A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
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The Carlton County land department took to social media last week to celebrate expansion of its trail network and partnerships with local “hook and bullet” clubs that proved invaluable to making it happen. “This partnership led to 11 miles of non-motorized recreation trails being established and reopened after suffering from winter storm damage,” the land department wrote on Facebook, showcasing pristine-looking hunter-walking and hiking trails outside Wrenshall and Moose Lake. The newest...
It was a December like no other in Carlton County, not even the strange one in 1877-78 that augured a remarkable winter into the spring. In short, history was made as the region and the state had its warmest December. This comes after history was made last season in high snowfall totals. Cloquet saw temperatures average nearly 10 degrees warmer than normal last month at 25.1 degrees at the Cloquet Forestry Center. Recordings were higher at the Fond du Lac Reservation weather station (29.2) and...
Roughly 300 hunters sat rapt Wednesday at Four Seasons Sports Complex in Carlton to hear a new grassroots group's plan to pressure the state to act against federal protection of the gray wolf. The group, Hunters For Hunters, formed earlier this year, in front of the Minnesota firearms deer season, which unfolded with disgruntled hunters throughout northeastern Minnesota complaining about seeing more wolves than deer. "Everybody coming out of the woods [was] going to be mad," said Steve Porter, o...
December was ushered in by the northern lights, pictured north of Cloquet on Keith Miernicki's Christmas tree farm at about 10 p.m. Friday, Dec. 1. Photographer Dan Malkovich said the half-moon had risen, offering just enough light to make out nearby trees. "The silence was broken by the recurrent hooting of a nearby owl," he said. "It was another relatively mild evening, with absolutely no air movement, but still cold enough to vaporize the moisture in my breath. It hung like fog about my head...
Wolves and winters. Those are the theories being tossed around related to a Minnesota firearms deer season that data show, and most hunters say, lacked the robust deer populations of yesteryear. "I've got more wolves on my cameras than deer," said Trish King, 68, who hunts on 60 acres along Spring Lake Road in Cloquet. "That's a pretty good indication. They've all got collars on, all got tags on. And there's not a darn thing you can do." On Nov. 14, King harvested a 3-point buck - the only deer...
With close to a billion ash trees in the state, the non-native emerald ash borer (EAB) insect threatens trees across Minnesota, but especially the northern part of the state. A wood borer that feeds in the phloem and disrupts the movement of nutrients, EAB infestation results in eventual mortality of a tree. The first discovery of EAB in Minnesota was in 2009 in St. Paul. It has now spread to 45 counties throughout Minnesota, including Duluth in St. Louis County in late 2015 and Carlton County in April 2022. Recently, EAB was found in Cass...
Will Stenberg captured a chickadee, above, and red-breasted nuthatch this month in Blackhoof Township. They are two species that stick through Minnesota winters. They can provide some entertainment outside windows during bleak winter stretches. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has some tips on winter bird feeding, saying there are three main choices of food for winter birds: large seeds, small seeds, and suet. Large seeds include black oil sunflower, striped sunflower, safflower,...
When I was young, we called them swamps, those low areas on the farms where grass for pasture or hay crops failed to grow. They were often wet and farmers said the soil was “sour” and the land worthless. However, in 1970 we learned the true value of these natural entities with the passing of the Environmental Protection Act and the formation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). According to the Carlton County Planning and Zoning guide, Carlton County has retained “over 94 percent of it...
Conservation officers with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources were busy with the firearms deer opener last weekend. Cloquet’s Tony Elwell reported that “most hunters struggled to see much for deer movement over the weekend.” Violations Elwell responded to included hunting with the aid of bait, taking antlerless deer in the wrong zone, license violations, and blaze orange violations. He offered a reminder that blaze orange is now required on synthetic ground blinds placed on public land. Mikeena Wehr, the Carlton officer, inves...
Some people in Minnesota have put away their boats for the year, but plenty of others will squeeze out every bit they can of the open-water season, whether they’re chasing game, targeting fish or paddling lakes and rivers. To anyone on or around the water this fall, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources offers this reminder: Your safety is your responsibility. With water temperatures consistently dropping, unexpected falls into the water are more likely to end in tragedy because even strong swimmers can become incapacitated quickly i...
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has a host of tips for those heading out into the wilds this weekend for the deer hunting opener. Here’s a sample of things to think about this season. Register your deer Hunters are required to register every deer they harvest before processing, before antlers are removed and within 48 hours after taking the animal. Hunters can register deer online, via phone or in person. Information from deer registration is essential for the DNR to track and manage deer populations. It’s in the wind Deer hav...
Nature photographer Will Stenberg captured this Wilson's snipe with his camera lens on the shore of Hay Lake in the Chub Lake area Wednesday afternoon. Send your favorite nature photos to [email protected]....
Will Stenberg captured this grouse with his camera on Boy Scout Road near the Whiteface River in the Sax-Zim Bog last week. According to the Friends of Sax-Zim Bog group, grouse are best seen at dawn and dusk when they actively feed on birch and aspen buds. This is when they are active because their main predator, the goshawk, is hunting mainly in the daylight hours....
Mary Lukkarila caught some stunning and fading fall light on the north bank of the St. Louis River last Sunday from under the Minnesota Highway 33 bridge in Cloquet....
Dan Malkovich captured a stunning sunrise on Lake Superior Tuesday morning. There have been quite a few in the past few weeks on the lake with interesting cloud formations. Malkovich said Tuesday that the "leaves next to the lake are finally changing color." Aspens in the region turned yellow over the weekend as likely the last burst of color for the season. Send your fall color photos to [email protected]...
As archery deer hunters enjoy the current hunting season and 400,000 hunters prepare for firearms deer hunting seasons, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources reminds hunters to plan ahead for a safe and enjoyable hunt. The Minnesota DNR’s online make-a-plan tool (mndnr.gov/deerhunt) provides a comprehensive step-by-step list of information hunters need to consider before heading to deer camp. Hunters can walk through the steps to consider, including knowing the hunting regulations, planning for deer processing, getting their deer s...
A poem by Patrick Stevens September Here lies the harvest fast piled rough with all we can stuff our chipmunk cheeks puffed and bulging or squirrels or ants or bees with their combs. I relish the ripeness of September just after the rot sets in; when last apples drop, deer come at night to feast on our fallen bounty; leaf edges brown here, then there, the maples, sweet and red, drip to the ground drowned in morning dew. In evening I see a thousand varied birds fowl big, fowl small flocking...
It’s the season of stunning reds, yellows, oranges, crisp autumn mornings with brilliant blue skies. It’s also the time of year many of us northern folks look forward to tromping around in the woods and wetlands with our hunting dogs chasing our choice of wild game. Those of you who frequent the woods in the fall may have noticed a particular shrub that is still green and holds onto its leaves way longer than the surrounding trees. What is it? Buckthorn. These invaders may already be a thorn in your side. Look in your backyard or favorite par...
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has chosen winners for the Minnesota turkey and pheasant stamp contests. Shakopee artist Mark Thone won the Minnesota pheasant stamp contest with an acrylic painting of a pheasant. The winner was selected on Sept. 28 from seven eligible submissions. The winning artwork will be featured on the 2024 pheasant stamp. Lakeville artist Stephen Hamrick won the Minnesota turkey stamp contest with an acrylic on illustration board painting of a wild turkey. The winner was selected from 10 eligible...
A quick trip to Jay Cooke State Park on Tuesday definitely had all the signs of fall. Gabrielle Proefrock and Tom Warner of Minneapolis rest on a rock in the St. Louis River on an unseasonably warm Tuesday. Participants and staffers at the Pinewood day program in Cloquet took in the falling leaves at Oldenburg Point. Pinewood provides training and daytime activities for people with disabilities. The leaves there were caramel apple colored, with peak color expected in the next week. If you have...
For the first time since 2000, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is stocking lake sturgeon in the St. Louis River. DNR fisheries stocked 375 fingerlings into the river Sept. 12 at Chambers Grove Park in Fond du Lac. Lake sturgeon are a native fish that can live for over 100 years and grow to over 100 pounds. Sturgeon were once abundant here, but their populations declined in the early 1900s due to habitat destruction, pollution and overharvest. Intermittent stocking in the 1980s and ’90 helped boost their numbers, and while h...
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is waiving vehicle permit fees at all 75 state parks and recreation areas on Nov. 24. With the support of the state legislature, the DNR offers Free Park Days to encourage Minnesotans to get outdoors and enjoy the health and wellness benefits of spending time in nature. Research shows that walking offers multiple benefits, from increased creativity and better brain function to more flexibility and stamina. So you won’t just burn calories, you’ll also improve your well-being....
A cathedral of pines serves as entry to a path that winds over and through 32 acres of undulating land off Prevost Road, just north of Cloquet. A short walk is enough to slough off any travails of the day. Then there is a gate, the only gap in a fence tall enough to keep deer out. And a vista opens up, rows and rows of blueberry bushes. This is Sweet Land Farm, one of now a handful of places in Carlton County where one can pick blueberries. And, man, are they ever prevalent here. The berries...
MPR News In recent days there's been a lot of chatter in the media, including on the Minnesota Public Radio News website, and among friends about prospects for seeing the northern lights in Minnesota this week. But some experts say those predictions may have been premature - or just wrong. Bob King, who writes the "Astro Bob" blog, told MPR's "Minnesota Now" that a key factor in predicting whether the aurora will be visible is what's known as the Kp index, with forecasts released by the...
It's strawberry picking time at Spectrum Farms (pictured) and Farm LoLa, which also has lots of honeyberries for the picking. Siberian honeyberries have the same faded blue color as blueberries but are shaped like deflated footballs. Think "blueberry mixed with a SweeTARTS (candy)," said farmer Jason Amundsen. Spectrum Farms owner Steve Schulstrom said he expects another couple weeks of strawberry picking, but not every day. Call the Spectrum hotline at 218-389-6265 and LoLa at 218-400-4950 for...
