Wildersmith on the Gunflint: May 2

The Smiths are back on the Mile O Pine after a trek south where we visited kids, grandkids and reconnected with many friends.  I was also a member of the great officiating crew for the 105^th annual Drake relays in Des Moines on the last weekend of April.

The Drake event was held under spectacular weather conditions with sun and temps in the mid-70s. I therefore came home with a sunburned face and ears. It was another world from what I left and subsequently returned to. Nevertheless it’s great to be back home in the peace and quiet of our special place on the northern Riviera.
           
It seemed that Old Man Winter must have been scribing his final lines last week (April 24 and 25) when border country got another dose of snow. Reports I get are that anywhere from 4 to 12 inches blanketed the Trail depending upon one’s locale.

This just has to be the winter guy’s closing stanza. That being said, our total at Wildersmith stands at close to 120 inches for the season. Not bad, huh?

The ice on Gunflint Lake remains firmly in place at this writing and is probably about the same on all other big bodies of water out this way. I do see hope along the Trail, as liquid is standing on most swamps and small ponds that line the corridor byway. While places of open water can be observed flowing under both Brule River bridges down at the trail’s lower end, and the Cross River is roaring in the upper reaches.

At long last pussy willow buds have escaped their winter husks, but May flowers remain buried in snow, quietly awaiting their time in the sun. The hard winter has taken its toll on a great number of coniferous forest members. Our bitter cold months left millions of branches with brown needles. Most will recover when buds send out the next generation shoots but in the meantime the evergreens look like death warmed over.

Thinking mud season would improve as I departed for Iowa on April 16, the return finds our road conditions along the Mile O Pine barely changed. In fact they are worse in a couple locales as the demise of roadside ice dams continues to disperse what appears to be an un-ending ooze of water. I’m guessing I can’t take off my winter wheels just yet. Maybe we’ll be dry in those places by July!

Although winter has not totally relinquished its grip, people out this way are kicking spring off anyway. The first big Trail happening is being held Saturday. The seventh annual Ham Lake Run highlights the beginning of a new season. The 5K and half-marathon events commence at 10 a.m. Saturday from the Seagull Fishing Camp and Gunflint Pines Resort respectively, running on the roadway, finishing at the Seagull Lake parking facility near Trail’s end.

This is a fun event commemorating the tragic Ham Lake Fire of 2007 while celebrating the energy of rebirth in the scarred forest. In the past years, fund raising proceeds have gone to various nonprofit organizations. This year’s returns will go to the Cook County YMCA.
Late registrations can be completed by visiting cookcountyymca.org or call 218-387-3386. If you’re in the area, come on out and give these hardy runners a cheer!

Since it’s now May, plans are well under way for the fifth seasonal opening of the Chik Wauk Museum and Nature Center. Opening day will be Saturday, May 24 (Memorial Day weekend). Hours of daily operation remain from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.

Staff and museum volunteers are busy getting ready. A new temporary exhibit for 2014 will feature our natural world with a wonderful display of area butterflies, skippers and moths. A new and improved sound system has been installed in the little theater which should enhance a quieter visitor experience. In addition, many new items will be featured in the gift shop.

The Gunflint Trail Historical Society invites you to once again make plans for a visit to this magical place at Trail’s end during the coming season. Make a day of it with a museum tour, a hike on the trails system and maybe a picnic around the bay.

Keep on hangin’ on, and savor our trickling streams and the reappearance of brown earth.

(Photo by Marilylle Soveran on Flickr)