Warroad, Minnesota

Warroad is a city in Roseau County, Minnesota, United States, at the southwest corner of Lake of the Woods. The population was 1,781 at the 2010 census.

Minnesota State Highways 11 and 313 are two of the main arterial routes in the community.

History
The name Warroad seems to come from the practice of Indian tribes using the location, which is now the town, as a route to war upon each other. In the 20th century, the town had a strong commercial fishing industry, which gradually turned to sport fishing and tourism. For many years, commercial boats provided regular service to the islands and to Kenora, Ontario at the north end of Lake of the Woods. One of these ships was the Bert Steele. Several flying services carried sport fishermen and tourists to lodges and fishing camps in Lake of the Woods until economics and increasing regulations drove them out of business. Warroad is known for the great fishing on Lake of the Woods.

Warroad is also noted for its strong hockey tradition which has produced NHL and Olympic players. It is known as "Hockey Town USA" because of the that feat along with a storied high school program which has earned four men's state championship titles ('94, '96, '03, '05) and two women's ('10, '11) in the past 20 years. Another important piece of Warroad hockey history is the Warroad Lakers amateur team that existed from 1957 to 1997.

Father Aulneau
Warroad is the site of St. Mary's Church, also called the Father Aulneau Memorial Church, which commemorates a French Catholic priest who accompanied French explorers and soldiers in their search for the Northwest Passage and was killed along with several other people, presumably by Native Americans. The Aulneau Peninsula in Lake of the Woods is named after Father Aulneau.

Popular culture
In the television show The West Wing, character Donna Moss claims to be from Warroad in the episode Dead Irish Writers. In the episode, she becomes classified as a non US citizen when the Canadian border is moved south such that Warroad is in Canada

Photos of Warroad: http://www.lakesnwoods.com/WarroadGallery.htm

Super 8s and Motel 6s Not Always The Cheapest

I'm driving an elderly relative from Cheyenne, WY to Warroad, MN. She gets tired easily (not bored, although that, too, but physically tired, stiff, from sitting in a car for very long.

So my plan is to drive 350 miles a day, which will get us to Warroad about midday on the third day.

This is why I haven't really planned out this trip as much as you might think an "organized" traveller would do. Since I have no idea how far I'll actually get in a day, I'm loathe to make hotel reservations anywhere. Instead, when I've driven about 6 hours, I look for a place to stop. This way, if she starts complaining, I can stop early if I have to.

That's the reason why I am now in a Motel 6 that cost $78 a night, including tax, instead of at a nearby motel, Welsh's Motel, that also has free wifi (my need) that would have been $64, including tax.

We're in Wall, South Dakota, at the moment (home of the famous Wall Drug.) We're also in "hotel" row, or perhaps I should call it "Motel" row, and not only was this Welsh's motel cheapter, but so was another hotel, and that one is part of a chain. (It's cheaper than Motel 6, but not cheaper than Welsh's Motel.)

I know all this because after checking in to the Motel 6, I left my relative in the room (she is not mobile), and went for a walk around the area, and stopped in at a few hotels surrounding this one.

So think twice before staying at a Motel 6 or Super 8. Since they are a chain, they have to pay royalties to their bosses. Whereas a locally owned hotel or motel doesn't.