Around the Circle This Week: June 19, 2020

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A (Tropical) Big Lake Getaway: The good folks at Naturally Superior Adventures in Wawa, Ont., pasted a couple of palm trees and lightened the sand on their Lake Superior shoreline and voilà! – a tropical getaway. "You may not think of Lake Superior as an exotic holiday getaway but come on!" they posted this week. "… look at that blue water and white sand(ish) beach. Just add a few palm trees and it's practically the tropics!" Our good friend David Wells, owner/operator, along with his partner Renée Fedun, of Naturally Superior Adventures and the Rock Island Lodge, was interviewed by Lindsay Kelly of Northern Ontario Business about the shutdowns and the future for touring businesses by the Lake. Roughly half of his clients, David notes, are from the States with another 4% from overseas and with the border closed until at least July 21, that has meant challenges and cancellations. Luckily other Canadians seem anxious to visit the Big Lake shores. “Two weeks ago, the phone started ringing,” David told Lindsay. “I think people are just getting really antsy; they want to get out. Possibly they’ve heard that being outside on Lake Superior is a pretty safe place to be, so bookings are all going up now.” We also were taken with the cover photo and Back to the Future quote on its Facebook page (they are a booming kayak touring business), so we've shared that here, too.

Chop Shopped: Since we're featuring photo-tweaking fun this issue, we thought we'd share this super drama-filled piece of art done by Thunder Bay area photog Don Malcolm. He calls it "Out of the Storm," and we asked what techniques he used. "This is the MV Manitoulin pulling into the grain elevator slip in Thunder Bay," Don responded. "I took this photograph last November. I changed out the clouds for the background for a more dramatic skyline, then copied the background, flipped it vertically and reduced the transparency. I then copied the ship and did the same with it and added some skewing to it. I processed it more with some blending … but don’t tell anyone, lol!" No, Don, we won't tell a soul.

Geo Catcher: In the current June/July issue, our book reviewer, Donn Larson, took a look at

Minnesota's Geologist: The Life of Newton Horace Winchell by Sue Leaf, calling it "thorough in describing and explaining the solid rock base of the state." The geologist who at 20 declared "I know nothing about rocks" and at 25 made them his life's work became head of the Minnesota Geological and Natural History Survey in the 1800s. Next Tuesday (June 23) at 4 p.m., there will be virtual launch of the book with a short talk by Sue followed by a Q&A session led by Harvey Thorleifson, director of the Minnesota Geological Survey. The Bell Museum partnered with the University of Minnesota Press on the launch and you can register through the museum. Then on Thursday, Duluth's Zenith Bookstore will feature a talk with Sue online at 7 p.m. in a program co-sponsored by Cafe Scientifique Twin Ports. You can order the book through Zenith or other local bookstores.  

No Groin at Oman Creek: Michigan DNR announced last week it would not pursue a a $2 million project to build an erosion control barrier, or "groin," near its boating access site on Oman Creek, but will instead maintain access through routine dredging as it has done for two years. “The DNR had considered constructing a groin, which would have extended about 130 feet into Lake Superior from the shoreline,” Eric Cadeau, a regional DNR field planner said in the announcement. “The groin was proposed to be 12 feet wide at the crest and about 105 feet wide at its widest base point. The project also proposed shoreline reinforcement in places where wave energy reflected off the groin could have created erosion problems.” The decision was based on cost of the project vs. the relative moderate use of the site, the impacts of continued high water levels plus input in a public meeting in October.

All You Survey: Andy and Nick Behling, raised in the Upper Peninsula, have been touring and videoing their home state under the brand MI Playground. This week, they posted a super video about their weeklong stay in Ironwood, starting from 260 feet up on the top of Copper Peak's ski-flying jump, which opened last week for visitation. As Nick points out, he's higher than his drone and seeing the view himself. "This is way more stunning than I expected it to be," he says. Then the U.P. boys continue along with a mountain bike and electric bike from Hobby Wheel on trails, then hike to five local waterfalls, enjoy some eateries in downtown Ironwood and end with a river paddle.The brothers' timing is great, because as of this week, you can take a quick-and-easy travel survey to help out Travel Ironwood and you will be eligible for a $200 travel package to the area.

Come On In: We've been able to tell you about other re-openings the past few weeks around the Lake and finally – Yea! – we can announce our Lake Superior Gift Shop will reopen this coming Monday (June 22). For now, our hours will be 10 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays. Our shopkeeper Bekah will be ready to welcome you, to point out our new products and intriguing store-only items from local photographers and artisans (including Bekah). We encourage all the COVID-fighting recommendations to keep our staff and you healthy, happy and open! If you can't drop in, you still can shop online.

Reporting to You from the Sault: HNN has the news and reviews covered. The Hannah News Network – launched just one month ago by future media mogul 6-year-old Hannah

Buconjic of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. – has already expanded from news coverage to movie reviews. In the fourth tubecast (from which this image was taken) Hannah reviews "Scoob." In the first episode, she explains COVID-19 observing "Schools in Ontario have been cancelled for the last six weeks. Students like me, and especially our parents, miss school."  SooToday tipped us to HNN when it posted a note from Hannah's dad, Nevin, about the new news network. He noted his daughter has plenty of entrepreneurial and helpful ideas. "My wife and I are very proud of Hannah for some of her projects and initiatives. Last summer we helped her launch Hannah’s Summer Treats, her lemonade and treats stand she operates from our driveway. We are hoping she will be able to reopen this summer as well." Help Hannah's newest venture grow by subscribing to Hannah News Network … so you don't miss anything important.

Photo & graphic credits: Naturally Superior Adventures; Don Malcolm; University of Minnesota Press; Michigan DNR; MI Playground; Lake Superior Magazine; Hannah News Network

Around the Circle This Week editor: Konnie LeMay