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100 Miles

A document of the road I've driven hundreds of times.

Trees on the shore — 1. Trees on the edge of one of the mine pits a few miles from my childhood home. I’ve driven by this spot thousands of times in my life.

The distance between where I live now and where I grew up is almost exactly 100 miles. I’ve driven that stretch of road hundreds of times over the last 20 years and have mostly viewed it as an obstacle—the thing I have to deal with for two hours if I want to see my parents. It’s not a very exciting drive. There are a few very small towns, lots of trees, and that’s about it. It’s not ugly, just forgettable.

Tree on the corner — 2. Cty Rd 30 and 32. Not quite the shot I had in mind of this tree, but I had one lens and this is what I got. I’ll be back.

Despite this, I have of course noticed things over the years. Little areas that I think might be worth shooting, but I convince myself otherwise because the mission is to get to the destination. Sure, I’ve stopped a few times at a couple of spots, but just a few.

3. This old cabin has also taunted me for years. I need a slightly longer lens. Just out of frame is a new house being constructed. This has been the only structure within miles, but I’m guessing there will be a row of houses here in a year.

On Friday morning I was going to be making this trip to pick up my son, who had been visiting my parents for a few days during a break. Lying in bed, the thought dawned on me that I had some extra time and should make an attempt at slowing down a bit and stopping at some of the spots that have been nagging me for the last 20 years. I started to make a mental note, and then one on my phone, of all the spots I’d like to check out. I had a list of 25! I started to feel a bit excited. I knew I had a couple of extra hours to make stops along the way. I checked the weather—a mixed bag. I knew none of the locations would have ideal conditions on my way through, but to hell with it. I hardly ever see these spots under decent conditions, so this would be representative.

Utility House — 4. Not sure what this little shed is for, but it’s a few hundred yards off the highway on a minimum maintenance road. I’ve stopped here a few times. The surrounding structures have disappeared over the years.

I decided to shoot it all on 120 film, Tri-X 400. It sounds cliche, but as someone who has shot primarily digital for the past 20 years, slowing down with that old camera puts a smile on my face. Not being able to know what I got is kind of nice in this context. I’ll be making the trip again at some point—I don’t need to overthink it.

Mississippi River Flood Diversion Channel — 5. Flood Diversion Channel Mississippi River. This was built after a massive flood in the 1950s near Aitkin, MN. It is the only channel like it on the entire river and diverts a portion of the water away from town. I first saw this about 10 years ago when I decided to take a slight detour home. I had never seen it before and it blew my mind seeing such a long, straight stretch of river.

Despite wanting to slow down, I ended up severely underestimating how much time I’d want to spend at each spot, and pretty soon I was rushing. I shot two rolls and ended up liking over half of what I got. I also realized how many more things there are along this route that I want to shoot, including a lot of what I captured on this trip in different conditions.

6. Warehouse building in Cromwell, MN. I love this building and a few others in rough shape within a few blocks. I’ll have to come back and spend a morning here.

To have something sitting under your nose for so long and not connect the dots feels like a good reminder to keep your eyes peeled, stay in the moment, and take the time to give things a try. I’ve been in that zoned-out, podcast-on, thinking-about-work mode while driving so many times—it’s like you have blinders on. There’s so much out there if you look.

Fuel and Save — 7. This abandoned fuel pump always grabs my attention. I’ve shot it once before. I have some ideas for this.

Abandoned storefronts — 8. Some abandoned storefronts in Tamarack.

Tamaracks along the hightway — 9. Tamaracks and swamp. I’ve shot from this spot before, but a bit more telephoto and focused on the trees. I noticed this downed tree a ways away from where I parked but was getting wet feet trying to capture it. I need to spend a little more time here.

Birds on a wire — 10. There were even more birds when I first drove by. I came back and they all left at once. I waited for 5 minutes or so and they slowly made their way back. I wish I had a slightly tighter lens, but I also like the sky. I thought it would rain any minute.

Barn over the hill — 11. The top of this bar is visible from the highway. I’ve wanted to shoot it for so long and I definitely have thoughts about how I might approach it in the future.