The first time I remember paying attention to Hudson was when I had just turned 21, and my cousin was telling me about the cool places to grab a drink “just across the river in ‘Sconnie.”
Since that time, I have explored more than the watering holes: I have gone shopping in the downtown area, and admired the Victorian-era Octagon House Museum and The Phipps Center for the Arts—a brick and glass building overlooking the St. Croix—offering a broad variety of classes, theater performances, concerts, and visual art exhibitions. Located on the St. Croix River—a protected natural waterway—Hudson also is a hotspot for boating, swimming, fishing, observing bald eagles and swans, hiking, biking, and camping, and enjoying some of the finest views of the Valley from historic Birkmose Park.
A few years ago my family also took a dinner cruise on the Afton-Hudson Cruise Line, an adventure I would recommend to anyone. How often can you enjoy a good meal with your family, while eagles fly overhead and you feel a warm breeze as you cruise past beautiful riverbluff scenery? (Plus, the captain was especially entertaining.)
Hudson is only about a 30-minute drive from the Twin Cities metro, and I plan on returning to “just across the river in ‘Sconnie” this summer for two of the city’s festivals—the Yellowstone Trail Heritage Day June 1 on the historic Yellowstone Trail and the infamous North Hudson Pepper Festival during the weekend of Aug. 16-18.
