Superior National Forest Update: July 1

Hi.  This is Andrew Gale, seasonal interpreter, with the Superior National Forest Update - information on conditions affecting travel and recreation on the Tofte and Gunflint Districts of the Forest. For the week of July 1st, here’s what’s going on in the Forest.
It is the week of July 4^th already!  Many people enjoy hiking, camping, fishing, or just driving through the Forest over the Independence Day holiday.  We’d like to remind people of one thing they cannot do.  Shooting off fireworks is illegal everywhere on the Forest.  That’s all kinds of fireworks, including those that are legal in other parts of the state.  If your celebration of the Fourth has a few things that go boom in the night, you’ll have to set them off outside of the national forest, and we encourage you to pay extra attention to safety when using fireworks.  Recently, fire balloons have become a common sight on the Fourth as well.  These are the large plastic bags with a candle at the base that work as small hot air balloons.  They act both as a source of ignition for wildfires, and as a source of litter, and are also not allowed on the Superior.  There will be great fireworks in Tofte and Grand Marais, and that really is the best and safest way to enjoy them.
You may also want to take in the Fourth of July parade in Tofte, and while you are there, you can watch or run in the Tofte Trek, an annual trail race.  Watch out for runners and spectators around the Tofte area on trails and near the base of Sawbill Trail.  The start and finish is at the Birch Grove Community Center, and the race route uses snowmobile trails, ski trails, and the Superior Hiking Trail.
Besides fireworks, one of the other sights at night this time of year are the large silkworm moths.  Silkworm moths include the cecropia, polyphemus, and luna moths.  They are all spectacularly big, and are fun to find roosting during the day.  Lunas are the pretty light green moths with the tails on their wings.  The caterpillars eat birch leaves, so our forest along the North Shore is perfect for them.  The tails on the wings are thought to be useful in confusing bat sonar and making them harder for bats to catch.  Cecropias and polyphemus both have large eyespots on the wings to confuse predatory birds.  None of these moths eat as adults, and are only around for a short time in the summer, so look for them while you can.
If you are interested in moths or any other kind of biology, you may want to be a part of the July 7^th Bioblitz.  Superior National Forest, Sugarloaf Cove, Tettegouche State Park, and Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center are cooperating on this one day event to identify as many species as possible in a specific location within a short time.  Contact the Tofte District Office, or any of the participating organizations for more information. 
There is some logging traffic this week, mostly in the same areas as the last few weeks.  On Gunflint, harvest is taking place off of Greenwood Road, Shoe Lake Road, and Firebox Road.  Log hauling will be taking place on these roads, as well as Trestle Pine Road and Ball Club Road, so please use caution when driving or recreating in these areas.  Tofte logging activity continues on FR369 with multiple logging operations.  In addition, expect truck traffic on the Wanless Rd., Lake County 7, Cook County 3, and The Grade.
Speaking of logging and lumber, the Forest Service is cooperating again this year with Hedstrom’s Lumber Mill outside of Grand Marais to provide tours of the mill.  The start of the tour season was delayed this year due to a fire in the mill, but will be starting this next week on Tuesdays and Fridays.  Please call Hedstrom’s ahead of time for a reservation.  For details on this and on other naturalist programs this summer, go to the Superior National Forest website and click on the naturalist program link from the homepage.
Enjoy your Fourth, good luck to the Tofte Trekkers, and until next week, this has been Andrew Gale with the National Forest Update.