Whose view? From where? August 2010
Whose view, indeed.
Last month we reported that nobody correctly guessed the answer to the Whose view? From where? photo. Apparently, for the first time in the three years this column has run, we stumped you all. (We did have one incorrect, but very close, guess.)
The 297-acre parcel from which this photo was taken, known within FMR as The Freitag Property, is located just downstream from downtown Hastings and the confluence of the Vermillion and Mississippi rivers.
FMR helped acquire the parcel for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, which has now been protected as a state Aquatic Management Area, and as part of the Gores Pool Wildlife Management Area.
FMR had pursued acquisition of the property since 2000, and was successful in 2009 when the property was turned over to the DNR.
This project took a lot of twists and turns and it took a while to come together, noted FMR Conservation Director Tom Lewanski. We helped to broker the deal, working with the landowner, the State and the City. Perseverance pays, he said. Im glad we hung in there.
On the opposite bank of the river is the railroad track running downriver to Prescott, Wisconsin (down the river to the right in the photo), and on the bluff behind the tracks is Point Douglas Road.
Panning the virtual photo to the left (upstream) one can see Hastings railroad bridge in in the distance.
This months view is a little more difficult to pinpoint. As a hint, this is taken from a site that FMR has helped to protect in recent years. You also have the advantage of a 360° view in the panorama below. To load the panorama requires a minute or so of patience, plus Apples QuickTime plugin.
Once you've installed the software use your cursor to view the 360 degree panorama. Additionally, holding down the shift key zooms in and the control key zooms out. This picture is a reduced-resolution version created specifically for viewing on the web.
About Whose view? From where?
Each month in this section, we feature a photo somewhere along the river corridor in the Twin Cities that is in some way significant or important or just plain scenic. Individuals may then e-mail us and identify the view and explain why they believe it is significant to the community or important to them personally. Well publish some of your responses in the next issue of Mississippi Messages, where we will also reveal the correct answer.
To submit your guess and response, e-mail Bob Spaulding, River Advocate, through our contact form. The respondent to provide the first correct identification of the view and hopefully some interesting thoughts about its significance will receive a valuable prize for their effort. All entries must be received by the first day of the following month for consideration.