West End News: October 20

Although he’s only an honorary West Ender, I offer my heartfelt congratulations to Bob Dylan, on his award of the Nobel Prize for Literature.  Our enigmatic and talented native son is the first musician to win the Noble for literature, but it should came as no surprise to anyone who has been moved by the profound poetry of his song lyrics. 
 
I’m sure Mr. Dylan is a regular visitor to the West End, but just keeps his usual low profile.  If not, we still have a strong connection to him, if only through his iconic album and song, “Highway 61 Revisited.”
 
If you haven’t seen it yet, be sure to look up the aerial drone footage of the Manitou River Falls on the Internet.  There are two large sets of falls that are rarely seen by the public.  They are out of view from the highway and are surrounded by private land, so the only way to see them all is from the air.  The last drop is a 50-foot falls directly into Lake Superior, making it a fairly rare phenomenon on the big lake. 
 
The footage is the work of a company called Liftoff Aerials.  Thanks to them for sharing this spectacular footage with their North Shore neighbors.  You can find it by Googling Manitou Falls drone footage.
 
Sugarloaf Nature Center, in Schroeder, is hosting a program next month on historic bark-peeled pine. Apparantly, during the era of birch bark canoe, in what is now the BWCA Wilderness, the canoe builders peeled red pine bark to collect the sap that was used to seal the seams.  Some of the trees, in use during the fur trade circa 1700 to 1900, still exist.  By studying their location, archeologists can shed new light on the economy and travel patterns of people in that distant time.
 
Lee Johnson, the Superior National Forest Archeologist, will be presenting on this discovery at Sugarloaf on Saturday, November 12th from 10 to 11 am.  He will be describing how to identify the bark-peeled pine and is asking wilderness travelers to report any that they find back to him.
 
Given the deep, deep history of canoe travel in the West End, and all of northeastern Minnesota, this is a significant archeological find and really interesting for canoe nerds like me.  I think I’ve read every word ever written about birch bark canoes and I’ve always been told that the sealing pitch was a mixture of black spruce sap and animal fat.  History is always fascinating and surprising.
 
I’d like to add my voice to the chorus of local voices supporting the two referendum questions that Cook County School District #166 has placed on this year’s election ballot.  One question asks for approval of a new Capital Bond to make repairs and improvements to school facilities.  The other question asks for an Operating Levy that virtually all Minnesota Public Schools need to fund themselves.
 
I’ve carefully studied both proposals and listened closely to the arguments – both for and against.  In my opinion, both are excellent investments for the future of Cook County and will pay us back many times over in the future.  Don’t take my word for it, though.  Go to CookCountySchools.org and read the material there for yourself.  I was also influenced by the carefully thought out support from the Cook County Chamber of Commerce.  I plan to vote “yes” and “yes” on the questions and urge you to do so too.
 
Just a quick reminder of two important events coming up in support of Birch Grove Community School in Tofte.  The Barbeque Rib Feast is at the Schroeder Town Hall on Thursday, October 27th from 4:30 to 7 pm. Also, the umteenth annual PTO Halloween Carnival at Birch Grove on Sunday, October 30th from 2 until 4 pm.  Be there, or be you-know-what.
 
The leaves are mostly down back over the hill and even the Shore is past its prime.  That is no reason to avoid the back roads.  The tamaracks are still beautiful and some of the underbrush, especially the willows, is still vivid. Plus, it’s fun to be able to see a reasonable distance into the woods. You might spot a moose, a partridge or a bark-peeled pine that have been hiding for the last five months.  Every season is a good season here in the ol’ West End.
 
For WTIP, this is Bill Hansen with the West End News.