’ll release a special edition brew.
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