I don’t recall ever hugging a tree in my life, but it would be a sad day to have all of the spruce die. Traditionally now is the time when our forest begins to “green-up,” but many places are turning red.
The premature change of season this year might be causing some of the spruce trees to die, or at least they appear to be dying. The spruce and balsam are distressed with dry red needles. I am no tree expert but many of them look like they are already dead.
This spring the ice melted off of the lakes earlier than normal, but the temperatures remained fairly cold. The daytime rainfall coupled with an overnight freeze has taken its toll on the forest.
The young aspen in our yard have been colored a bright neon green every morning. I have never seen them so brightly discolored before and my uneducated guess suggests that it is their defense mechanism to survive the chilly evenings. It must work, because they are currently budding and healthy while the spruce are not.
It is a hard knock life for trees in the boreal forest— battling drastic temperature changes and brutal wind storms—but this time Mother Nature might have bested the spruce.
With any luck, they will bounce back and turn green again but it is not looking good. I touched a branch of one yesterday and all of the needles fell off. I guess we will see how resilient they really are.
The Gunflint “Green- Up” was held last weekend on the 5th of May. If you have the official Gunflint Trail 2012 Calendar, like me, then you had the wrong date. The calendar says that this year’s event will be held on Mother’s Day which was incorrect. It was already held last weekend and the participants helped clear the Gneiss Lake Trail which has not been usable since the Blow-down Storm of ’99.
The Ham Run Half Marathon was held last weekend and was a great success despite the cold rain. I drove the sweep vehicle that followed the 5K again this year, and it was fine. I did not really dislike this task in the past, but it is fun to joke about it.
Hats off to all who completed the race, you would never see me running in the rain unless there was someone or something chasing me. Even then I might just stop and give up. I have never been a runner and that will not change anytime soon. The guys on my slow-pitch softball team in Key West would joke that it looked like I was running in the mud. My legs were moving very fast, but my body was not gaining much ground.
The Minnesota fishing opener is on Saturday and I would anticipate some pretty good fishing. The weather is supposed to break for the weekend and the water temperatures are finally reaching the mid 50s. Even though the ice left early, the water has remained cold. I would expect the fish to be in the same muddy bays that hold warmer water this time of year.
Good luck on the water and if you are traveling up the Trail this weekend be sure to stop and hug a sick spruce.
Cory Christianson has worked as a fishing guide on the Gunflint Trail since 2000. If you have any fishing or wildlife reports or stories to share, send an email to: christiansoncory@hotmail.com or call 218- 388-0315. You can also visit Cory’s website at Gunflintfishingguide.com.
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