A Bold Move: "It’s hard to drive down the Gunflint Trail and not feel like you should pack everything up and move here," notes the latest blog for the Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness. "A number of people have acted on this dream." The blog goes on to introduce us to Ashley Bredemus, most lately of Florida, and one of those dreamers now making northern life a reality. For Ashley, though, the Gunflint is mostly a homecoming. A native of Grand Rapids, she did her mechanical engineering studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. When she got word of her dad's health issues, she moved back to Minnesota and up to a 200-square-foot cabin on the Gunflint. She and her father wintered there and bought Camp Birchwood from her uncle. The camp has become her career. "You probably know what a soulmate is, right?” Ashley says. “Well, I believe that every person has a soul place—one place in this world that evokes a deep sense of belonging. When I moved to the end of the Gunflint Trail, I never intended to stay longer than one winter. But I was mesmerized, hooked, in love. There’s no place in the world I’d rather be.” You can follow Ashley, seen when she first got her pup, on her blog, An Outdoor Experience.
On the Water Level Front: Lake Superior waters were down but certainly not out, according to the latest update from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. "Conditions across the Great Lakes were drier this past month and the water levels of both Lake Superior and Lake Michigan-Huron declined more than they typically do in February," the Corps release notes. "Nonetheless, an exceptional volume of water remains in the system and all of the Great Lakes remain near or above record-high water levels for this time of year." Lake Superior declined 4 inches in February, twice its usual average for that month. It still set a new record high level for that month, however, and at the beginning of March, though, it was only 1.6 inches below the record high for that time. "After months of generally wet conditions, February was finally drier across most of the Great Lakes." said John Allis, chief of the Great Lakes Hydraulics and Hydrology Office, Detroit District. "However levels remain above or near record highs for this time of year, and we expect impacts to those along the coastline to increase as water levels now begin rising towards their seasonal peaks."
Meanwhile, ice breaking by the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Alder is scheduled to begin around Duluth next week.
Courting New Business: A former Thunder Bay brownstone courthouse turned luxury hotel earned a Lieutenant Governor’s Ontario Heritage Award for Excellence in Conservation, reports Northern Ontario Business. The Courthouse Hotel is a 40-room boutique space within walking distance of Marina Park. The structure was originally built as the Superior Court of Justice for Port Arthur in 1924. The building continued as the Superior Court of Justice until 2014," reports NOB, adding, "A developer purchased the property in the summer of 2017, putting it through an extensive $5-million floor-to-ceiling renovation that saw the building converted into a 40-room boutique hotel, opening in the spring of 2019." The developer, according to the release announcing the award, worked with the Ontario Heritage Trust to maintain the historic integrity of the structure.
Up in Smoke: The first recreational cannabis store opened this week in Thunder Bay, reports Doug Diaczuk of tbnewswatch. Tokyo Smoke had 25 employees by opening day on Monday and suspected it would need more before the end of the week, with up to 700 customers expected to arrive the first day. Only customers 19 and older are allowed into the boutique shop on Memorial Avenue; IDs are checked at the door. Michael Rodenbourgh and Rick Bohonis are co-owners of the local store, which is part of a Toronto-based company with 14 stores in Ontario, six in Manitoba and one in Alberta. The Thunder Bay store is open 9 a.m.-10 p.m. daily.
Hearts Reunited: A thoughtful Texas man, a diligent Dallas reporter and a local fellow with far north connections partnered to reunite a Duluth Vietnam veteran his lost purple hearts in a touching story reported on WFAA-TV Dallas and replayed on WDIO in Duluth. Willie Dimes of Dallas loves visiting estate sales for bargains and treasures, but a few decades ago he bought a box of items that included two purple hearts and a 1979 letter from Mary Rutsis in Duluth. He recently told the story of the medals to WFAA, and when Martin Branville in Weatherford, Texas, saw the story he made a phone call to his friends in Duluth. They knew of Mary, and soon reporter Kevin Reece was chatting with her on the phone. The medals, she told Kevin, belonged to her ex-husband Chris Rutsis, from whom she parted 40 years earlier. Soon Kevin was on a road trip north, way north of Dallas. After a plane flight to Minneapolis, he rented a car and headed first to the town of Camp Douglas in west-central Wisconsin, where Mary lives. While Kevin traveled, Mary made calls, connecting to her former sister-in-law, Joanne Olson. "Did he have Purple Hearts?" Mary asked Joanne about Chris. "Yes, and we can't find them," Joanne said. "Well, we found them now,'" she told Joanne with a laugh. Kevin next drove three hours to Duluth to connect with Joanne and Chris, now a resident at Chris Jensen Health and Rehabilitation Center. Chris has Parkinson's and dementia and likely suffered what we now know of as Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome from his war service. The purple hearts were the icing on the cake, almost literally, with the Chris Jensen staff getting a cake decorated with a purple heart to welcome Kevin and honor Chris. Mary and Joanne both agreed strong about the man who made the reunion possible – Willie Dimes. "It's just the best thing ever. That's a good person," Mary said. "To care enough to get them back," Joanne said, "how wonderful of him. What a good heart!"
Lake Logos: We were smitten with this logo pairing Lake Superior with a leaping equine. Superior Show Jumping of Thunder Bay is "dedicated to developing top-class horses and riders for the hunter, jumper and equitation divisions across North America." A batch of videos follows the jumping skills of lovely young mare Karrera. It made us wonder what other nifty logos are out there using the Lake (beside our own Lake-and-Lighthouse logo, of course). If you have one you'd like to show off, send a link to edit@lakesuperior.com.
Surfer Dan of the U.P.: We highly recommend taking 10 minutes to watch the Ice Beard Surfers on VICE. It's an introduction to "Surfer Dan" from Marquette and it's a happy hoot … as long as references to "surfing naked" do not offend and you choose perhaps a less risky interaction with the Lake. Hey, some of our Big Lake neighbors are just nicely wacky. Still, there's worthy footage of Lake Superior and a U.P. winter, too.
Photo & graphic credits: Ashley Bredemus; The Courthouse Hotel; WFAA-TV Dallas; Superior Show Jumping; VICE