Bringing Home a Winner: Subscribers to Lake Superior Magazine have already enjoyed the incredible images that earned the top prizes and honorable mentions in our 25th annual Lake Superior Photo Contest. Now we want to share broadly these photographic mementos by residents and visitors. You can link to see all the winners shown in the magazine, plus some extra finalists. We've added judges' short comments. This photo, our Grand Prize winner by Shannon Hart of Williamston, Michigan, shows Miners Castle in Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. About the photo, judges note, "Spectacularly captured the layered essence of Lake Superior interacting with land and sky. The combination enticed us to return to this image and appreciate the majesty of the place." This year as you snap your memory-making Lake Superior region photos in any of our categories – Lake/Landscape, People/Humor, Artsy/Altered, Nature and Maritime – don't forget to enter your best shots in our 26th annual Lake Superior Photo Contest by Oct. 12.
The Time Has Come: Next week in southern Minnesota and a couple weeks later in northern Minnesota, ice anglers must get their fishing shacks off the inland waters, the Minnesota DNR reminds all. South of the DNR line on this map, ice-fishing houses must be removed by March 1 and north of the line by March 16 (although those on border waters between the U.S. and Canada can remain until March 31). Ice anglers are reminded to take away their trash when they leave, and those caught leaving more than an impression on the ice face a citation. “The majority of people do things right, but unfortunately there’s a subset of people who leave a mess on the ice and count on someone else to clean up after them,” Rodmen Smith, the director of the DNR’s enforcement division, said in a statement. Cigarette butts, propane canisters, cans, bags and bottles (even some with people poo), blocking materials and fish carcasses are among the trash items DNR workers have found after the season ends. If no one picks up the litter, of course, it gets into our lakes when the ice melts. “Leaving trash on the ice isn’t a mistake or an oversight – the people who litter make a conscious decision to do it,” Rodmen said. “They take advantage of the fact that the majority of people care about our lakes and will clean up trash, even if it isn’t theirs.” In Michigan's Upper Peninsula, the deadline to remove ice-fishing shanties (we like that term) is by March 15 on the Michigan-Wisconsin border and March 31 elsewhere in the U.P. Dates may shift if conditions warrant it, the Michigan DNR notes, adding "Shanty owners whose structures fall through the ice are subject to penalties of up to 30 days in jail, fines of $100 to $500, or both. If a shanty is removed by a government agency, the court can require the owner to reimburse that agency for an amount of up to three times the cost of removal." In Wisconsin, meanwhile, those shacks or shanties need to be off by March 15 for inland waters north of Highway 64 and on Lake Superior and by March 1 for some Wisconsin-Minnesota border areas.
No Foolin': April Fools Day, April 1, will be when the navigation season opens on the Montreal-Lake Ontario (MLO) section of the St. Lawrence Seaway, which is no joking matter to some maritime shipping interests. The delay is to allow more outflow from Lake Ontario through the Moses-Saunders dam. The two Seaway corporations, in announcing the April 1 opening, stated: "the majority of benefits of lowering Lake Ontario levels by maintaining outflows above those safe for navigation in the Montreal/Lake Ontario Section of the Seaway occur before April 1, 2020. After that date, the benefits for lowering Lake Ontario by maintaining outflows above those safe for navigation are significantly reduced." Given the lack of ice, it was anticipated that the full seaway could have opened much earlier. "With little ice coverage, the MLO section of the St. Lawrence Seaway could have opened as early as March 20," the Chamber of Marine Chamber stated in a press release this week. "As many as 100 ship transits could have moved during that 12 days." The MLO section encompasses seven locks from Montreal to Iroquois, Ont., for navigation from the lower St. Lawrence River (and hence the Atlantic Ocean) to Lake Ontario. The Welland Canal in Ontario will still open March 24 and the Soo Locks opens a day later, their usual start dates. The marine chamber, which represents shipping interests, wants a way to release more water from the Lake Ontario. "Marine shipping executives are calling on government officials to protect the St. Lawrence Seaway trade corridor by working with stakeholders to develop solutions that do not rely on one ineffective dam to solve high-water levels across the Great Lakes," the chamber stated. "This dam is a very limited tool that does not solve this problem. We need to work together to develop a much broader, holistic resiliency plan that looks at every avenue including flood zoning, shoreline resiliency and infrastructure investments.”
Adding her voice, Deb DeLuca, executive director of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority, is quoted: “The high water levels throughout the system are concerning for all involved, from perspectives of navigability, property damage, and economic and community resiliency. As agencies move forward in deciding how to best manage water levels, it’s important that they protect the operability and reputation of the Great Lakes–St. Lawrence Seaway maritime trade corridor and the significant economic benefit it provides to communities throughout the region in both the United States and Canada. In the world of freight, reliability and efficiency are key performance metrics. Delayed shipments and uncertain system availability will result in lost business that may not return. Shippers would seek alternative supply routes and supply chains, potentially resulting in permanent traffic loss for U.S. and Canadian ports, an outcome that would cause substantial, far-reaching and long-term damage to the entire Great Lakes region.”
When opened, the maximum allowable draft for vessels through the MLO section will be 26 feet, 3 inches and once the South Shore Canal in that section is ice free, the allowable draft will increase by 3 inches, letting ships load more. The Great Lakes - St. Lawrence Seaway System managers posted this Q&A about the delay decisions and its affects.
Meanwhile … Visit Duluth announced its 2020 First Ship Contest. Contestants enter their guess of the exact date and time the very first ocean-going vessel will sail this spring into the Port of Duluth-Superior beneath the Aerial Lift Bridge. The person with the closest time wins a Grand Prize package that overnight lodging, $50 food and shopping gift cards, a subscription to Lake Superior Magazine and passes to eight local attractions. Second place also gets food and shopping gift cards, a subscription and attraction passes. This year, contestants may need to access how and if the delay affects arrival time of that first saltie. Good luck!
A Big Job: Lake Assault Boats in Superior won a major contract worth up to $56 million from the U.S. Navy for up to 119 Force Protection-Medium patrol boats over a five-year period. The first deliveries will be this November. Each of the 33-foot long craft will have a 10-foot beam and feature a full cuddy cabin, Lake Assault Boats notes in its announcement. Twin 225-hp outboard motors will power each boat, which will carry four weapon mounts capable of accommodating up to .50 caliber machine guns. The aluminum V-hull boats are protected by a polyurethane foam collar wrap. “We are honored to be chosen by the U.S. Navy to supply it with these versatile and powerful FP-M patrol craft,” ssaid Chad DuMars, Lake Assault Boat vice president of operations. “Our selection, after a long and rigorous competitive bid process, represents a significant accomplishment for Lake Assault Boats and our sister company, Fraser Shipyards. Our entire team is very excited and prepared to provide these boats to serve with the U.S. Navy.” We here at the magazine are wondering if this represents the first boats built in the Twin Ports for the Navy since World War II. Any knowledgeable boatnerds who can drop a note to edit@lakesuperior?
More High Flying Business: BusinessNorth reports that Cirrus Aircraft in Duluth marked a 29% increase in deliveries (80 all told) of its Vision Jet in 2019 from the previous year. Those sales helped the company to mark a record year of growth and allowed a 10% increase in total employees, added in all locations including Duluth, Grand Forks, N.D., Knoxville, Tenn., and McKinney, Tex.
Leaping to Their Aid: The Lake Superior Zoo in Duluth is taking advantage of an extra day in February (it is leap year) to help the animals decimated by the fires in Australia. Its Leap into Action fundraising day tomorrow, Feb. 29, will put a $1 donation toward Zoo Victoria’s Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund for every ticket sold at the Lake Superior Zoo that day. You can see artist Brad Vanderbrook in action, working on a tribute to Australia as well as view some of Brad's other artwork, or purchase T-shirts with his art to raise more aid money. Former Duluth Poet Laurete Sheila Packa will recite some of her poetry, Native American Music Award winning singer Lyz Jaakola will perform and there will be readings by authors Ann Glumac and Marie Zuikov.
Victims of Virus : Overseas student experiences are among the victims of the coronavirus outbreaks with many regional universities have been cancelling overseas trips to Asia. This week the University of Wisconsin-Superior announced cancellation of a study abroad program to Wonju, South Korea, which had two students. One student had already left, but is now returning home and the other had not yet left. "While there are currently no confirmed cases of coronavirus in Wonju, we take our students’ safety and well-being seriously and are acting out of an abundance of caution," UWS stated in announcing its decision based on the recommendation of the Centers for Disease Control. Restrictions on university-related travel to China already have been broadly banned, including by the University of Minnesota (and its Duluth campus), Michigan Technological University in Houghton (which added South Korea today and has alerts for other countries) and Northern Michigan University in Marquette as well as others around the Lake. Lakehead Unversity in Thunder Bay hasn't yet cancelled any trips due to the virus outbreaks, but it is currently not approving travel to the most-affected areas, we are told.
Overview: Adam Jagunich's drone video along Stoney Point in Minnesota, posted this week on YouTube, brings a real feel of the Big Lake and its power, despite the relative calm of the waves. The blend of music and lapping waves creates the right mood for Lake Superior viewing.
One More in Action Shot: Another cool (cold?) video posted this week was by Paul Scinocca showing the final seasonal docking of the tug Helen H in Duluth. It's a wild ride (sped-up motion) through the ice with a little bit of ice breaking thrown in at the dock. Paul also takes us inside the engine room and back outside for the tying up. "It takes a lot of finesse to get all the ice out of the way and make room for your hull when the 'parking spot' freezes over in below zero weather," Paul posted, adding, "the Helen H is 82.3' long, 10.5' deep on the hull & 26.8" beam width. She sports a 1700 hp power plant which they use well! It was a great few hours I spent with the crew that January 11th."
A Parting Note: Michelle Miller, host of Coffee Talk on Two Harbor's Community Radio (KTwH 99.5 FM), invited Editor Konnie LeMay for a sitdown, over-the-phone chat Thursday morning. The show will be rebroadcast Saturday (Feb. 29) between 9:15 and 10:15 a.m., should you want to stream them. We love supporting community radio, especially stations tapping lots of local volunteers. If you live in or near Two Harbors, Minnesota, and have some free time, THCR volunteers do "front desk work, community reporting, hosting information booths, clerical support, news writing, documentary making, engineering live music, operating sound boards, engineering and computer help, website upkeep, and many, many other things."
Photo & graphic credits: Shannon Hart; Minnesota DNR; St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation; Lake Assault Boats; Lake Superior Zoo; Adam Jagunich; Paul Scinocca; Two Harbor's Community Radio