The BHS Alumni Trail Travels with Lynn Riggs
Lynn Riggs, graduate of Bagley High School, Class of 1973.
Lynn had an interested in a career in the medical field. After graduation from high school she enrolled in the Medical Secretary program at Brainerd Vocational School and graduated in 1974.
Her first job after graduation was at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Park Rapids typing medical transcription. Lynn also worked for the Riverside Clinic in Park Rapids until moving to Lake Itasca. Then for Clearwater County Nursing Service as an administrative assistant in Bagley for 37 years.
Lynn had always enjoyed geography and travel. At the age of 46 she took her first trip in an airplane and of course just a short trip to get used to flying? Nope, to the other side of the world, Australia. Lynn, her mom and her daughter Tracy flew to Sydney where they visited the Opera House, the zoo, and walked around the city. Lynn noted there were cow statues throughout the city as a “mooving” art exhibit. They walked through the Royal Botanical Gardens, full of beautiful plants and statues. They visited Featherdale Wildlife Park where we saw many of the native wildlife. Tracy was able to hold a koala but only for a short period of time as they are protected. They saw kangaroos, wallaby, wombats, crocodiles, cassowaries, and multiple other animals. Lynn shared the three ate at G’day Cafe, her Mom and daughter ordered a plain hamburger. It had cheese, lettuce, onion, tomato, beet pickle, and a fried egg! Makes one wonder what would have been on one if they didn’t say “plain”? The trio then went on Trinity Beach, which is on the Great Barrier Reef. They took a ride on a glass bottom boat and could see the colorful coral, giant clams, sea cucumbers and fish as we sailed to Green Island. Once there, Lynn and her daughter snorkeled on the reef. Lynn said the coral was amazing. They also took a sky rail ride through the Kuranda Rain Forest. Due to it being the dry season waterfalls were dry, but the views were spectacular. From there they flew Melbourne which is where Lynn’s Uncle Bert and his 2 daughters lived. They visited Phillip Island. This is where tiny Fairy Penguins come ashore after dark, hundreds of them, and burrow in the sand. Lynn said it was a trip of a lifetime and glad she went as her uncle passed away a few months later. Lynn said it was thus trip the travel bug struck!
In December 2022 Lynn and her daughter Trisha traveled to Scotland. Lynn’s grandmother was from Scotland and Lynn’s wanted to see if she could trace back to where her grandmother lived. Lynn’s grandma grew up near Aberlady, a small town in Scotland. Lynn recalls her grandmother sharing of her childhood, catching trout with their hands in the creeks, going to school where girls were on one side of the building, boys on the other, worked as a nurse in London during World War I where she met Lynn’s grandpa. Then traveled by ship to Ellis Island, then to Calgary, Alberta and eventually to Minnesota. Lynn said their first stop was Glasgow. With an extra day before the bus tour they went to Aberlady, the area where her grandmother lived. They were able to find the address where her grandma’s sister-in-law had lived. This allowed them to locate the area where Lynn’s grandma’s family lived. Though no longer any buildings, a fence remained. Lynn said it was easy to imagine her grandma playing with her brothers. Several headstones of family members were found at a local church cemetery. On the tour they visited the Edinburgh castle. They “enjoyed” a true Scottish meal with haggis(Scottish pudding made from sheep’s heart, liver and lungs mixed with suet, onions and spices)and entertainment of bagpipers and Highland Fling dancers. An interesting note is that the buildings had fireplaces in each room and in the past, the number of chimneys on the roof indicated the prosperity of the family, and they sometimes added extra chimneys to embellish there financial state. They visited Loch Ness and were quite sure they saw Nessie, and also saw the Kelpies, fictional horses that roamed the beaches luring young maidens to pet them, then captured the maidens and took them into the sea. And this was only the beginning of their trip to Scotland.
This past summer Lynn went on an Alaskan cruise. Boarding the ship in Vancouver and from there sailed to several Alaskan ports. While on the cruise Lynn got first hand experience halibut fishing. Lynn noted the fishing poles were heavy, add a 2# weight on the line, and then line goes down 250 – 300 feet. Lynn said that all seemed extremely heavy and all before catching any fish. Then you get a halibut on the line, reel in the 250-300 feet of line and plus the fish, “it was a workout”!
Lynn says she has been blessed to go on many trips with family and friends including Branson, Yellowstone Park, Colorado, Florida, Texas, New York, Neveda, South Carolina, Tennessee, North and South Dakotah and Alaska. She plans to continue traveling. Lynn Riggs the traveler, BHS graduate Class of 1973!