North Shore News Hour | WTIP North Shore Community Radio, Cook County, Minnesota

What a difference a couple weeks can make. November has turned uncommonly in the opposite direction of winter along the Gunflint Trail. Whereas we “fell back” with our timepieces last weekend, strides toward winter have reversed into a backward course as well.

For several days north country has felt like September, and those of us favoring cold and snow by this time, find it quite unsettling. But what is one to do other than “grin and sweat it.”

A journal check of last year found we at Wildersmith had our first inch of snow on the twenty-ninth of October and temps by week two of November were in the 20s at night and 30s during the daytime hours.

How warm has it been? Well if your thermometer was in the sun last Sunday, the mercury registered about 70 degrees (probably record setting) at some places up the Trail while in the shade, mid-fifties to sixty was “bad” enough.

“Wild neighborhood” critters in the process of “getting ready” are probably confused. And I might have been seeing things, but I’d swear some deciduous beings poked out green bud tips after several days of sunshine and heat. On the human side of happenings, we even had a few boats go up and down Gunflint Lake over the past several days.

Interestingly enough, it’s been so warm as to draw out a batch of those pesky buzzing pests. While catching up on some early season tree pruning, the nasty nippers have not lost their touch in tormenting me, generally being a pain in the eyes, ears, nose, and hair below my hat band while biting at my wrists around my glove cuffs.

At the same time, the house had been buttoned up for the season, and this has had to be un-done with opening windows, leaving storm doors open and a resort to ceiling fans. I can see only one thing positive being drawn from this warm, yucky situation - home heating bills will be less taxing. Score: Consumers one, utility investors nothing, so far!

I haven’t received any success reports from deer stalkers, but one would guess the warm weather had whitetails wild in the woods, as opposed to their normal cold times meanderings. I’d guess venison takings were probably minimal on opening weekend. One thing for sure, both deer and moose are likely more into sweating it out from the temps instead of human predation.

In the meantime, snowshoe hares around the place are not taking the heat too seriously. I’ve observed several over the past week having advanced to half and half in their summer to winter coat transition. While on the “Bruno” side of the ledger, one would suppose they are not seeing a need to den up just yet, so we should not tempt bears by putting out winter small animal and bird feeding facilities for a while longer.

Regular avian friends at Wildersmith seem not one bit concerned about this weather oddity. Nuthatches and chickadees are swarming like it was December/January and “whiskey jacks,” having been AWOL for months, are now arriving for both a breakfast and afternoon hand-out. Furthermore, ruffed grouse are content to hang out in this neighborhood oblivious to the fact that winter arrival has been derailed.

While this weather anomaly has some of us aghast, blue skies are tinting border country lakes and mostly calm air is reflecting mirror images of lake shorelines with an unimagined upside down beauty. No pun intended, but the current heaven to earth magic kind of gives one a warm all-over feeling.

When the territory will surrender to the glory of winter is yet to be seen. For the time being, everyone in the Gunflint community is enjoying this idyllic calm before the storm.

For WTIP, this is Fred Smith, on the Trail, at Wildersmith, where every day is great and will often render a wilderness adventure.

(Photo courtesy of Cimexus on Flickr)

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West End News: November 10

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I'm feeling proud to be from Cook County this week. Our local election season was civil, sane and focused on the desire to make life better for all of us. The voters stepped up for the schools, making a strong statement about the importance great local education. Most of our local and state representatives were re-elected by wide margins, reflecting the fact that they're doing a pretty good job of working for us.

I thank everyone who serves in local elected office. It's a hard job and often a thankless job, but every single office holder in this neck of the woods is dedicated, hard-working and effective. Disagreements, when they occur, are about the issues and not the people.

On the national level, my feelings are just the opposite. I won't bore you with a litany of election ugliness, as others are doing that a-plenty. But, regular listeners will recall hearing me say that I personally believe that Donald Trump is a con-man. In spite of his being the winner of this awful election, I've seen nothing to change my opinion. The only thing I can say is that time will tell.

Another great example of good local leadership is the upcoming "Free Day at the Dentist" for all Cook County Youth on Monday, November 28. This wonderful program is under the umbrella of the North Shore Health Care Foundation and sponsored by the Oral Health Task Force and Grand Marais Family Dentistry.

Here's how it works: Just call Grand Marais Family Dentistry at 387-2774 and schedule an appointment for any child between the ages of 18 months and 26 years. The free visit will include an exam, cleaning, x-rays, fluoride and/or sealants. This offer applies to everyone, so to be eligible, you just have to be a kid.

This program has been going for a number of years now. A long list of generous people and organizations, too many to mention here, pony up money to make this happen. I'll just say thanks and you know who you are.

Before you take your kids to the dentist, take them - and yourself - to the annual Birch Grove Community School Dinner at Papa Charlie's from 5 to 8 pm on Saturday, November 19.

Not only is a delicious dinner served to you by Birch Grove staff and parents, there is also a big silent auction and some really good live music. The auction is famous for its scope and variety, but the music this year is something special.

Mysterious Ways is the band performing. The leader is Josh Schmidt, Lutsen boy born and bred, along with his talented musical partner, Brady Lillie. Josh and Brady will be freshly returned from an ambitious and successful national tour with their full band, Step Rockets. A heavy touring schedule will have sharpened the skills of these master musicians, so don't miss it, whatever you do.

Several canoes were rented at Sawbill last week and there were campers in most of the local campgrounds. It's the latest canoe and boating season that I can remember and the visitors were rewarded with stunningly beautiful weather.

Several people have commented on seeing white snowshoe hares recently. The white rabbits in the brown woods really stand out, defeating their clever camouflage plan. They probably have the right idea in the long run though. After all all, they've been West End residents for a long time.

For WTIP, this is Bill Hansen with the West End News.

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