A Spike in Action: This morning at about the same time 150 years ago that a golden spike was driven to mark completion of the Transcontinental Railroad in Promontory, Utah, a ceremony took place beside Duluth’s Lakewalk to commemorate that national event and to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the North Shore Scenic Railroad. Two trains from the scenic railroad met to re-enact when two steam locomotives from the Central Pacific and Union Pacific met 150 years ago. On May 10, 1869, after four years of construction, the longest railroad in the world was finished, according to the Lake Superior Railroad Museum. In Duluth today, youngsters were invited to pound in a gold-painted spike and each received a gold foil wrapped chocolate spike to take home. The popular North Shore Scenic Railroad was inaugurated in 1989 by an act of the Minnesota Legislature forming the St. Louis & Lake Counties Regional Rail Authority. Three decades later, the railroad is one of Duluth’s most popular, volunteer-run tourist attractions, carrying over 100,000 passengers each year. Its trains run from The Depot in downtown Duluth to the eastern edge of the city and also to Two Harbors from mid-April through October. The Duluth Zephyr, with a first-class dome car, is the most popular trip, but there is also a Music & Pizza Train and the Two Harbors Turn, as well as special trips throughout the season.
On the Levels: In the past month, Lake Superior’s water level has risen 5 inches, about 14 inches above average for May and up about 8 inches from the same time last year, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lake level reports released today. That puts the Lake just 1 inch away from a record high for May recorded in 1986. With the Lake waters projected to rise another 4 inches by June 10, it may well break that record. The Lake’s “chart datum” water level is 601.10 feet (above mean sea level) and its current level as of today is 602.76 feet, or about 20 inches above datum. “Lake Superior has the potential to reach or exceed record high levels in May should wet conditions continue,” the International Lake Superior Board of Control noted in its report last week, adding that “the Board advises all those that may be affected to prepare for coastal impacts similar to those that have occurred during the last few years, as the high levels coupled with potential strong winds and waves are likely to result in shoreline erosion and coastal damages across the upper Great Lakes system.”
Bring Back Fish, Not Something Fishy: Minnesota opens its fishing season Saturday and the Minnesota DNR outlook for most of northeastern Minnesota looks good. In Wisconsin, the opener launched last weekend and in Michigan, those hunting pike and walleye in the Upper Peninsula must wait until May 15. In Ontario, you can begin casting a line for walleye (pickerel) May 18. Wherever you fish on the inland lakes or Lake Superior, this is also the time of year that groups like Sea Grant ramp up education about how anglers and boaters can help to prevent spread of invasive species. The Wisconsin Sea Grant’s programs like Clean Boats, Clean Waters seem to have had an impact. “The rate of new invasions is not increasing, and our boater surveys show that boaters take prevention actions at a high rate,” Tim Campbell, a Wisconsin Sea Grant’s outreach specialist, says in a recent press release. During the 2018 program season from about Memorial Day to Labor Day, trained inspectors checked 2,720 watercraft for invasive species in Wisconsin. One of the 2018 inspectors, Matthew Cherney, says “Many of the boaters thanked me for being out and doing my job, which is pretty cool.” Learn more about the Stop Aquatic Hitchhikers program and its tips for keeping our waters invasive-free online. As you plan your fishing for this year, check out our Lake Superior Magazine story about charter fishing (including a listing of some area charter operations). In this photo, Jon Dahl, part of a Duluth charter fishing family, poses on his Happy Hooker.
A Different Season Opener: While the fisherfolk celebrate their chances to cast a line, maritime heritage buffs can celebrate the season open for the Marquette Maritime Museum next Tuesday. Both the museum and lighthouse open May 14, with the season schedule Tuesdays-Sundays (closed Mondays). The handsome brownstone museum is a one story, stone, hipped-roof Richardsonian Romanesque-style structure with a parapeted front gable and rounded arch windows. It was designed by architect Demetrius Frederick Charlton. And the red harbor lighthouse (seen here), which can be toured in summer, is a Marquette icon.
Coming Change of Command: Duluth’s Marine Safety Unit (MSU) of the U.S. Coast Guard will get a new commander as of June 19 when Cmdr. Frances Smith (on right) arrives from her post as executive officer at the MSU in Pittsburgh to take over for departing Cmdr. Erin Williams (on left). The June 19 change-of-command ceremony will mark the first time for the Duluth unit that a woman commander takes over from another woman commander. As commanding officer at MSU Duluth, captain of the port and officer-in-charge, marine inspection, Erin oversees the inspections for commercial vessel safety and security and waterfront facility safety and security as well as port security, environmental response and waterways management. Before taking over command here in 2016, Erin served as the executive officer at Coast Guard Activities Europe in Schinnen, Netherlands. She assisted there with ensuring compliance of U.S. and foreign vessels with relevant regulations and international conventions throughout Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Among her previous assignments, she was the executive officer for the MSU in Valdez, Alaska, where she earned the Capt. Dorothy Stratton Leadership Award. She was recognized for “her efforts to improve the lives of Coast Guardsmen in Valdez and promote a positive Coast Guard image.” Williams will be taking a post at the Coast Guard’s Leadership Development Training Center in New London, Connecticut.
The Duluth assignment should prove an interesting one for Cmdr. Frances Smith. MSU Pittsburgh, where she is now stationed, mainly handles river traffic – all domestic vessels including tow boats and barges – and so the Twin Ports oceangoing and Great Lakes vessels will be a bit different. She has been with MSU Pittsburgh since 2016 and was stationed at Yorktown, Virginia. Although Frances has yet to visit Duluth, the St. Louis native says she looks forward to all of our seasons, including winter sports here (she and her husband snowboard).
Healing All Wounds: Tania McVean (in photo), director of the St. Luke’s Advanced Wound Care & Hyperbaric Center in Duluth, had a lofty goal with her team that she shared in a story about the center in Lake Superior Magazine. “Our goal is to heal people in 14 weeks or less,” Tania says. Two weeks may seem a long time, but the center specializes in patients suffering from diabetic ulcers, pressure ulcers, infections and other chronic wounds that will not heal. Now the center’s work, and its goals, have been recognized by Healogics, the nation's largest provider of advanced wound healing services, and St. Luke’s received its Wound Care Center of the Year, chosen from more than 600 wound care centers across the United States. In making the award, Healogics found the center sustained patient satisfaction rates above 92 percent and a healing rate of at least 91 percent in less than 31 median days. In addition, the wound care center was awarded the Healogics designation of Center of Excellence and the President’s Circle award.
Travel Dollars: Visitors to Douglas County, Wisconsin, spent $103.4 million in 2018, a 9.57 percent increase from the year before, according to a press release posted on Business North. “It is clear from these numbers, that tourism plays an important role in our local economy,” says Taylor Pedersen, president and CEO of Travel Superior.
Weird is Normal: Interesting weather has always been part and parcel of the Lake Superior region experience and this week treated us to weather worth noting. In Duluth on Thursday, residents over the hill (here in Duluth Heights) awoke to new fallen snow that pushed the city onto a new May snowfall record of 10.9 inches so far. Residents by the Lake, however, while seeing flakes Wednesday evening basically continued the green grass blossoming (downtown photo on right). Yes, snow-covered backyards with as much a 8 new inches of the white stuff and fresh green grass all in the same city limits on the same day. That’s how we roll. Meanwhile, to our far eastern shore in the Sault Ste. Marie District of Ontario, the provincial Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry warned Thursday of possible flooding with an advisory in effect until Monday. SooToday posted the ministry press release, which pointed to the rains this week onto already saturated ground. “Residents within the Goulais River Watershed are advised that some areas within the flood plain are approaching flood critical levels. Flooding in some low lying areas may be occurring and runoff from rain and melting snow at the north end of the watershed may temporarily increase water flows and levels. Other residents of the Sault Ste. Marie District are advised that low lying areas may also be near flood critical levels. A close watch on local forecasts and conditions is recommended.”
Let the Quest Begin: Starting on Monday and running through Thursday, several area educational, environmental and governmental organizations team up to present St. Louis River Quest in Duluth. It’s the annual spawning of ideas about the Lake and the importance of our regional waterways for about 1,500 area sixth-graders. With hands-on activities in the DECC and 2.5-hour excursions aboard the Vista Star Vista Fleet boat, the youngsters are introduced to varied topics, pollution prevention and stopping aquatic invaders, to commercial shipping, recreational boating and beach safety. Back in 2013, Thomas Vaughn did a story for Lake Superior Magazine about the program and we opened with this photo of Katie Kroft and Colton Milner, then sixth-graders at Woodland Middle School in Duluth, taking on one of the most popular challenges – Cold Hand Luke in which students plunge their arms into 33° F water to learn the effects of hypothermia.
Photo & graphic credits: Bob Berg; Paul Hayden; Wisconsin Sea Grant; Konnie LeMay; Marquette Maritime Museum; U.S. Coast Guard; Konnie LeMay; Jack Rendulich