What to do with the poo?

On the regular morning tromp with the poodle to Duluth's Aerial Lift Bridge and back, I couldn't help but notice this little crop circle laid down on the sandy Park Point beach. Some dog walker had VERY CAREFULLY bagged up their dog's do, set it down on the beach, and drawn a two-foot circle around it. They must have kept on walking...and forgotten the poop bag.

Hats off to the artistic walker for at least bagging the stuff. 

Park Point is a popular dog-walking area, so we get a lot of poochies, many of them off-leash. Some dog owners seem to think that if their dog is off-leash, they don't have to worry about picking up poop. With what could be called an "extended January thaw," we are already seeing piles of abandoned excrement emerging from the thin-if-any snowpack. 

 

What a person does about their dog's poop says a lot about them, and how they feel about nature and society. Are public parks simply wilderness areas where your dog's excrement belongs just as much as wolf scat? Are you concerned about the impact of your actions on strangers who will follow? Would you drop a beer can on the beach as quickly as you'd leave your dog's poop? Simply, are you responsible for the actions of your dog?

Yeah, it's awkward dangling that bag o'poop as you finish your walk down the public beach. But it's way better than stepping in it, even if it's a total stranger doing the stepping.

Vote YES for Duluth trails, libraries

If you live in Duluth, you will have the chance to vote on a referendum supporting increased funding for Duluth city parks. Here are three really good reasons you should vote YES:

1. Those ice-flow areas on the Lester Park ski trails that need trail repair.
2. Those sketchy bathrooms at Indian Point campground
3. All the lost hikers at Hartley Park.

If the referendum passes, Duluth trail users and park lovers will see marked improvement in trail maintenance, park facilities, and wayfinding signage. Funding will be restored to the levels last seen in 2003, before government cutbacks began eviscerating parks and programming.

Here are three more good reasons Duluth outdoor enthusiasts should vote YES:

1. 977.49 Si94t  

2. 364.1523 F323w

3. 778.93 B565m

Those are the Dewey call numbers for three essential North Shore books, available at the Duluth Public Library:  

• Howard Sivertson's Tales of the Old North Shore 
• Gail Feichtinger's Will to Murder 
• Craig Blacklock's Minnesota's North Shore. 

The Duluth parks referendum, in addition to funding our parks, will also help fund our libraries. If the parks referendum doesn't pass, the city will have to close Duluth's two branch libraries. 


Duluth parks and libraries make this city on Lake Superior truly a great place to live. Vote YES to return both resources to their glory.

The shutdown continues: Go to Twin Points

Your own personal deck at the Twin Points boat launch.

While Minnesota's governor and legislature play Chicken with each other over the state budget, the state parks remain closed. If you're on the North Shore and looking for an outdoor experience, head for one of the public boat landings. My personal favorite on the shore is Twin Points. 

Twin Points is just three miles past Gooseberry Falls State Park. It was the site of a family resort and has since been transferred to state ownership. Unlike the state parks, Twin Point remains open this month. 

Three great features make this a must-do North Shore experience.

Great Feature 1: Iona's Beach

Red shingles dominate Iona's Beach

Take a short, scenic walk through a pine forest to this unique red shingle beach. It's been set aside as a state scientific and natural area, to protect the beach and the wetland behind it. The beach is composed entirely of rhyolite shingles, which have been stacked up by northeast storms. Iona Lind was the matriarch of the family that owned and operated Twin Points resort. After exploring the beach, head along the shoreline clockwise around the "twin" points back to your car, and watch for a deep, awesome crack in the rock.

Great Feature 2: Scenic boat launch

Even if you don't have a boat on a trailer, you can still enjoy the deck at the launch with its dramatic view back down the shoreline. Bring your own folding chair and pretend that you're North Shore royalty. 

Great Feature 3: Gitchi Gami Trail

The Gitchi Gami bike trail heads through Twin Points pines

Bring your bike and explore the shore! Twin Points is in the middle of the longest contiguous section of the Gitchi Gami bike trail. From Twin Points, you can ride west into Gooseberry Falls State Park and check out the waterfalls, or ride east into Split Rock Lighthouse State Park. As far as I know, those parks are still open for access by bike or by foot. 

How to get there

The entrance to Twin Points is at mile marker 42, three miles east of the entrance to Gooseberry Falls State Park. Look for a small brown sign that indicates public water access, then notice two large parking lots on the lake side of the highway. That's your turn. You'll see the large sign for Iona's Beach at the left-hand parking lot. 

Note on necessities

While the entrance to Twin Points should be open, the outhouses may not be. Buy some gas and goodies in Beaver Bay or Two Harbors before you get to Twin Points and use the facilities at the store.

Minnesota North Shore now "Northwest"

In a ceremony held today at the Minnesota-Ontario border at the Pigeon River, Minnesota and Ontario officials formally signed off on the historic "Real North Shore" treaty, which designates the Ontario shore of Lake Superior as "The North Shore" and the Minnesota shore as "The Northwest Shore."

Officials cited the geographic reality that has been ignored for a long time. The Minnesota shore of Lake Superior really is on the northwest side of the lake. "This historic moment will finally clear up centuries of confusion," said David Thompson, Jr. "Minnesotans never knew if they went north or east to Grand Marais. Now they'll do both."

Secretary of State Danielle Webster agreed that the move will solve long-standing confusion. "Anyone who has been past Thunder Bay knows that the true rugged and wild North Shore starts around Nipigon."

Representatives of Minnesota businesses have expressed concern about the plan. Explore Minnesota's Alex Ashburton said that over forty tourism-related businesses now called "North Shore" will either have to relocate to Ontario or change their names. Tofte's only grocery store and liquor, formerly known as North Shore Market, has already changed their name to "Northwest Nibbles and Nips."

In a related legal process, Hawaii's North Shore surfing area, the North Shore neighborhoods of greater Chicago and Boston, and Vancouver, BC's North Shore ski region are pursuing a class action lawsuit seeking to overturn the agreement. 

Miss North Shore, please come home

What is the North Shore? What does it mean to live there? And...can saying you live here make it true?

The Lake County News Chronicle reported on a case of mistaken North Shore identity. The four contestents for the title of Miss North Shore listed their homes as Silver Bay, Two Harbors...and "Scenic Highway 61." The eventual winner, Caitlyn Thompson, was the person from the scenic highway. 

After some consideration by authorities, however, it was decided that Ms. Thompson did not actually live on the North Shore. She lives in a Twin Cities suburb, Vadnais Heights.


View Larger Map

Ms. Thompson's family has a summer vacation home in Holyoke. Holyoke is a small settlement in the Nemadji River area south of Jay Cooke State Park. You reach it off Highway 23, the scenic back route shortcut between Duluth and Sandstone. Holyoke is within 30 miles of Lake Superior, as the crow flies. But it's not really the North Shore.

So the title of Miss North Shore, and the $1000 scholarship, passed on to first runner-up Kimberly Jacobson of Two Harbors. 

I say, "Welcome to the North Shore, Ms. Thompson." Keep saying you live here, and eventually you really will. Holyoke isn't quite as North Shore cool as, say, Finland or Maple Hill, but it's close. We need more talented, energetic young people moving here. When Ms. Thompson finishes her nursing studies at St. Thomas, I bet there's a job for her in Grand Marais or Duluth.

I remember when I was in my early 20s, a lifelong resident of the Twin Cities but also a Boundary Waters guide and frequent North Shore explorer. At one point, I started telling people I lived in northern Minnesota. It took a few more years of actually living in Ely to make that true, but it was so important...and felt so good!...just to say it.

The rules of the beauty pageant may have ruled her not a real "Miss North Shore." But saying you live on the Shore, even when you're stuck in the suburbs, is the first step to making it true. 

If only moose could vote

 

 Announcing the US government's new program!  Money for Moose! Cash for Cows! Bucks for Bulls!

A crowd of scientists, environmentalists and state agency folks gathered by Duluth's Aerial Lift Bridge yesterday morning to hear the good news: Money is rolling into Duluth and the North Shore...for moose habitat! Congressman Oberstar, in the tightest race in his career, was there to share the good news.

After surviving a cantankerous debate at 8:00 AM, in which supporters of Oberstar and his opponent Chip Cravaak got loud and rowdy, drowning out the actual debate, Oberstar was probably delighted to be back among supporters. And what was not to like? The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative is funding $200,000 for moose habitat and research in the forests above the North Shore. Plus $600,000 to plant trees and restore streamsides in Duluth's western neightborhoods. Another 200K for the PCA to strategize its work in the St. Louis River. 

 

 The moose project will "(a) restore 200 acres of moose foraging habitat near wetlands; (b) evaluate use of about 800 acres of previously restored moose foraging habitat; and (c) monitor how GPS-
radiocollared moose utilize the restored sites. This project will improve physical, chemical, and biological processes and ecosystem functions, and will help maintain or improve conditions for native fish and wildlife." All for $193,432.00.

If only moose and trees could vote...

Cheaper gas in Two Harbors: A geopolitical plot?

Here's a way to save (literally) a buck or two on your next trip to the North Shore: Buy your gas in Two Harbors. Week after week, the gas in Two Harbors is about seven cents cheaper per gallon than in Duluth. On Monday, gas was $2.58 in Two Harbors and $2.65 in Duluth.

Fill up a big, empty tank and save enough money to put some ice cream on your pie.

Apparently the Krist station sets the low price, and the other stores match it.

Here's where this gets interesting. The word is that Krist is actually owned by Citgo, which is largely owned by Venezuela. Is the populist leader Hugo Chavez behind this all? Is there a plot to hook us all on cheaper gas? This is the same country/"dictator" who offered super-cheap heating fuel to Native American communities, including our own Grand Portage.

Personally, I'm a total addict of the North Shore's Holiday Stores. I know them all and what kind of cheap cappuccino they serve. I make a point of filling up in Two Harbors on my way back home, partly for the tiny savings and partly for one last bit of caffeine for the final miles. Geopolitics? Nah, just a sweet tooth.

Cascade: The Bridge is Back

As Elton John sang:
"The Bridge, the Bridge, oh the Bridge is back
Stone cold sober as a matter of fact."

If you're planning to hike up the North Shore...

If you want to reach Lookout Mountain...

If you're staying at Cascade Lodge...

You'll be glad to know that the footbridge over the Cascade River has re-opened. During the late October windstorm, a huge tree came down on the bridge and broke most of the railings at the est end.



Now you can hike the Cascade River Loop. Once again, if you're camped at Cascade River State Park campground, you can venture across the deep gorge of the river for a hot meal at Cascade Lodge.

THANK YOU to whomever stepped up and, in a time of state budget cutbacks, found the time and funding to fix this important link.

Skiers for climate protection

As politicians gather in Copenhagen to negotiate a treaty to address critical issues in global climate change, we're dealing here with the local reality: another late-starting winter.



It's approaching mid-December with very little snow on the ground, and we drive 15 miles to the Christmas tree farm to cut-r-own.



Where the economy says we need snow, we make it. While the real world of forests and cross country trails waits for real snow, up at Spirit Mountain they're making their own. This weekend, the snowguns were out all over the hill throwing up huge mounds of the stuff. For skiers and for the big Snocross snowmobile event.

It's a huge global summit in Copenhagen...and it needs to be huge. There's only so much we can do locally

Concern over climate change used to paralyze me. Our 15 mile drive to the tree farm adds more CO2, and I feel a bit guilty. The snow guns at Spirit Mountain are a huge energy draw, burning more coal. Those snowmobiles for which we made the snow burn more fossil fuels, and those 10,000 spectators are driving long ways to watch the event. I should despise that.

I live in the north because I love snow and winter. If I lived in the Twin Cities, where snow is much less frequent and the ski trails far less wild, I would die each winter as the snowpack melts away. Here in Duluth, to reach a great ski trail from mid-December to early March, it's a ten-minute drive to three different city parks. But that's still a drive. I'm still the cause.

The climate change summit in Copenhagen has huge implications for our planet and also for ourselves. Cross country skiers and other winter enthusiasts should be all over the summit advocating for our snow and our cold. Yes, we should do all we can to reduce our own carbon footprint. Live near your trails, I say. But I can't keep the developing world from burning through their coal. I can't reverse America's century-long carbon binge. Only concerted global action will do that.

Go politicians! Be brave, and save our snow!

Hogback, Hump Back, Ba-Rack

A good day in the woods, a great day for the country.

My weeks on injured reserve are done, and my apparently mild case of plantar fasciitis has healed. Plus I just couldn't stand to hang out in town all day waiting for election results. So in this very narrow window before deer season and the first snows, I got out on two trails I'd been meaning to hike all fall.

Both trails were up the Cramer Road out of Finland. It had been so foggy next to Lake Superior I wanted to get away from the big cold water and into the clear.

First up was the trail at Hogback Lake.

This is a Superior National Forest trail system about 25 miles inland from Finland. Total drive time from Highway 61 is about 45 minutes.

It's a sweet hike, though it was shorter than I expected. It's called the Hogback Lake trail, though it only starts at that lake; most of the trail is a loop around Scarp Lake. There's an extra loop to Lupus Lake I did not take. Grand total distance for the loop around Scarp Lake was 2.8 miles.

The dog and I took a break in the sun at Scarp Lake. Scarp has a big escarpment on its south side, probably the source of the name.


Next it was back down the Cramer Road (aka Lake County Road 7) back toward Finland but turning off to Crosby-Manitou State Park.

Crosby-Manitou has a well-deserved reputation as a remote hikers' park. They take their hiking seriously.

Whoever took the time to peck out that bottom sign must have issues with hikers taking the wrong trail.

The Hiking Club Trail makes a loop out of three park trails, the Hump Back Trail, part of the River Trail, and the Middle Trail. The River Trail is etched into my childhood memories as the location for repeated family machismo hiking the length of the Manitou on unofficial trails from the Cramer Road through to Highway 61. It was a rough trail back when I was 9 and 10 and 12, and it's even rougher now.

I stopped at the Cascades and remembered my last time there, in the winter with my father on his 60th birthday in January, on skis and breaking trail all the way down the river.

Yard-for-yard, this was the hardest Hiking Club trail on the North Shore. Only 2.3 miles, it was a lot of up and down and rough trails.

The drive back to Duluth was a long one, but it was so cleansing. I had shed my heel problems, kept the car stereo OFF of news radio, and made it back home in one piece. I was tired, the dog was exhausted, but I stayed up to watch the election returns. A nice day hiking for me, and I emerged from the woods into a great day for Barack Obama and our country.

Hiking Trail Defense Detour

For the next few days, the Superior Hiking Trail has a small detour.


Does the name "Superior Hiking Trail" evoke images of wooded ridgelines and deep blue views of Lake Superior? Do you feel the quiet of the trail, the peace of the forest? You probably don't think about throbbing engines, the sound of reveille, or a modular weapons system.

Trails get detoured for all kinds of reasons. Beavers flood the trail with a dam. A windstorm knocks down a few acres of trees. A private property dispute arises or the land is resurveyed.

For the first time that I'm aware of, the US Department of Defense has mandated a detour. Hardcore SHT hikers and a few residents of Duluth may know that the SHT runs right along the waterfront in front of the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center. That waterfront space is now home to the Freedom, a brand new Navy ship built in Wisconsin and about to be commissioned in Milwaukee.


The detour is just in place through this Thursday, when the Freedom will leave for Milwaukee. But it's a serious detour; you can't just skip over the downfall or shortcut across property lines. Armed guards and a tall temporary fence make it pretty much mandatory that you take the detour.


The ship has attracted a small crowd of the curious and the patriotic. The humming and the geometry remind me of one of those opening scenes in Star Wars, as the giant Star Destroyer passes overhead humming (despite that inconvenient fact that there is no sound in space).

It really is quite a sight. Enjoy this detour while you can!

Just here for the baked goods

Who's that guy at the press conference in Duluth, plugging the "Vote Yes!" campaign for dedicated natural resource funding?

Oh, it's me! Funny thing, I didn't think I'd be speaking at the event. I'd been at a meeting to organize it, but the decision had been to find someone who actually worked somewhere, like The Nature Conservancy. Me? I just came for the donuts.

And darn it all if those donuts didn't hit the road with the crew from the Cities on their way to their next event in Grand Rapids. I thought briefly about stopping them on their way out of the Marine Museum. They had one of those big white cardboard boxes, and some of them even had chocolate icing...I've been thinking about those baked goods all day.

Vote Yes! Protect the Minnesota you love!