Area Attraction information (including water parks and museums of questionable medical devices and more fun for the whole family)

The prairie is indeed beautiful, but be on the look out for lots and lots of wood ticks. You'll know they're nearby when you see and/or hear the horde of mosquitoes.

Also, water parks. Everyone loves a good water park.

Also, The Museum of Questionable Medical Device. Unless the Feds have shut it down.

Stillwater Attractions:

• The awesome I am 100 percent certain although I have never been inside Joseph Wolf Brewery Cave Tour. How could it be LESS than awseome? It's a brewery! In a cave! With wolves (maybe)!
  
• Canoe the St. Croix river, one of the most pristine and scenic rivers in the midwest.  Wild Mountain canoe rentals offer one way and two way trips of varying length.
  http://www.wildmountain.com/canoe/canoe_home.html

Stillwater Museums include:

• Warden's House Museum
• Hay Lake School and Erickson Log House Museum

Closer to the site of the wedding is Marine on St. Croix:

• Breakfast on the river at the Marine Landing
  Good breakfast right on the river.
  Phone: 651-433-2864
  10 Elm Street
  Marine on St. Croix,  MN  55047

• The Scoop
  Great ice cream, right behind the General Store
  
  
• William O'Brien State Park
  Hiking, biking,  swimming and camping
  16821 O'Brien Trail N
  Marine on St. Croix,,  MN  55047
  
  
• Stonehouse Museum
  The Stonehouse Museum features crafts, photographs, and articles of daily life tracing the local history of the St. Croix Valley Settlers from the 1800's, including a Swedish Kitchen. All this and more housed in Marine's former jail.
  241 Fifth Street
  Marine on St. Croix,  MN  55047
  
  Open Memorial Day through Labor Day - Or by appointment through October 31st by calling Isabel Steele at 433-5675.  Saturdays and Sundays  2-5pm. 
  Admission is free, however donations are appreciated.

• Marine on St. Croix official city site
• Marine on St. Croix area attractions and parks
  
  
• Gammelgarden museum in Scandia, MN.
  www.gammelgardenmuseum.org/
  Five historic buildings located on the Gammelgården property help tell the
  story of the early Swedish Immigrant to Minnesota and the community and life
  style they created. They include the oldest Lutheran church in Minnesota. Located 10 minutes from Marine on St. Croix, free tours on the day of the wedding.
  
  
• And, on the day of the wedding, there's the world-famous Midsommar Dag
  Saturday June 27, 2009 10:00 am- 4:00 pm
  Historic Buildings Open FREE
  Art and Craft Vendors
  Gazebo treats (coffee, rolls, hot dogs, 3- meatballs on a bun, cookies and homemade root beer)
  
  Children's activities/games including hoop rolling, tug-of-war, flowerwreath weaving, art projects, butter making, ice-cream making and milk a cow!

Minneapolis and St. Paul Attractions:

• Mall of America
• Science Museum of Minnesota (some notes here: the Questionable Medical Devices on exhibit includes a phrenology machine, vibratory chair, and a fluoroscope, inventions that claimed to cure any number of chronic diseases or treat psychological problems. Also, the  Egyptian mummy was given to the Science Museum in 1925 and ranks as a favorite among visitors. Also, the Egyptian mummy is probably 10 times as dangerous as the museum authorities would lead you to believe. I only say this from hard-won experience.)
• Grand Rios Indoor Water Park
• The Depot Water Park in Minneapolis
• The Water Park of America near the Mall of America
• Bicycling Minneapolis
• Other Minneapolis area attractions that I am too lazy to look up at the moment
  
  But Susan Knapp (Nina's sister) is not, so here are some other area activities she filled us in on (and to be fair and honest, she provided most of the Marine on St. Croix info, too):

Family oriented:

• Como Zoo, conservatory & amusement park
  St. Paul, very close to Roseville
  comozooconservatory.org
  Como Park Zoo and Conservatory
  1225 Estabrook Drive
  Saint Paul, MN 55103
  
  (Editor's commentary: I can vouch for the awesomeness of this park. I once wondered over to the zoo here, I think when Tara was in college, and saw a couple of wild mountain gorillas get in a fight! Now THAT'S entertainment! (Please note that no mountain gorillas were actually harmed during that fight. As far as I know. But on the other hand, what am I? A vetrinarian? I'm not even a vegetarian ...)

• Minnesota Zoo
  www.mnzoo.com
  Apple Valley, MN
  Bigger but much farther away

• Children's Museum
  mcm.org
  Downtown St Paul, one of the best children's museums in the nation

The Arts:

• Walker Contemporary Art Museum
  They have one of the best sculpture gardens in the nation
  Downtown Minneapolis
  www.walkerart.org

• Minneapolis Institute of Art
  www.artsmia.org
  Downtown Minneapolis
  (In case you want to hit on some goth chicks. Don't look at me though. I'm getting married. I don't hit on goth chicks. Any more.)
  (Okay, to be fair, I don't know with 100% certainty that the Minneapolis Instituate of Art will be swarming with Goth chicks in late June. I am relying on my gut instinct and stereotypes here. Maybe Channing can help us out. He used to be all into the goth scene, I hear. Channing?)

• Museum of Questionable Medical Devices
  The museum so fabulous we're listing it twice
  Now in the Science Museum of Minnesota in downtown St. Paul 
  www.museumofquackery.com
  www.smm.org/visit/collections/

• Guthrie Theatre
  Downtown Minneapolis
  guthrietheater.org/