It seems like there is a special day to celebrate everything under the sun. There are holidays ranging from National Popcorn Day (January 19) to “Sneak Some Zucchini Onto Your Neighbor’s Porch Day” (August 8)—and more. Most of these “special” days are not so special.
But coming up is a day that truly is meaningful. On the third Sunday of each July— July 21 this year—we celebrate “Lake Superior Day.”
A group in Thunder Bay, Ontario, started the special commemoration in the 1990s and it has been promoted primarily by the Lake Superior Binational Forum. The Binational Forum consists of a dozen Canadian and a dozen American representatives from communities along the shores of Lake Superior, in provinces and states, working to protect Lake Superior.
Lake Superior Day is part of the Binational Forum’s outreach, an attempt to make us pause to consider the importance of Lake Superior in our lives. People living and working around Lake Superior are asked to come up with activities that celebrate the lake.
Many communities have run/walks, beach cleanups, art exhibits and more. About 50 events can be found on the Binational Forum website for the week before and after Lake Superior Day.
Not too much is on the schedule for Cook County. There was a very well attended Guest Lecture by Grand Portage Water Quality Specialist Margaret Watkins at Cook County Higher Education on July 18 on the issue of mining in Minnesota.
On Saturday, July 20, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., Sugarloaf Cove Nature Center in Schroeder is hosting a visit from MinnAqua, a statewide education program that teaches about fishing and conservation of aquatic habitats.
Sugarloaf Cove follows with a celebration on Lake Superior Day with the One Great Lake: Nature Cart. The public is invited to check out the Nature Cart at Sugarloaf’s lakeside picnic grounds from 2 – 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, July 21.
That’s it for Lake Superior Day activities in Cook County. I’m not surprised. All of us who live next to the waters of Gichi Gami celebrate Lake Superior every day in our own quiet way.
Whether it’s a hike out to the Grand Marais lighthouse, a stroll on Tofte’s lakewalk or lounging in the sunshine at Paradise Beach, we find peace and strength from the lake. Even on the busiest of days, when all we manage is a glimpse of the bright blue waters off in the distance as we dash off to a meeting or event, we are reassured by our inland sea. Although it’s nice to officially recognize the greatest of Great Lakes, for many of us, it isn’t necessary. Every day is Lake Superior Day.
If there is magic on the planet,
it is contained in water.
Loren Eiseley
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