Whose view? From where? — November 2012

First, let's get the location set — I'm happy for the folks who take the "from where" part of this monthly segment seriously, it can really matter!

• "This looks like an east-facing view of the oak savanna/prairie remnant near 36th Street East and West River Parkway [in Minneapolis]," writes Jonathan Riehle.
• "This picture is looking downstream between the small hill on the left and the slope up to West River Road on the right," notes Eric Otterness. "There is a small hill, picnic area, and lots of oak trees in this area."

Why is this area so significant? As John Masengarb also pointed out, it's an oak savanna, and there are just five remaining acres of oak savanna in Minneapolis. The savanna "was visited by some of us earlier this fall."

The rare restored oak savanna is not all that makes this area memorable:

• "We sledded there many winters as kids," recalls Ron Middlestadt. "We'd start just north of 38th street and work our way to the glen, which provided the most interesting paths at that time for sledding."
• The area is "locally known as 'Giggly Hills'," notes Brian Nerbonne. "I'm told the name comes from the sounds of delight made by children sledding on the many hills in the park."

And importantly, Brian adds, "FMR's River Gorge Stewards have done a wonderful job of restoring and maintaining a high-quality remnant of this rare habitat."

Kudos to you all, guessers and stewards alike! (And if youd like to be notified of future Gorge Stewards volunteer and education events at the oak savanna and other special places, just let our Outreach & Volunteer Coordinator, sue rich srich@fmr.org know youd like to be added to the Gorge Stewards list.)

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.