From the East Coast to Minnesota: a Road Trip
Inigo describes his trip to Carleton, and the fun places he stopped at along the way
Inigo describes his trip to Carleton, and the fun places he stopped at along the way
After the initial excitement of getting into Carleton subsided in the Spring of last year, I had to face the elephant in the room. I live in Massachusetts. Carleton is in Minnesota. That’s 1300 miles of roads to traverse, mountains to climb, and rivers to ford.
Of course, there was the simple option of a three hour flight, but with a heavy mattress and two weeks worth of clothes to carry, it was looking more and more like we would have to make the journey on foot. Or, in a car. So on September 4th, 6 days before new student week began, my mother and I loaded the trunk and headed west to begin our journey into the American heartlands.
The First Stop
While the drive itself takes around 25 hours to complete, we were determined to take our time and have some fun along the way. First stop was Letchworth State Park in western New York. As we arrived, many signs reminded us that we were now entering what was voted as the best State Park in the country. Voted by whom? Unclear. Maybe themselves.
In any case, it was very pretty. A huge gorge that you could walk along cut through the park, and the hotel sat right next to a roaring waterfall that was lit up at night. Early September ended up being the perfect time to visit, because the leaves were just starting to color up and in the air was the crispness of early Fall.
But after a while we needed a change of scenery. Our next stop was ideal for this, because we drove down to Sandusky, Ohio to visit the amusement park Cedar Point.
Cedar Point
Cedar point was the polar opposite of Letchworth. Instead of tranquil roads lined with yellowing trees, the town of Sandusky was packed with commercialized entertainment and restaurant chains. The sudden change seemed to represent everything we want as Americans: a place to relax in nature for a few days before driving five hours to a dopamine-filled wonderland. It was beautiful.
We tried our best to ride every roller coaster, but in the end we only managed around 12 before starting to get dizzy. (Out of 18, which I think are pretty good numbers).
The Twin Cities
Soon we crossed the border into Minnesota and headed for the last checkpoint that every Carleton student inevitably visits: the Mall of America. While no longer the largest mall in the country (thanks, American Dream Meadowlands in New Jersey), it’s still an impressive sight. It was here that I stocked up on the essentials: soap, toothpaste, snacks, a desk fan, a power strip, etc, before getting distracted and wandering into the theme park in the center of the mall, where my mother found me looking at Spongebob’s pineapple instead of shopping.
If you’re like me, you’re likely to forget something in your initial haul. Luckily, there’s a Target near campus that I’ve visited far too many times.
The Final Stretch
The day eventually came when I had to say goodbye to the comfort of the city and drive down to Northfield, Minnesota, my new home for the next 4 years. As the skyscrapers turned to townhouses and anxiety built in my stomach, I reflected on my situation. My transitional journey, from the end of high school to this final road trip, was coming to an end. In a little while I would start a new one, in a different place with interesting people, and what was new and nerve-wracking to me before would become normal soon enough.
Luckily, Carleton prides itself on making sure the new students feel comfortable. After some very friendly athletes (who had been on campus for a few weeks already) helped me bring my things to my dorm and my parents and I said goodbye to each other, the robust New Student Week programming began and I was swept up into college life. I’m not homesick, but I do see the glossy floors of the Mall of America in my dreams.
Inigo (he/him/his) is trying very hard to turn interests in subjects like film, english, and psychology into a manageable course load. Originally from Somerville, Massachusetts, he can often be found running in the Cowling Arboretum (and getting passed by everyone on the cross country team) or rock climbing at the bouldering cave in the evening. He loves Carleton’s walkability: it didn’t even matter that he forgot to bring his bike to campus. He considers bad horror movies to be the ultimate form of entertainment.