The best time I ever had at a summertime celebration was the Taopi 125th anniversary in 2000.

Nothing tops the fun I enjoyed three summers ago in Taopi. Truth be told, it made the Adams Dairy Days about as exciting as Byron Huseby tying his shoes.

So you can imagine I was tickled pink to cover the Shooting Star Recreation Trail ribbon-cutting ceremonies in Taopi last Saturday.

There are many attractions in Taopi: the Rusty Rail dance hall, Chief Taopi Bar and Harold Eischens.

Now, there is one more: a place to get on the Shooting Star trail and ride across Mower County to Lake Louise State Park and the city of LeRoy.

All the celebrities were there. Mayor Jim Kiefer, Ted Kiefer and Mary Kiefer Huntley, plus a few Kiefer-wannabees.

I saw three of my favorite people -- Harlan Boe, Roman Landherr and M.E. Chesebrough -- who are walking, talking encyclopedias of history.

We all came to see the trail that is the result of the hard work of Prairie Visions, a group of tireless volunteers.

Marilyn Thorstenson says the trail was no one person's idea, but the suggestion of many after Highway 56 became a designated Scenic Byway. That describes Prairie Visions: all for one, one for all.

Everyone agrees, nobody has worked harder to bring the project to fruition than Gerald Meier. Someday, the towns of Rose Creek, Adams, Taopi and LeRoy will build statutes to honor Prairie Visions. Gerald's will be the biggest, because of the size of his heart.

… We interrupt this column to bring you news of the Taopi Twins.

The mothers looked radiant at the Adams Legion Post Chicken Fry Saturday night, the babies were beautiful and the fathers proud.

For the record, Tony and Brenda Kiefer became parents of twin daughters, Andrea and Amber, Jan. 4. They join a sister, Erin, and brother, Jeremy.

Not to be outdone, Darren and Jane (Schrieber) Boe became parents of twin sons, Nicholas William and David Joseph, Feb. 21. The boys are the couple's first children.

Leave it to the twins' grandpas to start a feud in Taopi. Grandpa Herb has warned Grandpa Bill to keep his twin grandsons away from his twin granddaughters.

The mothers can't take their twins anywhere without creating quite a stir and the world-famous Adams Legion Post Chicken Fry was no exception.

It was the first time Fred Harvey's legendary

fried chicken was upstaged by four beautiful babies! … We now return you to our regularly scheduled column.

Of course, there are some people who wonder "Why are they building a trail across Mower County? There's nothing to see."

Shame on you, I say.

Craig Blommer of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, told the Saturday crowd, "The trail isn't going to stop here. The next stop is Adams and then Rose Creek and finally Austin, when we get it done all across Mower County."

The narrow ribbon of native prairie remnant and oak savanna dotted by the only known strip of Shooting Star, and the western prairie fringed orchid can't be found elsewhere.

I'm here to say, Taopi has more than meets the eye.

My son and daughter-in-law drove me over to Taopi. The newlyweds gave me an hour to talk to friends, which included clowns in costume. When I got back to the car, my son asked me, "Who was that clown you were talking to?"

"Take your pick," I told him. "It could have been the mayor of Taopi or a couple of county commissioners."

But seriously … it was a great Saturday at Taopi. Full of fun and laughter and people being neighborly. I like to think it was a Mike Finbraaten kind of day!

Lee Bonorden can be contacted at 434-2232 or by e-mail at :mailto:lee.bonorden@austindailyherald.com