North Shore Morning

WTIP News     October 6, 2017     Wildersmith on the Gunflint         by Fred Smith

The atmosphere in the upper Trail has been pretty seasonal since we last met on the radio, cool but not cold at night, and warm but not too hot under sunshine. Furthermore, enough moisture has dampened north-country to maintain low fire danger, and enhance the aroma of fall.                                                                                                                                                                      
In the midst of one of those recent precipitation droppings, we had a spectacular rainbow grace our northern heavens. While we in these parts expect color luminosity from the Aurora at night, fine rainbows are not unusual.   
                  
The fact this one hovered over the north shore of Gunflint Lake in Canadian skies makes it somewhat atypical. Usually an east or west phenome, this celestial spectrum happened when rays of “old Sol” were piercing the drizzle laden cloud cover from the south around the noontime hour, creating a beautiful, but short lived prismatic episode. How about this, a tinted rendition of “Mother Nature” simultaneously on earth and in the skies!    

October has crept up on us so fast we have barely noticed its arrival. A week into the books finds it unimaginable the full “falling Leaves” moon has passed us by. Yes, it happened quietly on the fifth, if you hadn’t noticed. 

Our avian migration continues as we now add “snow birds” to the flocks, winging all directions south.  With seasonal neighbors taking off, those of us choosing to stay and hold down the fort, find the urgency of “getting ready for winter” in clear focus.

My good neighbor down the road and his grouse hunting buddies from metropolis came to my aid this past weekend. They provided big manpower in bringing the dock a shore; helping to motor the boat down the lake for its return to winter storage; and in closing up an exterior lake water system. What would we do without neighbors? These major chores checked off the list, the Wildersmith two are moving on to a sundry of less heavy duty items.

The color show of our upper Gunflint is waning as this scoop hits the air. With maple leaves down and birch tokens piling on, stage two finds a quaking golden hue of aspen at its peak. Looking out our window to the forest, the buttery tones are so bright it looks as though the sun is shining, even on a cloudy day. As the emerald plumage of summer succumbs to a colorful end and descends unto another layer of history, the spotlight is set for a final act of this autumnal drama, as we wait for those aurous tamarack needles to drop the season ending curtain.

Memorable animal tidbits have come my way recently. The first of which comes from the mid-Trail neighborhood. To preface this one, for many years, neighbors in that area of the Trail have offered sustenance to any number of fox. 
                                                                                                  
In this tale of the woods, a bear was observed dipping into the food cache intended for the fox, at an unnamed residence. While the bear was partaking, a fox came onto the scene. In a sudden fit of rage, the fox took after the startled bear and ran it off. The fox came back to feed after the chase.                                                                                                                                                                         
While eating the fox noticed the inquisitive bear returned, peeking around the corner of a building nearby. Apparently feeling the bear did not understand, Mr./Ms. Fox took out in hot pursuit once again. This time, in hope of putting a little more meaning into its grub rights, the fox gave chase and got close enough to give the unknowing Ursae a good bite on the rump. I have not heard of any further confrontation, so I’m assuming the fox got its point across. The scene kind of harkens back to those old “Uncle Remus” stories about “Braer Fox and Braer Bear” read when I was a kid.                                                                                                                                                                                       
I’m told the four bear cubs’ Mother, got into trouble by being aggressive with some gals down the road and has since been dispatched. This is sad, but not too un-expected, as the sloth had been interacting in people neighborhoods for much of the summer. It was bound to happen, but now there are four orphan cubs that definitely will be challenged with surviving the coming winter. Furthermore, should the little ones make it through the winter they too are in danger of gravitating to their mothers’ fate having been reared in human proximity?                                                                                                                                                   
In a more laughable, man/animal convergence, a couple was driving the Trail recently when a moose came up out of the ditch causing and immediate stoppage and stand-off as to who might have the right-of-way.  
                                                                                                                                                 
It seemed the moose didn’t care to cross, but set off ambling along the shoulder. The couple proceeded slowly with the moose right beside the vehicle. Thinking the moose might be a problem, the driver increased speed to get around and move away from the big guy. However, as the vehicle sped up so did Mr. Moose. Soon the moose broke into a gallop staying alongside on the shoulder path.  
                                                                                                                          
The moose, apparently running for gold, competed for some distance. In the end however, this iconic critter conceded to being just a sprinter and not a long distance runner, dropping off into the ditch and heading for the timber. Final race results indicated DNF, the moose did not finish.

Congratulations and thanks to Sarah Hamilton and her staff at Trail Center for entering the humanitarian relief effort for people of Puerto Rico. She is sending a first shipment of her mid-Trail produced “Camp Chow” (dry packaged meals) to help feed hungry people. For more details on this heartfelt endeavor or to maybe help out in some way, go to the website, campchow.org.      
                                                                                                                                    
For WTIP, this is Fred Smith on the Trail, at Wildersmith, where every day is great, in the land of cool, blue waters!
 

National Forest Update – October 5, 2017.
Hi.  I’m Debbi Lamusga, information receptionist, with this week’s National Forest Update - information on conditions affecting travel and recreation on the east end of the Superior. Here’s what’s happening for the week of October 5th.
This is usually our peak time for fall colors, and for fall color photographers.  There are more people than leaves out there right now, so watch out on every corner.  As far as the leaves are concerned, the maples were hitting peak when we had all the rain and wind this past week, and they didn’t last too well.  Our aspen and birch though are right now at the top of their game, and the woods are a beautiful contrast of yellow hardwoods and dark green conifers.  If you are out in the woods for colors, make sure you are colored orange so hunters can see you.  If you’re hunting, be extra careful as there are more people than usual prowling the back roads and trails.  Whether you are driving for hunting or in search of the perfect fall photos, you should know that in addition to knocking down leaves, the heavy rains made some good sized ruts in some of our roads, particularly at the edges.  These can be a bad surprise when you come over the hill and find deep washouts on your side of the road and another vehicle on the other side.  Be prepared that you may have to slow down and stop over any hill or around any corner.
 And finally, if you just can’t get out in the woods this fall, or would like to share the fall colors with your friends in Florida, friend the Superior National Forest on Facebook for our fall color blog and links to photos of the Superior in her autumn splendor.
It’s the season for a little autumn camping and fishing.  Our fee campgrounds will continue to have water available through October 20th, so it is not too late to have a few more nights in a tent.  Docks will start to come in in mid-October, but should all still be in position this next week.  We are starting to see some frost and freeze advisories, so if you do go camping, pack the heavy sleeping bag and the extra jacket even if it seems plenty warm in the sun of the afternoon.  Stay bear aware too this time of year.  Our local bruins are still up and very active this time of year as they try to pack on a few more pounds before settling in for the winter, so when camping be sure to secure all your food and garbage in a bear secure manner.
There is some logging activity this week with hauling being done.  For the most part, trucks will be in the same locations as last week.  On Gunflint, trucks are using Firebox Road, Blueberry Road, Greenwood Road, Shoe Lake Road, Forest Road 1385, the Gunflint Trail, South Brule Road, the Lima Grade, Trestle Pine Road, and Ball Club Road.  On the Tofte District, look for trucks on the Pancore Road, the Sawbill Trail, Dumbell River Road, the Wanless Road, Lake County 705, the 4 Mile Grade, The Grade, the Perent Lake Road, and the Trappers Lake Road.   New this week will be harvest activity on the west side of the Timber Frear area, with trucks using the road south of Windy Lake.
Enjoy our second yellow peak of fall, and maybe have a campfire complete with hot chocolate or hot cider, neither of which seems right in the summer but both seem so right in the fall.  Until next week, this has been Debbi Lamusga with the National Forest Update.
 

School News from Great Expectations with Grace and Wren.

September is gone and we’re moving into October, and soon we’ll be experiencing all the signs of winter. WTIP’s Jay Andersen talks with North Woods Naturalist Chel Anderson about heading into fall.

West End News 10/5/2017  
 
If you haven’t had a chance to sneak out and take part in the Art Along the Lake Fall Studio Tour, this weekend is your last chance. The fall studio tour is a fabulous time for locals and visitors alike to meet artists in their studios. Stops on the tour include home studios as well as galleries, and some are featuring guest artists. The locations are all open daily from 10am to 5pm until Sunday, October 8^th. Of particular note is the tour stop at Mary Jane Huggins’ place in Tofte. She has many demonstrations going on each day, including bracelet weaving and scarf dying workshops as well as basket weaving and spinning demonstrations. If you haven’t yet spent some hours chatting with Mary Jane, don’t miss your opportunity this weekend!
 
Birch Grove Community School is off to a running start this fall. The new curriculum has arrived, purchased thanks to funds provided by the Lloyd K Johnson Foundation. The school also just received a $500 donation from the Library Friends of Cook County, thanks friends! Community lunches have also started up again, with the next one this Tuesday October 10. Come on down to Birch Grove for a delicious lunch and a chance to chat with the west end’s youngest residents. A reminder that there is no school on Friday October 6^th, and the school board meeting will be taking place on Tuesday October 17 at 6pm.
 
While I know the Gunflint Trail has had more than its fair share of bear trouble this year, up here on the Sawbill Trail we are having a different kind of wild life issue. Every fall the red squirrels go into overdrive it seems, storing up food for the impending snow storms. This year though, instead of simply collecting seeds out of the towering white pines, the little buggers are using us for target practice with their pinecones. There is a constant barrage of banging with the cones dropping out of the trees onto our metal roofs. Walking between buildings almost requires a hard hat at this point. Some folks in our campground had a particularly vindictive squirrel that they swore was dropping cones on them on purpose. When they mentioned it to their neighbors, they fessed up that they had originally set up in that same site but moved after they realized the squirrel was out to get them! I wonder if filling our bird feeders will ease the squirrels aggressive fall actions?
 
Honorary west ender, Bill Hansen, and his son Adam are currently vacationing in Kenya. Adam studied abroad in Nairobi in college and this is the second time the pair have travelled back to visit Adam’s old friends and host family. This visit, they have decided to forego the dog and pony show of public transportation and have rented a car, allowing them some freedom to visit out of the way places. One such place, was the home of Barack Obama’s grandmother, Sarah. On a whim, the guys looked her up and drove to her house. Outside was a security guard, on an even crazier whim, they asked him if they could say hello and pay their respects. The guard called the 95 year old woman up and she promptly invited them in for a visit. Bill reports that they had a wonderful chat about her life as a farmer. Her main concern now, though, is the importance of promoting education for all. It’s a good reminder how, even a world away, peoples’ values and goals can be so very similar.
 
For WTIP, I’m Clare Shirley with the West End News.
 

School News from Sawtooth Elementary

by Payton, Katie and Henry

Deane Morrison is a science writer at the University of Minnesota. She authors the Minnesota Starwatch column, and contributes to WTIP bi-weekly with "Northern Sky," where she shares what's happening with stars, planets and more.

WTIP News     September 29, 2017     Wildersmith on the Gunflint     by     Fred Smith

The Equinox of last week says its fall, but summer managed what yours truly hopes is one last gasp as I hit the key board last Sunday evening.  In spite of it being quite warm and sticky over the past weekend, conditions weren’t as intolerable as they have been in places not too far south. Around the upper Gunflint, maybe the moose were the only ones suffering heat issues.
                                                                                                                                                              
Speaking of moose, one made a trek down the Mile O Pine in recent days. It was sighted by one neighbor, but my only official confirmation came in the form of hoof prints. Over the years they are seldom seen out this way. In fact only one observation was noted last year, so maybe this is it for the season. By the way, I’m told this iconic visitor was a young bull.     

Although summer took a swipe at us wildland folk, our autumn décor is un-shaken. On top of this “leaf peepers’ delight, the sweet essence of the season has captured us. This bouquet of cedar, pine, and spruce mixed with the scent of damp earth and dying leaves summons an incomparable nasal sensation, the likes of which cannot be put in a bottle. Ah, fall, how treasured thou art!       
 
 If the smell of the season isn’t enough satisfaction, my visual senses were up lifted at sunset on the evening of the Equinox. Hoping to get a glimpse of “old Sol” as it settled over the due west horizon, I headed toward the Wildersmith dock. Upon my arrival, I was disappointed to find a bank of clouds looming in the western sky.   Settling in anyway, I soon detected a sliver of clearing encouragement just at the boundary between granite and the heavens. My perseverance was soon rewarded as the cloud cover separated on its’ eastward trip, creating open space where the now “red, molten steel” day-star appeared in totality.                                                                                                                                               
With a solar hot iron bar reflecting down the rippling Gunflint water, I was immersed in this celestial happening. It was as if something super-natural fashioned the moment allowing me to watch the sun melt away into the final leg of its annual trip south. At this particular spot in the universe, by 6:55 pm central daylight time, our daily solar disappearing act was all over, and autumn is now leading us toward winter.                                                                                                                                                   

The “gang of five” bears continue appearing here and there along the south shore of Gunflint Lake. There’s been concerned conversation on whether the four cubs might be able to survive winter. With four tummies to fill over the summer, it doesn’t appear they grew as much as a normal twosome might. They remain relatively small and surely have been weaned from momma. While she is bulking up, it would appear the little ones might not add enough body mass before denning time, to sustain them during the winter slumber. And mom, in her long winters’ nap, surely won’t be providing.                                                                                                                 

It’s another wonder of nature. Guess we’ll have to cross our fingers and hope the little “Teddies” make it to spring.    
 As flashes of aspen gold blur the granite hillsides, the highlands are echoing the noise of more air traffic headed south, as Canadian geese continue honking their “V” formations overhead. Meanwhile, adult loons appear to have taken flight and there are no humming birds around here anymore. But the chickadees, nuthatches, “whiskey jacks” and blue jays are energized while juvenile loons gather for their first excursion to the gulf.

In the meantime, on land, there still has not been a turtle hatching at Chik-Wauk.  Another surface report came my way telling of a half dozen geese landing on the byway black-top in the upper end of the Trail. While probably unusual to land in such a hard surface locale, it seems their feeling of entitlement to take one-half from the middle of the road might parallel that to which moose often subscribe. The six-some had little regard for blocking traffic and took their sweet time before waddling out of the way. For some vehicle operators, the scene might have inspired a decision to have goose for dinner.                                                                                                                      

One additional “growing things” note comes to mind, here it is a day or so from October and the Wildersmith two are finally watching as tomatoes have commenced ripening. While I guessed some time ago, either fried green or pickling would be the standard for this season, “better late than never” patience, pays off.                                                                                                                                                         

It’s with sadness I report the passing of an upper Gunflint Trail neighbor. Word has been received on the death of Cornelia Einsweiler. She and husband Bob have been summer residents in the Seagull Lake area for decades, dating back to the days of Chik-Wauk Resort operations. Cornelia died in Austin, Texas to where she and Bob had been evacuated from their Florida home during the rage of Hurricane Irma. Gunflint Community comfort and condolences are extended to her surviving family and friends.                                                                                                                                                  
For WTIP, this is Fred Smith, on the Trail at Wildersmith, where every day is great, as daytime minutes dwindle, and talk of winter is being whispered.
 

Throughout the northern part of the state, and here in Cook County, we’re receiving numerous accounts of aggressive yellowjackets. WTIP’s Jay Andersen talks with North Woods Naturalist Chel Anderson about what’s up with the wasps.

West End News 9/28/2017
 
Let me start with a hearty thank you to Bill Hansen, aka Dad, for filling in last week while I had a rare September vacation to Denver, Colorado. While being away this time of year can be difficult for a number of reasons, I was especially worried that we would miss out on the best of the fall colors as this is shaping up to be a stellar year. The maples lead the charge a couple of weeks ago, with some brilliant reds just hinting at the show to come. Luckily, we don’t appear to have missed the lovely golds and oranges of the birch and aspen. It seems the farther inland you go from Lake Superior, the more the trees have changed, so up here at the end of the Sawbill trail it is quite lovely right now. As we begin to say goodbye to our summer visitors, the wildlife has started moving back in. A large whitetail buck has been frequenting our back yard and the wolves have been heard howling out in the Wilderness. Grouse hunting has been a little slow, but it is challenging while the leaves are still on the trees, at least that’s what the unlucky hunters tell me.
 
The Schroeder Area Historical Society will be hosting Marcia Anderson at the Cross River Heritage Center on Saturday, September 30 at 11am. Marcia will be discussing her book, A Bag Worth a Pony, a history of bandolier bags. These heavily beaded shoulder bags are made and worn by several North American Indian tribes around the Great Lakes. From the 1870s to the present day, Ojibwe bead artists in Minnesota have been especially well known for there lively, creative designs. Often, the Ojibwe would trade a beaded bandolier bag for a pony from neighboring Dakota people, hence the name of Marcia’s book.
 
The West End Pickle Ball players would like to share that they will be playing every Thursday and Saturday from 9am to 11am at Birch Grove Community Center. All levels are welcome, even those who have never heard of pickle ball before! If you are interested, call Carroll Peterson at 612-377-8748 for more information. Pickle Ball is basically a combination of tennis, badminton, and ping-pong. You play on a badminton sized court with a paddle and plastic ball with holes. It’s a great sport with simple rules and a fun way to stay active through the winter.
 
Birch Grove Community School was recently awarded a grant of $21,600 dollars from the Lloyd K Johnson Foundation for new math and reading curriculum. The curriculum arrived this week and the teachers and students are eager to begin exploring the new materials. Birch Grove is also gearing up for the annual Halloween Carnival, which is not to be missed! This year it will be on Sunday October 29, from 2 to 4 in the afternoon. The carnival features games, cookie decorating, bingo, prizes, food, and, my personal favorite, the cake walk. Costumes are welcome and there’s fun to be had for the whole family.
 
For WTIP, I’m Clare Shirley with the West End News.