Hey, we love tourists. We really do. It's obviously a huge industry in our beautiful Northland. I always try to be kind and helpful if someone asks directions or needs some info. Still, sometimes encounters make you shake your head. Like when tourists ask when the whales migrate by. Or like when tourists get too close to wild animals. This exchange had me actually feeling sorry for this lost tourist.

Here's how everything went down. Yesterday was a pretty good day for a motorcycle ride. It was my uncle's last day in Minnesota before heading back out west, so we decided to take a half day ride up the North Shore Scenic Drive from Duluth.

We got to Silver Bay and after hanging out there for a bit, we headed back towards Duluth. It was a beautiful ride. We passed by Gooseberry Falls, which is just 12 miles north of Two Harbors, and then continued back down on the North Shore Scenic Drive back to Duluth.

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We pulled over for a stretch on Stony Point Road. There's a small pull off on the side of the road that overlooks Lake Superior. We could barely see the Aerial Lift Bridge far off in the distance.

Ken Hayes
Ken Hayes
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A car pulled in with tinted windows and some racing accessories. It was a nice car, and it sat there for a bit just idling. We didn't pay much attention to it, until a young man came out asking for our help. He was holding out his phone and asked, "Hey can you guys tell me where the North Shore Scenic Drive is?"

Puzzled, I pointed to the road right behind him and said, "you're on it already, dude." He then shook his head and said, "no, no, no, this can't be the scenic drive because it doesn't look like this." He pointed to a picture of waterfalls that were on Trip Advisor.

"Oh you want to see the waterfalls? Well to see any falls you've got to go past Two Harbors," I replied.

"Wow that's really far! We came all the way from Burnsville."

I could tell he was disappointed. But there wasn't anything to be upset about because Gooseberry Falls wasn't that far away.

"Well hey if you want to see some awesome waterfalls, Gooseberry Falls is just up the road like 20 miles." I guessed off the top of my head, and it turns out I wasn't far off.

Google Maps
Google Maps
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It was a 29 minute drive, from where we were at. Considering they had came all the way from the south metro of the Twin Cities, I figured what's another half an hour? We told him that it's absolutely worth going a bit further to see. He thanked us. Got in his car, and I watched as he turned left and headed south back to Burnsville.

My uncle and I stood there, speechless for a moment. This guy drove all the way from Burnsville, which is 3 hours away, to come within minutes of seeing what he came to see on a year where the falls are flowing crazy, to give up and turn around. I wanted to chase him down on the bike and talk some sense into him.

Upper Falls waterfall at Gooseberry Falls State Park north of Two Harbors, MN
Nick Cooper - TSM Duluth
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I honestly felt bad for the guy. For one, he didn't even notice the beauty that was in front of him as we looked over lake Superior. You could see the grain elevators of the Twin Ports harbor far off in the distance. It was a pretty clear day and you could look across and see Wisconsin's Bayfield area way off to the east across the lake. Apparently this stunning view wasn't what he was looking for.

Not to mention he would have driven by the Split Rock Lighthouse if he just went a few miles further!

Nick Cooper - TSM Duluth
Nick Cooper - TSM Duluth
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I hope he sees this and I hope he comes back to actually experience all of the North Shore. It just keeps getting better as you go with more waterfalls, tunnels, and beauty. If you haven't made it as far as Betty's Pies, then you really haven't gone far enough yet.

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