Nice Ice: While this week has proven unseasonably warm, the dry conditions also have produced some skate-perfect clear-ice conditions on inland lakes. Photographer Chris Artist up Thunder Bay way posted this "On Golden Pond," which could also be "On Golden Pond Hockey." Also near Thunder Bay, photographer Karen Ramsdale posted her own series of skating silhouettes (as seen here). Thunder Bay expects temperatures around -2° C this weekend while the eastern Ontario shore could see temps just above freezing. Meteorologist Alex Libby at CBS3 Duluth did a story on the good skating found in Minnesota's Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (where, we're assuming "motorized" skates would not be allowed). "It's pretty rare for it to be clear as glass and safe to walk on," Ashley Bredemus of Birchwood Wilderness Camp told Alex. "I've heard from people who have been around a lot longer than me say it's once in a lifetime, once in 40 years, once in 50 years sort of thing." The National Weather Service office in Duluth notes that the clear ice may not last long with higher than average precipitation (aka snow) forecast between now and Christmas. On Wednesday, temperatures in northern Minnesota hit 50 and almost that high in northern Wisconsin (well above our mid-20s averages), but cooler weather and lake-effect snows were forecast for this weekend along the Minnesota and Wisconsin shores. The Marquette NWS office also noted temperatures 10° to 15° F above average and predicts light drizzle and/or flurries but mostly dry this weekend in the Upper Peninsula. For the Santa forecast focused among us, the folks at the Duluth NWS posted this up-to-Christmas forecast map.
Socially Distanced Santa: Darrell's Full Service Auto Repair in Hayward, Wis., has figured out a way to keep everyone safe while meeting Santa. The Big Guy will bring the jolly from the inside of a 1969 Camaro SS convertible at the auto repair shop from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday. Everyone is welcome to get in on the Santa photo op seated on a bench in front of the car. "You will be your own photographer, or one of Santa’s helpers can snap a picture on your phone or camera if you want a family picture." The shop asks visitors to "please remain inside your car until it’s your turn to smile pretty. There will be hot chocolate and cookies available after your shoot. This is a free event and all are welcome." While you're waiting, helpers will collect non-perishable food items that you bring and the shop's mechanics will check your vehicle’s lights while you’re seeing Santa. "Any blinker, tail light, or parking light will be replaced on the spot for FREE. Yes, free with at least one non-perishable. Items will be distributed between the Hayward and Cable food shelves. The free bulb offer does not include headlights or fog lights, but they can be replaced for a small charge, too." Way to light up the season, Darrell! (While you're on the Darrell's Facebook page, check out the hoot of a video from a mechanic's shop in Australia with a unique "social distancing" idea - as seen here.)
Going Up Downtown: Construction on Superior Street in downtown Duluth and its sidewalks has gone to bed for the winter, but the work on Essentia Health's $900 million Vision Northland project continues on the eastern side of the downtown. The health system's weekly update includes a photo of the project. The project will add 942,000 square feet of new space to a hospital complex scheduled to open in 2023. For the city's Superior Street makeover, meanwhile, sections of the three-part project that are yet to be completed, including the final pouring of the sidewalks and some of the street completions, will restart in spring. There should be no major season-long street closures reducing easy access to downtown businesses, however. Also in Duluth, Maarja Anderson Hewitt (in photo) of Visit Duluth posted a
wee how-to video with tips on taking the drive-thru Bentleyville tour of lights this year. She suggests the best days. We here at the magazine recently chatted with a couple planning to take their 3-year-old through the display on Wednesday this week after stopping for take-out food to munch while waiting in the car. But by 6 p.m. when they arrived, all the evening's tickets had been sold. Luckily, the mom told us, the toddler thought the lighting displays on local houses were "Bentleyville." They, and we, highly recommend the real version, though, so heed Maarja's advice.
Downed Plane: A Wisconsin Air National Guard F-16 Fighting Falcon jet crashed in Michigan's Upper Peninsula on Tuesday and today the pilot killed was identified as 37-year-old Capt. Durwood "Hawk" Jones, originally of Albuquerque, New Mexico, according to a story today in Air Force Times. "He is a decorated combat veteran, deploying as a part of a United States Pacific Command Theater Support Package to Japan in 2015 and to Korea in 2017," the Times reported. "He deployed again in support of Operation Freedom’s Sentinel to Afghanistan in 2019. Hawk was awarded two Air Medals with combat “C” devices, which are awarded to individuals who have been personally exposed to hostile action or under significant risk of hostile action." The 115th Fighter Wing grounded all flights for now as the crash is being investigated. The plane went down in the Hiawatha National Forest.
Looking Toward Retirement: The U.S. Coast Guard station with the oldest cutter was the subject of Marquette's Mining Journal recently. U.S. Coast Guard Sector Sault Ste. Marie's 57-year-old buoy tender Buckthorn is on a list to be replaced, according to a story by Eric Freedman published by the newspaper. Eric cites a report by the the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service that says the Coast Guard is waiting for Congress to approve its proposal to replace up to 35 aging cutters, which average 56 years old. "Their annual maintenance costs are rising rapidly, they break down frequently and can remain out of operation for periods of 30 to 45 days while being repaired, and they have poor living conditions for their crew members,” Eric quotes the report. “The Coast Guard argues that replacing the aging cutters will be more cost-effective than continuing to operate and maintain them." The first replacements likely would not be ready until 2025. Meanwhile, Sector Sault Ste. Marie posted about the Marquette Coast Guard Station's newest recruits – the safety tag-team of Loki and Thor – continue to post weekly safety tips on the crew's Facebook page. This week's tips took the two Guard pups to the station's engineering department. "Safety equipment plays a pivotal role in their jobs, keeping them safe, ultimately keeping the rest of us safe! Our engineers are all subject matter experts on safety … (as you all can tell, Thor and Loki model themselves after the engineers when it comes to safety) … and so do the rest of us here at the station."
Top-notch Research: After ranking at the top of Canada's undergraduate research universities for a record-breaking five years, Lakehead University in Thunder Bay slipped one notch but still ranks 2nd in the 2020 listing of Research Infosource Inc. Lakehead ranked No. 1 in its category for research publication and not-for-profit research income, notes Dr. Andrew P. Dean, the university’s vice president of research & innovation. “Many of our research projects at Lakehead University are built around community," Dean says. "Relationships with foundations, Indigenous communities, and agencies with a social accountability mandate are extremely important to Lakehead University. These relationships are reflected in our continued strength in the not-for-profit research income category." Also this week, Lakehead posted its Hope & Resilience video as part of its annual Report to the Community. The video names Lakehead students and alumni making a difference across the country during the times of COVID.
More Port: The Duluth Seaway Port Authority finalized acquisition of the Duluth Lake Port dock on Rice’s Point on Dec. 1. "The 7.5-acre Duluth Lake Port dock and 3.5-acre slip date back to the 1880s, when Duluth Imperial Mill built the site’s initial flour mill and grain elevators," the port reports. The facility was last used for grain in 2015 and the Port acquired it in a $950,000 deal that closed Dec. 1, 2020. "The purchase included land, structures, Seaway-depth slip and 3,000 feet of on-dock rail connected to the Clure Public Marine Terminal and the CN Duluth Intermodal Terminal." The port partner, Duluth Cargo Connect, operates the site’s rail assets and a shop building while J.F. Brennan leases a portion of the site to store material and equipment for its maritime engineering operations. “Our future use of this property is still in the planning phases, but our goal is to revitalize the pier and bring it back to life in a way that contributes to our regional economy and further expands Duluth Cargo Connect’s service to customers within our region and around the globe,” said Deb DeLuca, executive director of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority. “In the long term, it could become a second expansion of the Clure Terminal.” The existing grain elevators may be demolished or converted for storage of a non-agricultural bulk commodity. Another priority is rehabilitation of the pier’s dock walls to secure the site and open possibilities for future freight-related use.
Kid Stuff: In the December/January issue of Lake Superior Magazine, we caught up with Duluth author Margi Preus about her book-release hat trick for the year – three books for children and young adults. Writer Adam de Pencier does a Q&A with the author about The Littlest Voyageur, a tale of interest to Lake Superior lovers about the history of our fur trade with a bit of a squirrely twist. Also this year, Margi had published a young adult book about a village in France during the Nazi occupation called Village of Scoundrels and the third and final installment in her Enchanted Lake Mystery, The Silver Box. In the issue, we also did our annual mini reviews of several children's books by local authors or about regional topics. Online, we've added a few additional books worth noting, including the final installment of Stephen T. Schram's trilogy following Lake Superior trout Louis and Louise on their quest to bring awareness of concerns about the Great Lakes. Any of these will make good gifting for the holidays or worthy winter reading even after the tree comes down or the candelabras are put away.
Booking donations: Duluth’s Lake Superior Zoo today announced a fundraiser featuring a new children’s book: New Friends Arrive at the Lake Superior Zoo, written and illustrated by local author Joe Klander. In the book, the zoo animals prepare to welcome new friends. Readers follow Taj the tiger, Kiwi and Lili the black-crested mangabey monkeys, and others as they to meet the zoo’s newest additions – Tundra and Banks, orphaned Alaskan brown bears. “I’ve been going to the Lake Superior Zoo since I was a kid and now I get to take my family there,” Joe says of the project. “It makes me so happy that I could contribute and be a part of the zoo’s history in a small way.” The COVID-19 pandemic has severely impacted the Lake Superior Zoo, closed twice this year under the governor’s orders. The book is available online with three levels of donations as options, including one with a holiday ornament. The book will also be available at the zoo’s weekend retail pop-up shop on Saturdays and Sundays, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. The first 200 donors receive author-signed copies of the book.
Gaiter Aid: AdventureUs in Washburn, Wis., has kids in mind with some of its gaiter products - for sleeves and necks (which you can see advertised on this newsletter). Owner Amy Trimbo came up with the Snow Sleeves - replacing those little mitten clips that maybe saved some lost mitts, but never really kept snow out of coats. (The tops of her husband's old socks were the prototypes and inspiration, by the by.) Melinda Lavine of the Duluth News Tribune did a story about the new company, which earned the 2019 Chequamegon Bay Spark competition and $5,000 to help her start up. What's additionally cool about the shop is that the folks there can repair winter clothing and gear – from replacing zippers to patching canvas. Audrey Weaver (appropriately named for someone with sewing skills) helps out. Both her and Amy's children are ample product testers - like this youngster on Mt. Ashwabay Ski and Recreation Area outside Bayfield.
Photo & graphic credits: Chris Artist; Karen Ramsdale; National Weather Service Duluth; Darrell's Full Service Auto Repair; Essentia Health; Visit Duluth; U.S. Coast Guard; Lakehead University; Duluth Seaway Port Authority; Margi Preus; Lake Superior Zoo; AdventureUs