Temperance River State Park is a state park in Minnesota, located between the communities of Schroeder and Tofte on Highway 61 on the North Shore of Lake Superior. It has campsites, picnic areas, and hiking trails on both sides of the Temperance River.
The Temperance River area was first permanently inhabited by Europeans
in the 1830s. Settlers had to decide what to name various geographical
features. When the geographical surveyors came through the area in 1864,
they noticed that one particular river ran into water which was so deep
that no sand bar formed at the mouth. Because there was no sand bar,
the river was named "Temperance."
In the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps built several overlooks at certain places along the riverside. In 1957, the state organized 539 acres of land into Temperance River State Park. |
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Below: Lee Duquette parked
their truck and from the bridge by the side of the road, they were amazed
by their first look at the Temperance River. |
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Below: After a short walk,
Lee and Karen Duquette, came to the first bridge. From this bridge,
Karen took photos looking back up toward the street bridge. There was
a person standing on the street bridge in the photo below. The Temperance
River was intriguing because of its narrow gorge which has created many
potholes along the bottom of the river. The photo on the right below
is a close-up of the water just under the street bridge shown in the
photo on the left. |
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Below: Lee and Karen Duquette
turned around and faced away from the street bridge and looked out at
the river flowing under the bridge and towards Lake Superior. |
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Below is a close-up of the river as it flows out from under the bridge heading to Lake Superior. It is the part of the river that is shown in the lower left corner of the panorama above. |
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Below: Then Lee and Karen
Duquette crossed over the first bridge and went up a slight hill to
get a view from alongside the Temperance River. |
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Below: Then the two RV Gypsies
went back down towards the first bridge, but instead of going back onto
the bridge they walked beside the river (photo below on the your left)
and then they found themselves high above Lake Superior and saw the
foam swirling as the force of the river hit Lake Superior. |
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Below; After another short
walk and there was an area where Karen Duquette was able to get down
by the river and feel the water and foam. |
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Below: Then
Lee and Karen Duquette walked up a hill where the river has narrowed
into a gorge. |
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Below: A sign about small
pockets of white agates and Karen Duquette photographed some white agate
under her feet. |
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Below: While standing behind
a strong fence, Lee and Karen Duquette looked straight down into a pothole.
Rocks were rolling along a rushing river bottom and got caught in an
underwater current. They swirled turbulently around. The effect was
like a drill - the circular motion of the rocks eroded the surrounding
bedrock and created a pothole. Eventually these rocks may be worn away
and the drilling process stops unless other rocks wash inland continue
the work. |
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Below: Karen Duquette photographed
the water that was flowing rapidly into the pothole below her. |
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Below: Potholes linked to
form a gorge. As water flowed through the gorge, it flowed through the
path of least resistance, which often led through potholes. Eventually
the potholes joined together as the river eroded through the walls that
had separated them. The scalloped edges on the high walls of this gorge
are the remains of potholes that likely began as widely separated hollows
in the stream bed. |
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Below: Upstream of the large
swirling pothole, the river was a rushing torrent as it was forced into
the narrow river gorge. |
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Below: Now Lee and Karen
Duquette, The Two RV Gypsies, have almost reached the second bridge. |
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Below: Standing on the second
bridge and looking upstream, Karen Duquette saw another waterfall. |
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Above: A last look at the trail, as Lee
and Karen Duquette headed back to the street bridge and the parking
lot and moved on to a new adventure. |
AFTER
you have seen all three (3) sections above, please continue on the the
adventures of the two RV Gypsies in 
