An opinion piece by Bruce Karnick

Having been part of the Journal for a few months now, I quickly discovered my favorite part of the week is delivery day. Paper delivery day sounds like it would be a lame thing at first thought but hear me out. I was a cross country motorcoach driver for five years before becoming a garbage truck driver for over four years. I have spent a fifth of my current life behind the wheel of a vehicle in a professional manner. Which means one thing, I LOVE DRIVING. The open road, the people I see, the places I visit, the views. I enjoy it. So why is this newsworthy? Driving around Hastings and now Cottage Grove going store to store is not the story. Yeah, I visit nine stores in Hastings, and thirteen stores in Cottage Grove. The people have been great at those locations. But the drive I am talking about is the drive I make to the post offices.

I know you are thinking,“ Bruce, have you lost your mind? You LIKE driving to the post office?” No, hear me out. When I finish the Hastings store run, I end at Coborn’s on the south end of Hastings. At that point, I hop on 316 and make a big loop. My first stop is the post office in Welch. THIS is the part I am talking about, and right now, it is spectacular. The road going in and out of Welch is a winding road that is surrounded by farmland and trees. So many beautiful trees. I come in from the north and leave heading south to Cannon Falls. It is a twisting, turning, up and down road full of amazing color right now. Colors that will soon be gone. I hope that you can find the time to make that drive and enjoy the colors. The start of County 7 Blvd. is only 15 minutes from the middle of Hastings and not quite 30 minutes from Cottage Grove. The twelve to fifteen-minute trip though the valley takes you into Welch, past the Cannon River Inn, and past Welch Village Ski Area where you will end up in Vasa, MN. For the record, I’d suggest stopping for a pizza at the Cannon River Inn if they are open. Once you get to Vasa, you will come to Highway 19. There you can make a right and head to Cannon Falls or a left toward Red Wing. Both options give you another 10-15 minutes of great views of the colors and access to awesome local shopping. The round trip from Hastings without stops should be 45 minutes to an hour, and you can extend it by another 45 or so minutes by going through Red Wing, crossing over to Wisconsin and heading north to Prescott along the river. That happens to be one of my favorite routes to go on the motorcycle, so please, keep an eye out for the folks on two wheels. Don’t be afraid to let them pass you either. The curves of the roads are a blast on the bike at posted speeds.