Busy Sunday for east end emergency responders



Two accidents in less than an hour on the east end of the county kept emergency responders busy on Sunday, January 11, 2015. The Cook County Law Enforcement Center received a call at 3:02 p.m. reporting that a car had hit a deer and rolled over in the ditch near the intersection of North Road and Highway 61 in Hovland. […]

Two great meets for Alpine Vikings



It is really busy for the Cook County Alpine Vikings this time of year. On January 8, the team traveled once again to Giants Ridge for the Hibbing Invite. It was pretty cold on the hill, -15F when we arrived and the daytime high only reached 3F. It snowed lightly throughout the whole race. We had been training hard on […]

MacDonell participates in largest high school cross country ski race



Cook County High School junior Sean MacDonell placed 102 out of 163 racers in the 5.3K free style race held at Giants Ridge on Saturday, January 10. Coming in with a time of 19:59, it was MacDonell’s first race of the year. MacDonell was the only Cook County varsity competitor in this race. “The free style course at Giants Ridge […]

Living in a small town



Mike and I are both from small towns. He’s from Decorah, Iowa and I grew up on the North Shore of Lake Superior. When we had kids we decided to find a place that was similar to our roots…welcome to Annandale! There are people who don’t understand the small town life. They think we are always overly involved in each […]

The Beargrease is on!



Although there has been an abundance of cold weather, low snowfall amounts threatened the cancellation of the 31st running of the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon. However, on January 12, the Beargrease board of directors was happy to announce that the race is on! The best news for Cook County is that the 2015 route through the rugged Sawtooth Mountains […]

Warm up with dance classes this winter



Ann and Wayne Russ are hosting four free dance practice sessions on Tuesdays, beginning February 3, 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. at the 4-H Building at the Cook County Community Center. Waltz, two step, swing, fox trot, and other partner dance music will be played. For folks anxious to learn to dance or who want to learn more dance moves, the […]

Historical Society exhibit features dog sledding



A new exhibit featuring dog sleds built by Hovland trapper Mike West, trapping artifacts, snowshoes built by John Beargrease and the history of this legendary mail carrier will be on display at the Cook County Historical Society museum in Grand Marais through the winter. The exhibit will also feature dog sled racing memorabilia ­– learn how Devil Track got its […]

Community Calendar



Friday Madness at the YFor school aged childcare on days that students donot have school. Day includes swimming, crafts,gym games and outdoor play. $30/child. Cook County/Grand Marais EconomicDevelopment Authority January meetingThe regular monthly meeting of the EDA has beenrescheduled from January 13 to Tuesday, January20, 4 p.m. at Grand Marais City Hall. Guest SpeakersYMCA Director Emily Marshall and Board MemberHillary […]

Dupre summits Denali!



When he arrived at the top of North America Lonnie Dupre didn’t dance a jig, didn’t sing a little song, didn’t think anything big or small or profound. He just stood there and thought, “I made it.” Dupre stood on top of Mount Denali for a brief time, only the soft glow of the moon washing over him, a thousand […]

Ready for 2015 Trout Opener



This Saturday marks the opening day of trout season in Minnesota and I am anxious to start seeing some ice shacks on the lake. I used to boast about fishing naked (without shelter) in the winter but anymore I prefer some type of house with heat to spend the day on the ice. A minimum of 12 inches of solid […]