It Has Begun: This brilliant photo taken this week by David Johnson along the higher elevations in the Grand Marais, Minnesota, tells us that despite forecasts of temperatures above 80° F for Duluth and Marquette early next week, fall is already arriving. David notes maples are turning quickly up north. That means it's time to dust off the links to regional "color/colour reports" to keep up on where to go and when to see the transformation. For Wisconsin, check Travel Wisconsin's updates. For Minnesota, the state DNR has a color finder. UPTravel does updates on its site for the Upper Peninsula in Michigan. Along Ontario's shore, the updates from Ontario Parks can indicate the progression. If you're planning a drive to see the colors, check out our classic stories "7 Great Fall Drives" or "Fabulous Fall Hikes." This is also, of course, the season of rollercoaster temperatures … so along with those 80+° days, we're looking at potential frost warnings some evenings.
The (Temporary) End is Near: The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency sent out a notice this week about a nearly 2-year closure that will affect those who access the St. Louis River from Munger Landing in Duluth. Beginning next spring, pedestrians, vehicles and watercraft will not be able to use Munger Landing (aka the Clyde Avenue boat launch) and its parking lot. The construction area will remain closed to the public through fall 2023 while nearly 100,000 cubic yards of sediments contaminated with PCBs, dioxins/furans, mercury, PAHs and heavy metals are being removed. During the closure, alternative access to the river is recommended via Boy Scout Landing and Rice’s Point. Find out more about the St. Louis River area of concern online.
Classy Ladies: Celia Duquette (on left), who moved to Bayfield in 1955 when she married the late Don Duquette, has been named the Grand Marshal for this year's Bayfield Apple Festival, Oct. 1-3. Celia and Don operated Seagull Bay Motel for more than 20 years. According to the announcement, "Celia has always taken pride in working hard behind the scenes with many organizations to better the Bayfield community. She served as the president of the Bayfield County Home and Community Education organization for several years. She was a dedicated volunteer for the Bayfield Heritage Association, Bayfield Maritime Museum, and the ABC Thrift Shop." A member of the Bayfield Presbyterian Church, she taught Sunday School and served as a deacon there. A generation of Wednesday Church School students know her as the "cookie lady" who helped to serve the refreshments every week. The Apple Fest organizers also announced Mardea LaPointe, a junior at Bayfield High School who plays volleyball, basketball, and soccer, as Festival Queen. Mardea was born in Liberia and was adopted by Stacy (Weber Orchards) and Loren LaPointe around Apple Festival Time in 2005. She has two older brothers who were also adopted by the LaPointes. Mardea and her brothers grew up picking apples with Grandpa Duck Weber. According to the announcement, "she’s very excited to be selected as the Apple Festival Queen this year, as her two sisters have also been the queens. Her favorite part of the Apple Festival is all the food and Island Noodles is her favorite."
Power Outage: A 656-foot smokestack at the former Ontario Power Generation’s Thunder Bay station came down in an empty field pitching toward Lake Superior last week, as recorded by Doug Diaczuk for TBNewswatch. The demolition came off without a hitch, according to the story. The stack was believed to be one of the tallest structures in Northwestern Ontario, Doug notes. Look at Doug's images and watch his video of the demo.
Connecting the DOTs: The Minnesota Department of Transportation gave a guided 1-hour tour for the public this week of the construction area of the Twin Ports Interchange project area, where the I-35/I-535/Hwy 53 interchange "can of worms" will one day become just a couple of worms. "Once completed, this project will enhance safety by eliminating blind merges and left exits, replace aging infrastructure, and better accommodate freight movements through the interchanges next to the Clure Public Terminal," according to MnDOT. On the menu for changes are: Providing a new conventional design; relocating all exits and entrances to the right side of the roadway; improving merging sight distance and eliminating merge conflicts; eliminating weaving problems near the interchange; and providing lane continuity for through I-35 traffic. If you're curious, a video animation can give you a preview of what the completed exchange will look like to traffic.
Catalyst Again: Catalyst Story Institute moved its offices and its annual Catalyst Content Festival to Duluth in 2019. The first year of the October festival was fun and challenging, with Superior Street torn up right where all those theaters were hosting international independent creators of episodic or narrative storytelling – like all those shows streaming on Amazon Prime, HBO, Netflix, etc. The festival is for networking and showcasing such work. Then in 2020 … well, we all know what didn't happen that year … just about all of our favorite festivals. This year, though, the Catalyst festival is back from Sept. 29-Oct. 2, and we wanted to give everyone time to plan for all it offers. There are dozens of shows to view along with creators, writers and casts and crews. Rizzle, a sponsor of the event, is having a little contest for current and former participants in the festival. The contest will judge the Best Reformatted Catalyst Series, looking for 1-minute vertical video episodes. (Vertical video is intended for watching on mobile phones and such.) Deadline is Oct. 1; check out the details online. Catalyst has expanded its year-round offerings, too, with its Story Institute for educational and professional development of episodic storytelling.
That's 14 Years in Dog Years!: A wee congratulatory shout-out to Honest Dog Books in Bayfield, which turned 2 years old this month. Julie Buckles, who owns the store with her family, tells the tale: "Two years ago, I walked into a used bookstore to buy a copy of Tracy K. Smith’s American Journal: Fifty Poems for Our Time. I didn’t find the book but I bought the bookstore — and have not regretted it for a second." All day Saturday (Sept. 18), at the store customers get cookies and in-store deals and dogs get treats. Poet Denise Sweet and musician Frank Montano will be performing at 4 p.m. in the courtyard. Also to celebrate, you can earn points toward gift certificates.
Photo & graphic credits: David Johnson; MPCA; Bayfield Apple Festival; Doug Diaczuk/TBNewswatch; Hank Calvert; MNDot; Catalyst Content Festival; Honest Dog Books