A Wednesday Walk at Fireman’s Park

For this week’s #wednesdaywalk, as inspired by @tattoodjay, I snuck out yet again for a short lunch walk. The temperatures in this area have been warming up of late thanks to a warm front passing through the area. Fortunately, we haven’t had any of the poor weather the East Coast had had of late, but we’ve still received plenty of snow!

The park I took a walk through is called Fireman’s Park. There isn’t much history about the park online. I did notice a gravestone that was covered by snow, so I did manage a bit of research after the walk. As history turns out, the gravestone is that of Princess Marinuka. Marinuka died on October 5, 1884, at the early age of 32. She was the daughter of Chief Winneshiek and the granddaughter of Chief Decorah. A peak nearby is named after Decorah and his battle with Black Hawk in the early part of the area’s recorded history. Unfortunately, I was not able to find any detail of the young princess's cause of death.

The park itself, although covered in snow, is one that I will return to in warmer weather. There were multiple picnic tables, grills, and even frisbee golf holes. There are also two ponds (both frozen over as of today) that are used to spawn trout. The trail itself has a walking bridge further in the park, but time ran short and I wasn’t able to make my way that far.

What a pleasant surprise for a Wednesday walk. Honestly, I was simply trying to find a backroad spot to park the car and take in some scenic, snow-covered sights. When I came upon the trail, I was indeed most pleasantly surprised!