It was a scenic route for a detour but if the weather holds, commuters will be back on the regular route.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation said the detour for Minnesota Highway 23 between Marshall and Cottonwood will be lifted Friday morning, if the weather permits. The detour has been in place since May.

"I didn't mind the detour," Kathy Knutson of Cottonwood said. "It was kind of scenic and pretty through there."

The detour had commuters and other motorists travel on Lyon County Road 9 to Minnesota Highway 19. Lyon County Road 9 stretched through a marsh and wetlands area.

"It will be nice (to have an open Highway 23) but the detour wasn't too bad. We did see a few deer along the road," said Patty Groff of Cottonwood.

Knutson and Groff commute each day to Marshall where Knutson works for the city and Groff works at her and her husband's Ameriprise office.

Highway 23 was detoured to allow MnDOT to construct an extension of the four-lane section by Southwest Minnesota State University to the north past the intersection with Lyon County Road 33. The second part of the project included a mill, overlay and lighting from one mile north of Lyon County Road 33 to north of the intersection with Lyon County Road 24, about two miles south of Cottonwood.

Passing lanes were also constructed as part of the project.

While Groff saw deer, Knutson saw one deer and a large turtle in the wildlife area of Lyon County Road 9.

They also saw a lot of traffic on the detour.

"It's been very busy," Groff said of the detour.

"It's a narrow road," Groff said of Lyon County Road 9. Groff missed the wide shoulders on Highway 23. Although she kept space between her vehicle and the vehicle in front of her, she worried about rear-ending the vehicle in front of her because of the lack of a shoulder, Groff said.

"I will be glad to have 23 open, it's a more direct route," Knutson said.

As MnDOT said, if weather permits, Knutson should be able to take that more direct route Friday.