West End News: April 23

I saw a moose on the Grade Road last week.  I saw it a little closer than I like to see a moose when I’m traveling 40 miles per hour in a car.  It is rare to see a moose anymore, or even tracks of a moose on the back roads in the West End.  It’s so rare that I’ve let my guard down.  Of course, the one moose in a hundred square miles has to be lurking in the worst spot on a blind corner.  Fortunately, the healthy looking young cow didn’t panic and run.  She just spun around and prepared to kick the car if I got too close.  I was easily able to slow down and steer around her.  No harm done, except a shot of adrenaline for both of us.
 
Farther along on the same night, I saw a muskrat out for a ramble in the middle of the Sawbill Trail.  When I stopped, he turned around and ran toward the car, like he was looking for a ride.  This is the second muskrat I’ve seen wandering around on the Sawbill Trail.
 
Both the lack of moose and the ramblings of the muskrats are clear signs of our rapidly changing climate.  Twenty years ago, the moose were plentiful and the muskrats were nearly unheard of.  I wonder how long until the alligators show up.
 
The North Shore Stewardship Association has announced their first capital campaign in more than 20 years for the Sugarloaf Cove Nature Center in Schroeder.  The number of people taking advantage of Sugarloaf Cove has grown by leaps and bounds in recent years.  The improvements will include better parking, signage, and building upgrades that provide for easier access and support of Sugarloaf’s educational efforts, according to Executive Director Molly Thompson.
 
The 38-acre Sugarloaf Cove site is renowned for its volcanic geology, cobblestone beach, unique arctic plants and its unusual tombolo.  Alright, if you know what a tombolo is, your vocabulary is better than mine.  I had to look it up.  A tombolo is a bar of sand, or shingle, connecting an island to the mainland.
 
Long story short, Sugarloaf Cove is the greatest and I hope everyone will join me in helping them out with this campaign.  You can donate online at: sugarloafnorthshore.org or call Molly at 218-525-0001.  You can always call WTIP if you missed that contact information.
 
The 5th annual Gala for the Grove, the year’s largest fundraiser for Birch Grove Community School, will be on May 9th in the Lakeside Ballroom at Surfside on Lake Superior in Tofte.  This event sells out every year and starts with a champagne social at 5 pm.  The gourmet dinner begins at 6:30 pm with a fabulous prize drawing held near the end of the dinner.  At 7:30, the piece-de-resistance, an entertaining live auction, is held.  The auction always includes some very unusual and desirable items.  Finally, at 9 the dancing begins and continues until the wee, wee hours, which by Tofte standards is probably about 10:30.
 
Tickets are still available, but you should make your reservations right away.  Contact Celeste at Birch Grove Community School, 663-0170 or email [email protected].  In this case there is no doubt, be there or be square.
 
In breaking news, there has been a change of ownership in the bottle shop located next to the Tofte General Store.  As planned during the store complex’s sale four years ago, Cliff Iverson has relinquished the management of the liquor store to Lisa Nelson and her hard-working crew at the Tofte General Store.  Major renovations are underway and if you stop in soon, you can request that your favorite beverage be stocked.
 
As reported here last week, Sawbill Lake was making quick progress toward shedding its ice cover for the season.  In less than a week, summer-like weather melted 27 inches of solid ice down to 13 inches of pretty degraded ice.  That’s when Mother Nature hit the big ol’ red STOP button.  For the first part of this week the remaining ice has been getting more solid and is currently covered with five inches of fresh powder snow.  While the return to winter is disheartening, it’s not unusual.  I hope to report next week that the waves are lapping the shore as the canoes paddle into the sunset.