Wildersmith on the Gunflint - May 25

Wildersmith on the Gunflint     by     Fred Smith     May 25, 2018    

May is heading into the final lap, and the green-up continues. It’s almost all things spring and nearly summer as early wild blooms are bursting with splendor. All sign of winter is gone. Official summer is less than a month away, as the Ojibwe, “budding flowers” moon bids the fifth segment of ’18 farewell.  
                                                                                                                                           
The wild sunny gold of Marsh Marigolds and Dandelions in concert with domestic Daffodils is blazing our Trail with yellow fever. Add in a twinkling of purplish Squill along with a few Violets and we’re having a bloomin’ good prelude to the warm season color show. And we know “Mother Nature” has more blossoming adventures in the weeks to come.  
                                       
Leaf out continues its momentum as Quaking Aspen tokens are exploding by the moment. It is hard to fathom how these trembling leaflets expand in the few hours from morning until evening. I’ve been making daily trips to the Chik-Wauk Campus and the growth of this green Aspen maze is simply magical. Meanwhile, birch and maple buds have yet to catch their Poplar cousins, but their day is coming. 
                                                                                                                   
Complementing the green wave is a surge of hummingbirds and robins into the territory.  Furthering the spring explosion, in any area of standing water, peepers are singing a happy tune. Yep, springtime has the spotlight!    
                                                                                        
Mentioning Chik-Wauk, a few lines ago finds preparations for this weekends’ season-opening are buzzing just like things out of doors. The ninth season of telling the Gunflint Trail story through the Museum and Nature Center begins at 10:00 am Saturday. The facility is open each day until 5:00 pm.   
                                                                                                                                                     
The temporary museum exhibit of the Ham Lake fire has been expanded to include “The Gunflint Green-up” in honor of the tenth anniversary of this massive tree planting event prompted by the 75,000-acre fire. You won’t want to miss it.            
                                                                                                                                                                
If that isn’t enough, visitors will get the first peek at the timber frame structure designed to eventually house the historic watercraft exhibit. The terrific timber framing team completed the raising just days ago. This work of historical construction in itself …is architectural magnificence. It was hand hewn and pegged together by 19 residents and friends of the Gunflint Trail Community.  Under the guidance of Peter Henrikson through the North House Folks School, visitors have to see this as well. See a picture with my WTIP column at WTIP.org. 
                                                                                                 
A couple manicuring efforts are underway along the Scenic Byway. Firstly, residents and travelers along the Trail and on back country roads have probably observed blue paint markings on trees and slash. If you haven’t already chased down the reason, its’ all part of Arrowhead Electric Coop’s right of away clearing processes. If you observed a blue “X” the tree inside the easement is being recommended as a removal candidate. A blue “dot” means the tree, needs work, and it is scheduled for pruning. Blue on brush means complete removal of the slash and very small trees.    
                                                                                                                                      
Residents should not panic at this as the contractor will visit with each property owner personally or through communication avenues to seek permission to work on the row across their respective property.  AEC does not contemplate any spray applications this year. If you have any further questions, contact AEC @ 218-663-7239.      
                                                                                
The second is a spruce up of the Trailside ditches. The GT Scenic Byway Committee has been working with lake homeowner groups to do a Trail clean-up. The task was completed during the past few days by many area residents. In cooperation with the Cook County Highway Department, collected trash was picked up from various roadside locations a day or so ago. So if you observed an assortment of black bags and larger items of trash along the roadside that was what it was all about. Big thanks to all in the great Gunflint Community who pitched in to clean-up, after those who pitch out!   
                                                                                                                                            
On a closing note, I received word about a wolf/beaver confrontation awhile back. The predator/prey drama played out while the area lakes were still under ice. From the sound of things, it was quite a fracas over on Leo Lake before the cantankerous beaver finally succumbed to the hungry Canid. I’m betting the beaver made this more of a battle than Mr. Wolf envisioned before the attack.    
                                                                                                                              
For WTIP, this is Wildersmith, on the Gunflint Trail, where every day is great, as all things emerald, engulf our Northern Riviera.