Ballin! A Day Trip To See The Largest Ball Of Twine

Over the weekend, I had the chance to show off my roadside attraction knowledge when we took a trip out to Darwin, Minnesota. Darwin, as you probably know, is home to a record-sized ball of twine, but there was more to do than see the twine ball. Here's what we took in when we spent part of our day in Darwin.

More Than A Twine Ball Town

I'll admit that I had been to Darwin at least once before. I was in high school, and my family took a trip out to Darwin to see the 'World's Largest Ball of Twine Made by One Man'. It was as eventful as it sounded, but it was just fun enough of a trip that I didn't mind showing my wife what she had been missing her whole life.

Darwin, as it sits, is located right off Highway 12 in Meeker County, and wasn't always known for its Twine Ball or, for that matter, known as Darwin. In fact, Darwin was once known as "Rice City" but was renamed "Darwin" in 1869 after a key figure in the railway company, and not the scientist known for his theory of evolution.

But The Locals Do Seem To Love The Ball

The streetsigns that are in Darwin all featured a twine ball to the left of the street name. It's a fun way to market your biggest attraction throughout the town.

Enjoying the area around the twine ball, as it celebrates it's 75th anniversary. As we were taking photos and reading about the ball, there were several cars that pulled over to see the ball and also learn about Mr. Johnson, the guy behind the ball.

The twine ball is underneath the gazebo and surrounded by glass/plexiglass, which is situated underneath the water tower in Darwin, so it's easy to find!

Here is my reflection, as well as the story behind the twine ball and the pliers that Francis Johnson created.

At the corner of the twine ball museum, there sits this marker that highlights the life of the man behind the twine ball, as well as some of his inventions.

Across the street from the gazebo where the ball sits is the Twine Ball Inn. Sadly, we didn't stop to see if it was open, but I love the use of Twine Ball; businesses seemed to have embraced it.

Next to the gazebo, sits the Twine Ball Museum, where you can go inside and learn more about the ball, and it's history. There is also a sign that states that this is the World's Largest Twine Ball.

Come For The Twine, Stay For The Wine

On top of our visit to the Twine Ball in Darwin, we were actually in town to try a local winery located just to the South of Darwin. The winery was called the Jomas Hill Winery, and it used to be home to cows before it began growing grapes.

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While we were sipping on some samples, we also ordered lunch, and we had the elote steak pizza. It was phenomenal!

We both got a flight of wine to try the different styles and types that Jomas Hill was offering. The wood that the wine glasses are sitting on is from an old barrel.

Out behind the winery, there is a small entertainment area that was covered by a tent. There was an artist setting up while we were enjoying our lunch.

This was the elote steak pizza that we ordered. They make the pizzas as the orders come in. It took about 10-15 minutes for our pizza to arrive at our table. The pizza had steak, corn kernals, cotija cheese, and some crema sauce. There were also some jalapenos on the pizza but they weren't overly spicy.

Another flight that we tried was called the Jomas Hill flight, which featured the three types of grapes that are grown on the property. You also get a detailed tasting guide and some oyster crackers to cleanse your palate.

Some of the grapevines that were growing next to the winery.

The story of Jomas Hill Winery, which takes you from cows to wine. The owner Thomas was there Saturday and he was welcoming regulars with a big smile, and seemed to know many of those stopping by for a pizza or a glass of wine.

Part of the vineyard that was right outside the tasting room. It was an overcast day, but when the sun poked out the grounds looked fantastic.

A view of the pizza from the top, the toppings were plentiful, and the crust was perfectly cooked so it was sturdy enough to hold, but not burned and blackened.

The welcome sign was found in front of the tasting room. It was pretty quiet at the winery when we arrived but within 30 minutes, you couldn't find a place to sit inside.

A view of the tasting room, the left hand side of the photo is the main parking lot, and where you'd enter.

You can learn more about the winery by following them on social media, that's how I learned about the pizza special. Normally, there are 9 pizzas available regularly, with some specialty pizzas too.