Scienceguyorg Ramblings: Pointour

Monday, August 3, 2015

Pointour - Winona Walking Tour

Last week I had the pleasure of taking the walking tour of downtown Winona from young entrepreneur Bailey Bestul through his business Pointour. I have lived in Winona for over 20 years and have studied much of the local history but there was much that I learned from the walking tour. I would think the tour would be more interesting for the people that live in Winona but Bailey said the majority of the people that take the tour come from out of town.

Bailey Describing Unique Architecture at Winona Water Works

Part of what comes out in the tour is of course facts about the architecture of the various old buildings. I walk downtown almost everyday but there is much I miss when walking. More interesting to me was the history of the people and businesses that we passed on the tour. I now have a better appreciation to the really brilliant and ambitious people that have shaped Winona throughout history. A more recent example which has evolved over many years now is the Fastenal story which Bailey told in front of the site of the company museum building in downtown Winona.

With a background in speech and theater Bailey does a wonderful job of keeping the presentation lively and interesting at all times but he also was responsive to the comfort of his clients and tried to schedule stops in shaded areas. There are options to take a shorter or longer tour and the fee is adjusted accordingly. I hope many people take this opportunity to learn something about Winona, Minnesota.