Top: The Sedlacek family said they thoroughly enjoyed “Taste of the Gunflint Trail.” Wesley Sr. said that he has visited Cook County since 1946, traveling from Downer’s Grove, Illinois. (L-R) Wesley Sr., Wesley Jr., and Roxane Sedlacek. Above left: Kristi Ostrowski sweetens up the delicious sour cream raisin pie served at Voyageur Canoe Outfitters. Above center: Donuts, anyone? Deb Smith made sure everyone got one of the Baumann family’s homemade donuts at Golden Eagle Lodge. Above right: Judy Edlund said the turnout was great at Chik-Wauk. So great, in fact, “That we ran out of blueberry pies.”
When Wesley Sedlacek Jr. was busy on-line looking for something to do early last Saturday, he discovered “Taste of the Gunflint Trail,” a fundraiser for the Chik- Wauk Museum & Nature Center’s boardwalk nature trail.
The native Illinois resident was staying at a condo in Lutsen with his parents, Wesley Sr. and Roxane.
It didn’t take much arm bending to get his parents onboard with the idea, and off they went, eating their way up the Trail and according to Roxane, “getting to see all of these beautiful resorts in the process.”
“I’ve been coming to Cook County since 1946,” said Wesley Sr., adding, “This is a beautiful county and this is a great event to participate in. It’s a very enjoyable way to spend the day.”
The Sedlaceks were joined by more than a hundred folks who had the same great thought—to see the colors on the Trail, see the lodges and eat lots of great food as they meandered slowly along, visiting with lodge owners, workers and volunteers over the course of this fun-filled event.
Businesses that participated included Bearskin Lodge, Golden Eagle Lodge, Poplar Creek Guesthouse B&B, Clearwater Lodge & Outfitters, Hungry Jack Outfitters, Trail Center Restaurant, Nor’wester Lodge & Outfitters, Gunflint Lodge, Chik-Wauk Museum and Voyageur Canoe Outfitters.
An old-fashioned ice cream and pie social was held at Chik-Wauk. Signed copies of A Taste of the Gunflint Trail
were also on display for purchase. Many recipes in this cookbook were served at the various lodges.
For the truly adventurous, naturalist Steve Robertsen took hearty souls on a two-hour nature hike on the Centennial Trail.
Taste of the Gunflint Trail ran from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. with 10 stops. Some stops were geared to smaller samples and some to loosen the belt a notch.
A little more than $1,200 was raised during the day, said Suzanne Weber of the Cook County Visitors Bureau. “Bearskin Lodge said they had more than 100 visitors stop,” said Weber. But no official tally was kept, other than a blueberry pie count. “We thought we had plenty of blueberry pies,” said Judy Edlund, who was volunteering at Chik-Wauk. “But we sold them all. It didn’t take long for them to go. They were delicious, made from blueberries picked from right here along the Trail.”
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