Saint Paul Classic Bike Tour Returns for 21st Year

Image Credit: St. Paul Classic Bike Tour

The 21st Annual Saint Paul Classic Bike Tour takes place on Sunday, September 13th.  The tour is a great way to see St. Paul's parks and parkways mostly traffic free with many of your cycling friends and family.  Last year over 6,000 riders came out for this yearly tradition.

The ride starts at the University of St. Thomas.  Riders can choose from the 15 mile Summit Avenue Loop, the 33 mile St. Paul Grand Round and the 48 mile Grand Round + Summit Avenue Route.  Rest stops will be spaced out along the routes with food, beverage and live music.

Image Credit: St. Paul Classic Bike Tour

Online registration for the St. Paul Classic Bike Tour is now open.  Registration by mail is also available.  Proceeds benefit the Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota to help Minnesota communities become more bicycle friendly.  Volunteers opportunities will be posted in June, visit the Volunteer page to learn more when posted.  Visit www.bikeclassic.org for more information and updates.

Pedal Hub Podcast Keeps Listeners Updated on Growing Twin Cities Bike Community

Pedal Hub is a weekly podcast brought to you by Minnesota Public Radio and is hosted by owner of One On One Bicycle Studio Gene Oberpriller, Amber Dallman from St. Paul Women on Bikes and 30 Days of Biking founder Patrick Stephenson.  These 30 minute episodes cover a number of cycling topics, what's going on with cycling in the Twin Cities and include guest cycling enthusiasts providing interesting discussions.

Image Credit: Banjo Brothers

Pedal Hub started back in August and continues to gain new listeners with each new episode.  This podcast is for all cyclists, beginner or experienced and is full of useful information and insight into cycling in the Twin Cities.  Visit the Pedal Hub page on the MPR News website for new and past episodes.  Subscribe to Pedal Hub on iTunes or the RSS Podcast Feed.  Stay updated on Pedal Hub by following on Twitter.

Plan Your Own Twin Cities Brewery Taproom Bike Tour

The Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area is known for two things, cycling and craft beers.   With our bike infrastructure and a boom of new microbreweries, this give cyclists a great opportunity to bike to a multitude of taprooms around the Twin Cities.  So many breweries with taprooms are scattered throughout Minneapolis and St. Paul that you should be able to plan several bike tours without hitting the same ones twice, unless you are compelled to visit your favorites.  Ride with friends, in the era of social media it shouldn't be hard to put together your own group taproom bike tour.  If you prefer that someone else do the navigating, check in with Bike to Beer in Minneapolis for upcoming bike tours of local microbreweries.  To help you better plan your own brewery taproom bike tours, I have created a Twin Cities Taprooms by Bike map.

View Twin Cities Taprooms by Bike in a larger map

Open this map on your smartphone to help you reach your taproom destinations or use it to plan out a ride using your favorite cycling/mapping app or GPS software.  Use the Bicycling map layer available in Google maps to show trails, bike lanes and bicycle friendly roads to plan the most bike-friendly routes from taproom to taproom.  

Taproom hours* vary, so plan out your route in accordance with those that are open on the day of your ride.  Below is a list of the brewery taprooms on this map with hours and website links.

*Taproom hours subject to change.  Visit brewery website or call for updated taproom hours. 

945 NE Broadway St., Ste.188, Mpls
Taproom hours:
Wednesday 4-10 pm
Thursday 4-10 pm
Friday 2:30-Midnight
Saturday Noon-Midnight
Sunday 11:30 am-9 pm
612-217-0437

 

4571 Valley Industrial Blvd S, Shakopee

Taproom hours:

 Tuesday 3-7pm

Wednesday 3-10pm

Thursday 3-10pm

Friday 3-11pm

Saturday 12-11pm

Sunday 12-8pm

952-230-2739

2320 Capp Rd., St.Paul

Taproom hours:

Friday 4-10pm

Saturday 2-8pm

 1315 Tyler St NE, Mpls
Taproom hours:
Wednesday 4-11 pm
Thursday 4-11 pm
Friday 3-11 pm
Saturday Noon-11 pm
612-276-6911

 1744 Terrace Dr, Roseville
Taproom hours:
Wednesday 4-10 pm
Thursday 4-10 pm
Friday 2:30-11 pm
Saturday Noon-11 pm
Sunday Noon-7 pm
844-TRY-BENT

2222 4th St., White Bear Lake
Taproom hours:
Tuesday 4-10 pm
Wednesday 4-10 pm
Thursday 4-10 pm
Friday 3-11 pm
Saturday 1-11 pm
612-360-2986

 2014 Washington Ave. N.,Mpls
Taproom hours:
Wednesday 4-9 pm
Thursday 4-9 pm
Friday 4-9 pm
Saturday 1-9 pm
Sunday 1-6 pm
612-227-9635

 

1750 Thomas Ave. W., St. Paul
Taproom hours:
Thursday 4-9 pm
Friday 4-10 pm
Saturday 2-10 pm
Sunday 2-6 pm
651-444-8882

1300 2nd St. NE, Mpls
Taproom hours:
Tuesday 4-10 pm
Wednesday 4-10 pm
Thursday 4-10 pm
Friday 3 pm-12 am
Saturday 12 pm-12 am
612-209-2626

920 East Lake Street #123, Mpls
Taproom Hours:
Sunday-Thursday 11am-10pm
Friday-Saturday 11am-12am
612-217-4668 

7929 Victoria Dr., Victoria
Taproom hours:
Wednesday 4-10 pm
Thursday 4-10 pm
Friday 4-10 pm
Saturday 12-10 pm
Sunday 12-6 pm
952-300-8408

421 3rd St., Excelsior
Taproom hours:
Wednesday 4-10 pm
Thursday 4-11 pm
Friday 4-11 pm
Saturday 12-11 pm
Sunday 12-6 pm
952-474-7837

2506 Central Ave NE, Mpls
Taproom hours:
Monday-Thursday 4-11pm 
Friday 4pm-12am
Saturday 12pm-12am
Sunday 12-9pm
Taproom: 612-444-3574

 

 688 Minnehaha Ave E, St. Paul

Taproom hours:

Tuesday 3:30-6:30 pm

Thursday 3:30-6:30 pm

Friday 3:30-6:30 pm

Saturday 12-6:30 pm

651-698-1945

 414 6th Ave N, Mpls

Taproom hours:

Wednesday 3-10 pm

Thursday 3-10 pm

Friday 3-11 pm
Saturday 12-11 pm
Sunday 12-6 pm

Home Twins games

612-333-3208

 7785 Lake Dr., Lino Lakes

Taproom hours:

Wednesday 2-10 pm

Thursday 2-10 pm

Friday 2-10 pm

Saturday 2-10 pm
Sunday 12-8 pm

651-964-2160

 3036 Minnehaha Ave., Mpls

Taproom hours:

Tuesday 4-10 pm

Wednesday 4-11 pm

Thursday 4-11 pm

Friday 4 pm-12 am

Saturday 1 pm-12 am
Sunday 2-9 pm

612-315-4633

112 1st St. S., Buffalo

Taproom hours:

Wednesday 5-10pm

Thursday 5-10pm

Friday 3-10pm

Saturday 3-10pm

Sunday 2-7pm

hayespublichouse@gmail.com 

 711 NE 15th Ave., Mpls

Taproom hours:

Wednesday 3-11 pm
Thursday 3-11 pm

Friday 12-11 pm

Saturday 12-11 pm
Sunday 12-8 pm

612-843-5090

2821 E Hennepin Ave., Mpls

Taproom hours:

Monday-Thursday 3-11pm

Friday 3pm-12am

Saturday 12pm-12am

Sunday 12pm-11pm

612-722-7222  

 

1900 Tower Dr W., Stillwater

Taproom hours:

Tuesday-Thursday 5-10 pm

Friday-Saturday 12-10 pm

Sunday 12-6 pm

888-430-2337

725 Mainstreet, Hopkins

Taproom hours:

Wednesday 4-10 pm

Thursday 3-10 pm

Friday 2 pm-12 am

Saturday 12 pm-12 am
Sunday 12-7 pm
952-938-2415

248 River St. N., Delano

Taproom hours:

Wednesday 4-10pm

Thursday 4-10pm

Friday 4-11pm

Saturday 2-11pm

Sunday 2-6pm

763-333-1033

2934 Lyndale Avenue S., Mpls

Taproom hours:

Tuesday 5 pm-12 am
Wednesday 5 pm-12 am

Thursday 5 pm-12 am

Friday 2 pm-1 am

Saturday 12 pm-1 am
Sunday 12-10 pm

612-326-1999

712 Ontario Avenue West, Mpls

Taproom hours:

Wednesday 3-10 pm

 Thursday 3-10 pm

Friday 12 pm-1 am

Saturday 12 pm-1 am

612-321-8324

1500 NE Fillmore St., Mpls

Taproom hours:

Thursday 4-11 pm
Friday 4-11 pm

Saturday 12-11 pm
Sunday 12-9 pm

612-758-0105

221 2nd St. N., Delano

Taproom hours:

Thursday 4-8pm

Friday 4-10pm

Saturday 2-10pm

Sunday 11am-6pm

 4848 W 35th St., St. Louis Park

Taproom hours:

Wednesday 3-8 pm
Thursday 3-8 pm

Fridays 3-10 pm

Saturday 12-10 pm

952-955-9965

910 Montreal Cir., St. Paul

Taproom hours:

Friday 4-9 pm
Saturday 4-9 pm

651-265-7800

520 Malcolm Ave. SE, Mpls

Taproom hours:

Sunday-Thursday 11 am-11 pm
Friday-Saturday 11 am-12 am

763-535-3330

 125 E 9th St #127, St. Paul

Taproom hours:

Wednesday 4-10 pm

Thursday 4-10 pm

Friday 3-11 pm

Saturday 12-11 pm
Sunday 12-5 pm
651-330-4734

2325 Endicott Street, St. Paul

Taproom hours:

Tuesday 3-10 pm
Wednesday 3-10 pm

Thursday 3-10 pm

Friday 12-11 pm

Saturday 12-11 pm
Sunday 12-8 pm
651-340-5793

 255 W Main St, Waconia
Taproom hours:
Monday 4-9pm
 Tuesday 4-9pm
Wednesday 2-9pm
Thursday 2-9pm
Friday 2-10pm
Saturday 11am-10pm
Sunday 1-8pm
612-888-2739

Shop Minnesota museums for the most unique holiday gifts

If you crave gifts that are unexpected and go up a notch on the cool factor, skip the big retailers. Head to your local museums instead.

Museum gift shops celebrate regional artists, authors and local flavor in a ways you won't get at most stores. By shopping at museums, you're supporting Minnesota's cultural scene as well as taking a breather if you're able to enjoy the exhibits, too.

Mill City Museum, Minneapolis
The Mill City Museum (left) in particular melts into the holiday mood thanks to its focus on Minneapolis' history as the flour capital of the world for half a century. General Mills with its Betty Crocker icon and Pillsbury with its Dough Boy continue the homey kitchen legacy. I always leave with an urge to go bake cookies.

What you can find here: Lip balm scented like Pillsbury cinnamon rolls, stuffed Dough Boys, hot dish cookbooks, Minnesota-invented Bundt cake pans, wonderful junior chef bakeware for kids, and aprons with attitude: "I'm not Betty Crocker. Deal with it!"

Minnesota History Center,  St. Paul
Visitors to the Minnesota History Center will find top-of-the-line local treats that tie into its new show, "Chocolate: The Exhibition." On loan from the Field Museum in Chicago through Jan. 2, it follows the history of how a humble cocoa bean became one of the world's most sought-after flavors.

It's also an ideal place to pick up something for book-lovers such as Peg Meier's "Wishing for a Snow Day: Growing Up in Minnesota," beautifully photographed "Paddle North: Canoeing the Boundary Waters-Quetico Wilderness" from Greg Breining and Layne Kennedy, and novels such as Dean Urdahl's "Uprising," the first in a trilogy about the U.S. Dakota War of 1862.

Need stocking stuffers? Look for light-hearted loon flutes, ladyslipper socks and Ole and Lena fortune cookies.

Science Museum of Minnesota, St. Paul
This is the greatest shop for nature and biology kits, guidebooks, rocks and minerals, dinosaur puzzles and other wonderful hands-on gifts for curious kids (or adults).

A sampling of goodies for under $20: hand-held, take-apart brain-teasers similar to Rubik's Cube; origami kits for folding bunnies that hop and birds that can flap their wings; a build-your-own kaleidoscope kit; and DVDs of favorite IMAX movies.

To shake things up a little, you can pose with Anubis (left), a 26-foot-tall replica of the Egyptian god erected this week at Landmark Plaza. It makes for an enchanting Christmas outing with a stop at the free Wells Fargo ice rink. Anubis precedes the upcoming King Tut exhibit, "Tutankhamun: The Golden King and the Great Pharaohs," that opens Feb. 18. Tickets went on sale this week and can make great stocking stuffers, along with tickets to the general museum or Omnitheater.

Tip for parents: If you have kids ages 10 and under, stop by the Mississippi Visitor Center in the museum's lobby. Like other national park sites, you can get a free workbook to learn about the river and earn a Junior Ranger badge.

Art museums
Art museum gift shops have always been spot on for unique jewelry, art cards, journals, whimsical umbrellas, puzzles, prints and posters, funky desk toys and, of course, art supplies. The Walker Art Center's Totem building cards and crayon rocks for kids look especially intriguing. The
Minneapolis Institute of Arts also is worth a look. Plus admission is free with the exception of special exhibits. Check out its family center and look for monthly family days.


Regional museums
Don't forget smaller regional museums either. They're especially good for older relatives who enjoy memoirs, nostalgic gifts and the funny ones. Our favorite find one year was from St. Cloud's Stearns History Museum: Nunzilla, a stern, wind-up nun who walked and shot sparks from her mouth. It was perfect for an aunt who attended a strict Catholic school and spent many Halloweens dressed in a habit.

For more information on museums statewide and art centers, go to Explore Minnesota.

For additional gift ideas, check out some of the best Minnesota-made apparel and accessories.

Skating at The Depot in downtown Minneapolis

Give history a whirl
You know a place has full-blown charm when it lures an 88-year-old great-grandmother onto ice skates for the first time in decades. That would be my Grandma Cretia. She couldn't stand just watching while her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren had all the fun at The Depot's Minneapolis ice rink over the holidays.

It's easily one of the most popular places in the state to lace up your skates. Where else can you spin through a wide-open, yet sheltered former railroad shed? I remember when there were still trains crowded beneath its roof on Washington Avenue a block from the Mississippi River. The former station has been artfully transformed into historic hotel rooms with a cozy lobby and restaurant and hallways decorated in vintage train travel posters.

Life-size white statues of travelers, a sailor, a conductor and other characters throughout The Depot give a glimpse of the early 20th-century heydays of railroad travel. The spacious historic suites in particular make a memorable romantic retreat. Rooms in the adjoining Residence Inn have kitchens, which make it nice to truly retreat on cold days. Romance packages (promotional code XRP) start at $159/night with late checkout, champagne and breakfast.

Take the kids, make it a weekend
The Depot's even better for a family getaway. While the waterpark is relatively small at 15,000 square feet, it's great for younger children who love the caboose centerpiece, which includes slides, fountains and the sound of a steam whistle with chugging noises about every 10 minutes. There's a bigger slide and basketball area for older kids. You can easily fill a weekend with the water park, a scenic walk along the river, the skating rink, and a trip to the  Mill City Museum less than two blocks away where the modern museum rises from within historic mill ruins.

Guests get a 25-percent discount at the skating rink, but anyone can use it for $6-$8 per person. If you're like me--unable to squeeze into skates you've had since you were 14--it's $7 to rent skates. They also have walker-like braces to help first-timers keep their balance, which makes it an ideal place to introduce kids to the ice.

Most skaters, though, do as my grandma did: link arms with loved ones and go gliding around the depot. With the illuminated city skyline as a backdrop throughout the night, it's magical.

Call 612-339-2253 or check the website for rink hours, which fluctuate. It closes for the season Sunday, March 21.

More memorable skating rinks
St. Paul has its share of charm, too, with its seasonal Wells Fargo rink set up beneath the majestic, historic Landmark Center. It wins in the urban bargain category with free ice skating. Rental skates are only $2. It's also artificially chilled, which keeps conditions consistent. Hurry, though: It's only open through Jan. 31.

If you want a more natural place to skate, head to Minneapolis' beautiful Lake of the Isles. Some rental skates are available, along with a warming house and the option to figure skate or try a game of pond hockey. Call 612-370-4875 for more details. The city's rinks are usually open through mid-February.