Bridge Babies: Michigan U.P. bridges may be filling a gap when it comes to peregrine falcon nest sites. This year a mating pair of falcons at the International Bridge between Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario and Michigan, successfully reared one chick (or eyas), though losing another. You can see one of the adults flying beneath the bridge in the photo above. The surviving falcon eyas was named Susan in memory of Susan Johnston, whose Ojibwe name was Ozhaguscodaywayquay. Susan, the wife of a fur trader, lived in the Sault in the early 1800s and, around 1820, helped dissuade Ojibwe leaders from attacking a treaty delegation led by Gov. Lewis Cass, according to the Michigan DOT. The International Bridge staff and the Sault Ste. Marie Convention and Visitor Bureau collaborated on the naming to mark the Michigan Sault’s 350th anniversary this year. Nest boxes were installed in 2010, and since then 24 chicks have been hatched there. Meanwhile, farther west in the U.P. a pair of falcons nested at the Portage Lake Lift Bridge between Houghton and Hancock. They produced three hatchlings, two males named Hawkeye and Boden and a female named Harmony. The nest boxes were installed in 2012, and 15 chicks have been raised there. This year’s chicks at the two sites got their names when they were banded by the Michigan DNR recently. In the photo, Michigan DNR wildlife technician Ryan McGillviray holds a falcon chick at the Portage Lake Lift Bridge. You can follow the nest progress on the “FalCams” for the International Bridge (new this year) and the Portage Lake Lift Bridge.
Digging Those Dogs: Johnny Dogs cuisine isn't just hot dogs, they are HOT dogs, as in the hot thing in Munising, reports Brian Cabell in his Word on the Street blog. Brian gives his tongue-in-cheek account of trying to get a dog, but the lines are darned deep in the newly re-opened fast food joint, even after 2 p.m. when you'd think the lunch crowds would be thinning. If the endless crowd put owner John Flanders in a pickle (see above), you wouldn't know it, though the crew, visible to all, was hustling. Those must be some good dogs. Luckily for those who can't wait, just down the block, there's a new Eh! Burger with five varieties of burgers and whitefish sandwiches on the menu.
More on the Mud: The muddy waters of Lake Superior after the June 17 mega storm that caused flooding in northern Wisconsin and Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula could apparently be seen from space just two days later. This image, taken by an astronaut on the International Space Station on June 19 and posted with notations on NASA's Earth Observatory site, shows the sediment runoff from the Nemadji River by Superior, Wisconsin’s Allouez Bay. Nemadji means “left hand river” in Ojibwe, with the St. Louis River on the right if you’re facing shore from the Lake and the Nemadji on the left. The river often flows its red clay into the Lake after flooding or heavy spring runoffs.
Honored Author: The children’s book The Water Walker drew praise and an Indigenous Literature Award for Anishinaabe writer/illustrator Joanne Robertson of Goulais River, Ontario, reports James Hopkin of SooToday. Joanne won the award from the Periodical Marketers of Canada and First Nation Communities’ READ for her children’s book, based on Anishinaabe grandmother Josephine Mandamin of Thunder Bay, who started the Water Walkers movement to call attention to water quality and water issues by walking around Lake Superior. Joanne joined on that initial journey. Since then the walkers have traversed the United States along waterways running north-south and east-west. “Awards and recognition are a way of moving the message forward,” Joanne told James. “I feel proud that I got to use my gifts to raise awareness about water in this way.” Josephine Mandamin was given Lake Superior Magazine’s Achievement Award in 2011 for her call to action on water issues.
Always Dangerous: Three campers on Madeline Island were injured on Saturday by a lightning strike, La Pointe Police Chief William Defoe reported in a press release. According to the report, at about 5:30 a.m. a call came to the Ashland County Communications center from a woman on the ferry dock stating she'd been struck by lightning. An officer responded and found she was camping in Big Bay Town Park. She was getting into her vehicle when the lightning struck and threw her to the ground. At the campsite, the officer found two more victims in tents next to the vehicle. One, a 23-year-old man from the Twin Cities, suffered burns all over his body. The other man went himself to Memorial Center in Ashland to be checked. "It was found that the lightning had struck a tree close to the campsite and followed the root system through the tent to a vehicle where the first victim was thrown," the release notes.
Putting a Real Spin on a Story: There are a few things some reporters in Duluth just gotta do. One is to eat lutefisk at Christmastime, preferably live on camera and preferably with a new reporter not from here. The other is to take a ride with the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds whenever they fly in for the Duluth Air Show. A few reporters got to take a spin (yes, they spin 'em) and you can watch Samantha Erkkila of the Duluth News Tribune, To get your own thrills, visit the Duluth Air Show this weekend, where the Thunderbirds are back for a rare second year in a row.
Islands in the Fun: Rosa Brochi's friends want help from some Lake Superior sailors. On Rosa's Facebook page, she posted the map above with this call for aid: "Summer is upon us (most days) and we've been thinking of exploring a little more of Lake Superior. Rosa's had this map for a long time and after some careful study we realized there's more to this Great Lake than we thought. We've been to Isle Royale but haven't explored the islands of Maurepas, Pontchartrain, or Philippeaux. Can anyone share their experiences or tips on best ways to get to them?" You may suspect that those islands on the map from long ago were purely the imagination of some early mapmaker, but we believe they are as real as the Grandma's Restaurant story about Grandma Rosa herself. You can read more about that early map in the Lake Superior Magazine story "Drawing a Line in the Water" by Francis M. Carroll.
On a Real Lake Island: Isle Royale is one real island on that map above, albeit a bit funny shaped there. What's blooming on the island this summer, though, is simply beautiful. The staff at Isle Royale National Park posted this photo of Calypso Orchids on the island. You might think orchids are more of a tropical flower, but the Lake Superior neighborhood is home to nearly 60 species of them, including, of course, Minnesota's state flower, the lovely pink-and-white Lady's-Slipper (Cypripedium reginae), not to be confused with the only other orchid that's a state flower, New Hampshire's pink Lady's-Slipper (Cypripedium acaule). Remember that one the next time you're a contestant on "Jeopardy!"
Photo & graphic credits: Michigan DOT; Michigan DNR; Johnny Dogs; Joanne Robertson; LaPointe Police Department; Duluth News Tribune; Grandma's Restaurants; Isle Royale National Park.