Fate of Hoito Still Unknown: A community group that had hoped to bid on the historic Finnish Labour Temple that houses the famed Hoito Restaurant fell short in its fundraising. "We were working on a partnership between the co-op and 4 local, socially minded entrepreneurs who were interested in stabilizing the operations of the FLT and in helping the co-operative grow its capacity," Finlandia Co-operative of Thunder Bay posted Wednesday. It had raised tens of thousands for the purchase. "Unfortunately, the financial resources for one of the partners were not made available to the project, not because of the business model we were proposing, but because the partner's board felt that the building had too many unknown potential repairs and therefore, the risk was too high." That puts the future of the 110-year-old building (here in an historic pic) and the 102-year-old food operation into question. The building was once owned by the Finlandia Association Thunder Bay, but that group found itself more than $1 million in debt and its board voted in May to sell off assets, including the historic building, which is listed at $599,000. "We will now wait and see who has the successful bid, and to hear what the plans are," the co-op stated. "The cooperative stands by its original promise to inform those who have donated to see whether they want to support the plans of the new owner or owners. If they do, the co-op will pay the money forward. If they don't, donators will receive a refund." The Hoito Restaurant, started to help feed union workers at a fair price, was reknowned for its Finnish-based menu, including Finnish pancakes. The restaurant has been listed as "permanently closed" since May. We have a recipe for those classic pancakes from the restaurant's 100th anniversary, but we hope one day to enjoy them again in the lower level of the Labour Temple, prepared by a kitchen where Finnish is the predominant language.
Neighbors Helping Neighbors: Thunder Bay is hosting a number of vulnerable residents from two remote areas because of approaching forest fires. From the Eabametoong First Nation, about 200 people arrived in Thunder Bay by Thursday, reports Gary Rinne of TBNewsWatch. "Eabametoong First Nation like all other remote communities across Ontario continue to face the challenge of making decisions in order to protect the lives and health of our members. The main concern is environmental and health related to the air quality, however the same smoke and ash can also significantly impact any emergency evacuation flights if the situation becomes more dangerous or severe. We are now approaching 24 hours of waiting, and the decision has been made that we require emergency assistance," Eabametoong Chief Harvey Yesno said in a statement Tuesday. The evacuation focused on vulnerable elders, children and other medical-priority residents.The fire on Wednesday covered 3,603 hectares, and smoke caused air quality concerns, according to the provincial Law & Safety division. Seven FireRanger crews were fighting the fire. In his story, Gary noted, "Eabametoong First Nation is the second community in northwestern Ontario that has had to evacuate this week due to forest fire activity in the region. On Monday night, officials ordered the evacuation of the town of Red Lake, a municipality of more than 4,000 people about 500 kilometres northwest of Thunder Bay, and by Tuesday morning it was urging residents to leave immediately, saying the fire could compromise Highway 105 – the main route in and out of the community." Sol Mamakwa posted these photos of the Red Lake fire on his Facebook page, and added a request for aid from TBay residents for people quickly evacuated without needed clothing (specifically underwear and socks), toiletries and cloth masks vs. disposable ones. Dozens of people responded with offers to help. Seven new wildfires were identified Wednesday by the provincial division, including a 1.5 hectare fire about 108 kilometres west of Thunder Bay.
A Sweetie Pie: Photographer Steve Lindberg near Marquette has long tracked a white deer he dubbed Marshmallow. Now this year, a pie-bald fawn has appeared on his forest safaris, and he did another naming this week. "Sweetie Pie ... This piebald could become my very favorite whitetail deer. I want to watch it grow and develop ... keeping my fingers crossed," he posted. We hope for Sweetie Pie's well being, too. Steve is a former state representative for Michigan's 109th District. Now he's a top-notch photographer, same as Bob Jauch, the former state rep in Wisconsin. We like this retirement direction, fellows. Thanks for the great pics!
The Original Sundews: The boatnerds among us remember the now decommissioned U.S. Coast Guard cutter Sundew, still homeported as a private boat in Duluth. Its name, though, comes from a plant that grows in our Lake Superior region, like these sundews captured in the Keweenaw Peninsula by photographer Charles Eshbach. He gave this lowdown in his posting of this pic: "Common in the Keweenaw. Drosera, commonly known as the sundew, is one of the largest genera of carnivorous plants, with at least 194 species. These members of the family Droseraceae lure, capture and digest insects using stalked mucilaginous glands covering their leaf surfaces. The insects are used to supplement the poor mineral nutrition of the soil in which the plants grow." When it was in service, the USCG Sundew didn't eat bugs, but it sure could chew up that spring ice.
Engaging Eagles: A couple of unusual eagle encounter stories came our way this week. First, up at Cascade Lodge & Restaurant at Lutsen, Minn., an immature bald eagle apparently latched onto a woman trying to shoo it off the road to safety, causing cuts to her legs. The quick-thinking kitchen manager, Bernie Banks, threw his chef's coat over the eagle so she could escape. (The eagle bested his coat, as you can see in this photo and a video aired on Fox21.) They both ran away from the bird; the woman did not need to go to the hospital. People worried that the raptor might be injured. It did not fly away and spent hours in the area, even riding on the back of a Cook County Sheriff's truck (see this video) and alighting on a Minnesota State Trooper car. The Raptor Center at the University of Minnesota in St. Paul sent two volunteers from Duluth, but by
the time they arrived, the eagle managed a lift off and flew away. Rhonda Silence of WTIP radio in Grand Marais interviewed one of the volunteers afterward, who was pessimistic about the bird's future, suggesting from what she saw, it might have an injured beak perhaps after being hit by a car. Rhonda's story, however, also quotes a Minnesota DNR wildlife specialist, who said the baby bald, perhaps new to flying, might just have been tired and landed to rest when all of the commotion in the area agitated it. Since it had enough strength to fly off, it may be OK. Whenever possible when spotting a critter in distress, especially a large powerful one like an eagle, the experts advised calling in the specialists while keeping your distance. Protecting the eagle from traffic on a sometimes fast-moving Highway 61, of course, would be difficult at a distance.
Meanwhile, in the southern Upper Peninsula in Michigan, came another report of a frisky raptor. Near Escanaba, a drone operated by Michigan's Department of Environment, Great Lakes & Energy (that's right, EGLE) was killed by an actual eagle, Tanda Gmiter of MLive reports this week. Apparently a bald eagle snatched the flying drone, fought it and tore off one of its propellers, then let it drop into Lake Michigan. “The attack could have been a territorial squabble with the electronic foe, or just a hungry eagle. Or maybe it did not like its name being misspelled,” EGLE joked in a news release Thursday. The $950 drone (unrecovered) was helping to map erosion damage along the shoreline. EGLE may need to take some future precautions when flying in eagle territory. Thanks to a comeback of bald eagles after environmental regulations limiting certain pesticides and promoting beneficial changes, the state now has 849 active nesting sites vs. its low point of a mere 76 nesting sites in the 1970s, according to a 2019 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service survey.
Lucky Lil' Peanuts: A 3-year-old from Winter, Wis., sent a concerned community into rescue mode this week when she toddled barefoot after her cocker spaniel and got lost in the woods. Abigail Ladwig and her dog, Peanut, were lost for nearly 24 hours before they wandered into the yard of a neighbor about 7:20 p.m. Monday. Little Abigail, who disappeared about 6:45 p.m. Sunday, suffered minor scratches, bug bites and dehydration and was taken to a local hospital, treated and release, reported the Sawyer County Sheriff's Office. Besides numerous volunteers, the search was aided by about 21 agencies from Wisconsin and Minnesota and the U.S. Border Patrol. "A special thanks to the hundreds of volunteers and other agencies involved in the search for Abigail," Sheriff Doug Mrotek said in a statement. Lyanne Valdez of KBJR6 interviewed the girl's neighbor, Jerome Frederick, whose bad knee kept him out of the search. He was sitting on his porch when he noticed a dog in his yard, suddenly realizing it was Peanut. He turned his head … and there was Abigail. "In 77 years, I have never had a feeling like that. I was shocked, happy," Jerome told Lyanne. Abby climbed up on his porch, not crying or upset, and bluntly asked, "Where's my mama?" Jerome called to his wife, and they took Abby inside, wrapped her in a blanket and gave her some water. Jerome yelled over to the searchers outside, "She's over here! She's over here!" Abby endured being lost alone (with Peanut, of course) in the woods overnight and weathered the storms that blew through that night. Those same storms hampered search efforts. Her neighbor Jerome concluded with something on which we all can agree: "That kid has got to be tough as shoe leather."
Tracking the Schooner: A short update on our friends from the Drummond Island Tall Ship Company, now on their way back to Lake Huron across Lake Superior. The crew of the Huron Jewel arrived last evening at Saxon Harbor, Wis., and is open for free dockside tours (with donations appreciated and masks required). The 78-foot schooner will remain tied up there at least through Saturday morning, and perhaps longer depending on the weather. The crew posted a short video of what it was like surrounded by a Lake Superior storm on its way to Duluth. Their stay at Saxon Harbor Marina and Campground in Iron County is exciting for another reason, too. It reminds us that the marina, devastated by a storm four years ago, reopened mid-July. The campground, open now, must close at 6 p.m. Sunday for a few days to allow contractors to finish up some work and will reopen at 4 p.m. next Thursday for the rest of the season. The marina remains open, though. This photo by Upp Above Aerial Photography shows how the locale looks now, with spacious campsites.
Photo & graphic credits: Finland Association Thunder Bay; Sol Mamakwa; Steve Lindberg; Charles Eshbach; Cascade Lodge & Restaurant; Sawyer County Sheriff's Office; Saxon Harbor Marina & Campground; Upp Above Aerial Photography