Monticello, Minnesota

Mother Nature sent us a few days of cold weather, but now we are back with some warmth. Thank Goodness! Not so in one of our namesake cities, Monticello, Minnesota. There, today, it is too cold to snow, high is 21 degrees and low, a balmy, 3 degrees. Although on Monday, they saw a low of -13, yes, minus 13. Those Monticellians must be some tough cookies.

That Monticello is located right on the Mississippi River, just a few miles from where the Mighty Mississippi originates. Their town symbol is a swan. Who thinks of Minnesota and swans? They are beautiful birds gliding effortlessly in tranquil waters, not fighting for their lives in such a cold climate. According to the city guide, the swans nest in that area because the local nuclear plant dispels warm water into the Mississippi River which gives the swans a warm climate to winter.

Both cities share the same name which is an Italian word meaning, “little mountain.” Both have weekly newspapers, we have The Monticello News and they have the Monticello Times. Each newspaper has similar news, county and city government news, wedding announcements, and birth announcements.

They had an interesting story about the local Senior Center. The community donated 93 cans of coffee helping them save $700-800 this coming year. Not a bad idea.

Minnesota Monticelloans enjoy their snow mobiles like we love four wheelers. They also love their sports, the high school teams are called Monticello Magic and include bowling and swimming. They also love to fish except you need a fish house there to do so. Fish house?

Yes, it’s a little house fisherman use to protect themselves from the bitter cold while ice fishing. You gotta love fishing.

Maybe Monticello, Minnesota should be on our travel bucket list.

Charles Green who lives in Turtle Cove is actually going to Minnesota for an ice fishing trip. We’ll have to get a full report from him when he returns.