First stop on the tourist route is Paul Bunyon Park where the second-most photographed statues in the US reside. Bemidji’s other claim to fame is to be the first city on the Mississippi. The visitor center has a collection of big items in honor of Paul Bunyon, and it reminded me of Dad’s “big” present for Christmas one year when he said he didn’t care what he got, he just wanted it to be big. We gave him a collection of “big” stuff:)

There was also a Farmer’s market in the downtown area. I bought some purple-colored green beans which we have never eaten. The purple did cook out of them, but they were tasty. We enjoyed walking around the lovely downtown with many, many shops and pieces of artwork. The Beltrami County Courthouse is just a couple of blocks from the downtown streets. It’s a pretty red-brick structure but has an unfortunate annex that blocks part of the north end of the front which looks out of place.