LaCrosse, Mississippi, and flooding

 

The above photo is from Riverside Park in LaCrosse WI. This little statue of the kids and the puppy waving to the boats on the river is something I always stop and admire when walking along here. This photo was taken in August of 2021 when I was getting new tires on my 'Ru.

There is a platform that goes right to the Mississippi's edge here below that statues.

Well not this week!

I shot this with the long lens because they had barricades up around the park. The 'Ru needed new brakes. Charlie and I went for a nice long walk while they were working on it.

People were going around the barricades to look at the water up close and personal...Not me!

After all that water had trees in it, and other gunk. It was swirling so hard that even the lone duck that was there had a hard time keeping afloat.

The bench I usually stop and sit at to people watch down in front of me? Well...

The damage isn't bad at the park at all, after all, the park is used to high water. However the neighborhoods near the river are/were getting their homes flooded. Below is a photo of Cass Street Bridge.

Those are river houses and boats out by Pettibone or Simmons Island. I have no idea how they stay in place.

This is a shot of the building at Pettibone Park across the way. I've never been here yet, but it is on my list of places to explore.

On my way back to the dealership with Charlie, I had to stop and read another funny saying on the sidewalk.  I don't know why these are in LaCrosse but they are! Silly sayings here and there!

It says:

The turtles in the trees
say please sing louder.
Swimming eagles eating cheese
curds and watch the sky for flying
cows driven by cats licking
ice cream. Ants line up at the libraries.

A child tells an adult.
The concrete beneath my feet
is alive with wild ideas
begging my shoes for a ride.

~Matt Cashion

I leave you with that to interpret any way you want. But I love this little ditty. It speaks volumes to me.
Don't ever lose sight of your imagination!

LaCrosse re did several sidewalks and embedded poetry and dance step instructions! What a fun way to celebrate walking through their city!

We take this time for a brief intermission

 

The Subaru needed new tires. One had a very slow leak and honestly, the tread was getting down.

I knew between mounting balancing, and the alignment, it would be a while. I was able to walk to my favorite public park. LaCrosse Riverside Park along the Great Mississippi. I love to walk through the International Friendship Garden. It is free to wander about in and sit on any of the benches. 

The photo above is the entrance to the garden and the first one you can walk into is the oriental garden. Each section of the garden has a Sister City Garden. There are beautiful sculptures hidden away and little fountains along with amazing plants. Volunteers plant the annuals and maintain the gardens. [OH be still my heart! What if I lived close to it! I'd be out working in it for sure!]

Let's not forget the Pelican! A variety of these were placed along a walkway for a few years. This past year, they were all auctioned off except this one. I loved them all and would have loved to have something like this in my yard. Right? Though perhaps a dragon would be a lot cooler.

I walked from one end of this long park to the other end to the base of the bridge.

I didn't get the photos of all the cool statues placed around, but this is one of my favorite ones. Kids in period clothes waving to the River Boats with their dog. The dog is facing back apparently distracted by something else. I spent a lot of time looking at them and thinking about what this city must have been like in the early 1900's.

People donate $ and have bricks interlaid in walk ways which commemorate loved ones. I watched people searching for names in different areas. Others photographed bricks with their phones.

Next time I visit I'll have to find all the cool statues and try and photograph them.

On my way back I noticed little poems embedded in the sidewalks here and there.

If you can't read this poem it says:

Pie Eaters

When I liked pie, I used to lie.

I'd lie about pie.

Why do I lie?

Hey, It's my friend, Ty.

Hey, Ty want some pie?!

Elijah Age 9

Monday was a nice day. 
And really? LaCrosse's Riverfront is a pretty neat place. I do like walking around the whole downtown and just observing.