For years the Cook County Highway Department has allowed the public to use some of its pre-mixed salt and sand in extreme ice events. The highway department cannot sell its sand or salt, but as a public service over the years, it has allowed the public to take a bucket of sand/salt mix from the county sand/ salt pile now […]
Biomass energy could revive forest products industry
As the nation tries to wean itself off fossil fuels, alternative sources of energy are being developed. Wood—a traditional source of heating Cook County homes and workplaces—has gone by the wayside, but with new technology, it may be the wave of the future. According to an April 2009 report entitled Community- Based Bioenergy and District Heating: Benefits, Challenges, Opportunities and […]
Stay safe this winter
Joni Kristenson, Cook County Public Health nurse, offers these reminders for coping with cold-weather emergencies: Heat Your Home Safely If you plan to use a wood stove, fireplace, or space heater, be extremely careful. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions and remember these safety tips: . Use fireplace, wood stoves, or other combustion heaters only if they are properly vented to the […]
Down Memory Lane
10 Years Ago · Jan. 8, 2001 • Hunters and their families who have been feasting on venison steak already had a hunch, but the official word from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is that the 2000 firearms deer harvest was among the top five on record. Hunters harvested 193,079 deer statewide, an increase of 27,913 deer (17 percent) […]
Drip drip leads to big splash
“We’re open!” Grand Marais Municipal Pool Head Lifeguard Charles Christiansen told the park board on January 4, 2011. “The pool temp is 53!” To celebrate the reopening of the pool after a late October storm blew off much of the roof and damaged interior walls, an all-day Big Splash Pool Party with refreshments and free admission will be held Wednesday, […]
Get creative with Creative Community Club
Brian Larsen Ah, winter. Ha! Winter. Your attitude depends on what you do with the “a” or the “h.” For some, winter is a time to head outdoors to ski, snowmobile, snowshoe or drill holes in the ice and pray for a fish to tug on your line while you sit on a tiny bucket huddled against the wind and […]
How cold was it?
In September 1969, Dick and I began our year in the wilderness on the edge of the BWCWA in the Superior National Forest. Our small cabin had neither road access nor amenities. This is a reprint of one of many stories about our lives during that special year. I peered at the thermometer— 25 below! Returning to the warmth of […]
Join the Arbor Day Foundation and get free trees
Residents of Minnesota can ring in the New Year by receiving 10 free flowering trees by joining the Arbor Day Foundation any time during January 2011. By becoming a member of the nonprofit Arbor Day Foundation, you will receive two white flowering dogwoods, two flowering crab apples, two Washington hawthorns, two American redbuds and two golden rain trees. “These beautiful […]
Dupre waiting for weather to clear
Grand Marais adventurer Lonnie Dupre’s goal to become the first person to solo Denali (Mount McKinley) in January is on hold due to inclement weather. Up to six feet of snow has fallen on the mountain and, for now, Dupre’s pilot can’t land him at the glacier where his climb was to begin. For now Dupre is safe and warm […]
North House Folk School named State Treasure by Star Tribune
In good news for Grand Marais and North House Folk School, North House has been named a “State Treasure” by the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Appearing on the front page of the Sunday, Dec. 12 Star Tribune Travel Section, the article began by saying, “The spirit of the north infuses every subject offered at this gem of a folk school in […]