Outdoors
Stalked by a Loon?
Nothing earth-shattering here, just a – nearly invisible! – close encounter with a curious aquatic bird this summer. Must be viewed in HD (ideally fullscreen) to discern anything, but it is there. I was unaware of this until reviewing the footage months later, but for a split second, behind me and to the left, some form of diving waterfowl peeks at me. This inconclusive footage is slowed down 16X to be able to get a glimpse of this ephemeral moment. It doesn’t even stick its head all the way out of the water but I believe a bill may be discerned, a white spot on the head, and possibly a crest off the back of the head although that may simply be a reflection in the water. Anyway, getting decent underwater footage of a curious loon or merganser is something of a holy grail of mine – these birds are often seen diving in the area and I know they sometimes approach human divers. So although thrilled to know I came close to one – within 10 feet by the looks of it – I am also frustrated to have missed the shot.
Outdoor fitness groups in Duluth
A question from PDD’s e-mail inbox:
I just moved here from Southern California. Do we have non-motorized events in Duluth? I mean joggers, walkers, bikers, skaters will gather and ride together. Example is CicLAvia in Los Angeles, where they closed downtown the city for motor vehicles.
Punkin’ Chunkin’
One of our holiday traditions the past few years has been to watch Punkin’ Chunkin’ on the Discovery Channel. I just read that it was cancelled for this year, which is sad and means we’ll have to find some other boob tube diversion that night.
Got me thinking, though: does anyone do this in the area?
Duluth Rocks: Famous boulders and outcroppings across the city
Perhaps Duluth’s most famous rock is Elephant Rock in Lincoln Park. It looks a bit like a giant, half-buried elephant, hence the name. (more…)
Perfect Weekend Morning Exploring the Boulders
No great discoveries here, just a perfect weekend morning exploring a field of submerged boulders, summer 2014. Water clarity was great. Water temp wasn’t too bad, but the wetsuit definitely kept me in longer. Shallow freediving in 8-15 feet of water, maybe a little deeper towards the end.
Exploring Up Chester Creek with Balancing Antics and Goofery
My continuing playful love affair with Duluth’s Chester Creek.
Will Duluth see more mansions on the hill?
It’s been five years since William Agenter built his high-profile home on Skyline Parkway. Although the mansion on Duluth’s western hillside was built legally on private land, some saw it as an intrusion on an otherwise woodsy section of the scenic drive perceived to belong to the public.
That controversy has come and gone, but another could be looming. Across Skyline from Agenter’s property sits 43.7 acres of wooded hillside, adjacent to popular hiking and biking trails, marked with Lynn Beechler Realty signs. Sale of that land to someone eager to develop more housing with expansive views of the city could happen any day, though the buyer would face challenges. (more…)
French River Swim
A swim in the French River, Summer 2014.
Duluth view of Oct. 23 partial solar eclipse
Patrick Smith created this video using YouTube Slideshow Creator.
Ghosts of the French River
This summer Erin Renee and I released a video trilogy of a collaboration at the French River. Here is the final, fourth installment, a coda if you will. (more…)
Landscape footage of Jay Cooke and Amnicon Falls state parks
Video and music by Dave Dueck.
Aerial Tour of Fall on the North Shore of Lake Superior
Aerial Footage by Liftoff Aerials. Music by Sarah Krueger.
Agate Hunter 2
Footage from July or August. I tried to edit out the fart noise @ 1:00 but gave up. It is air escaping from the camera pole I swear.
Part one here.
(By the way, here’s my social media deets: like me on Facebook here; subscribe to my Youtube channel here; follow me on Instagram @lakesuperioraquaman, and Twitter @superioraquaman.)
Brule River by air and underwater
Go Pro video with P2 Drone by Sam Alvar of Seaquest Productions.
Found Anthropological Artifacts from a Summer Beach Culture of Leisure
What strange, rock-skipping culture of leisure inhabits these Duluthian shorelines in the Lake Superior summers? This is a brief survey of structures and artifacts discovered in my anthropological investigations of 2013-2014.
Getting to Fall Fest
Saturday, September 20th is the date for the 30th annual Fall Fest in Chester Park. Rain Date is Sunday the 21st. With construction happening right outside the park entrance, getting to Fall Fest will be a little different this year.
Click the map to see it larger.
If you’re not walking to Chester Bowl that day, everyone is strongly encouraged to park and take the free shuttle buses from UMD’s Lot B, next to the Administration building, at College & University. (See map) Road and bridge repairs continue immediately west of the Chester Bowl Park entrance thereby limiting access to just the eastern entrance. Pedestrians can enter from the east side, but Skyline Parkway will also be closed to cars from the east starting at Kent Road on the day of the event. Parking is prohibited along Skyline Parkway after Kent Road.
PDD will be at Fall Fest again this year in our luxurious canopy, giving away stickers, selling t-shirts, and whatever other shenanigans we devise between now and next Saturday. Look for us next to the playground.
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Freediving for Agates
August of this summer. This beach slopes off sharply just past the surf to like a 45 degree angle, so swimming out in a succession of dives quickly takes you deeper. Max in this video 15 feet? Not far from shore at all, undisclosed location. The dolphin-y noise @ 19 secs is air escaping from the camera pole. The mechanical drone in the background is an ore boat a couple/few miles away in the shipping lanes, which can also be heard in the first couple minutes of my recent vid Diving Among the Boulders and What I Found There.
Quick Change
A la 1970s Wonder Woman.
Wildlife News
Some updates from Wildwoods Rehabilitation:
There are three window-strike bird victims in residence — a northern flicker, a juvenile cedar waxwing, and a flycatcher. The flicker came in with a spinal bruise, and was unable to use his legs for several days. Fortunately, he’s made a full recovery after rest and anti-swelling meds, and is ready for release. In the meantime, he’s been pigging out on the mealworms, and has plumped out, just in time for migration, when he’ll need the energy!
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Diving the Breakwater Wall Ruins, 9/6/14
Duluth’s outer harbor, between the Vietnam Memorial and the red buoy, hides the submerged ruins of a hundred-plus-year-old wall (essentially stacked wooden cribbing filled with rocks) that predates the lift bridge and the canal. This is what they used to park ships behind for safe harbor — before its destruction in a gale. Been waiting to return here since last summer, finally got my window. Tried early in the day but the water was too cold. So I spent the day on Park Point beach, then hit it on my way back — water had warmed several degrees. Sun was going down so I had to act quickly. Similar imagery may be seen in my video of last year, “Freediving the Ruins of Duluth’s Outer Harbor.”
This current video represents going farther from shore (maybe halfway to the buoy?), and deeper than before (up to 15 feet or so as opposed to ~10). Next year maybe I will dive the buoy chain to the bottom (30 feet). It would have been nice to do this series of dives when I was fresher earlier in the day with more direct overhead sunlight (the water was clearer too), but it was simply too cold. By the time I got to it, I had walked several miles, was hungry, and had been given a beer and a couple slugs of wine (don’t ask). So I wasn’t as hardcore as I wanted to be — had to swim out far, then deep too, without benefit of a raft or anything, so I was pooped and not willing to risk any further depth. Next time!
Diving Among the Boulders and What I Found There
A series of dives one afternoon exploring a field of boulders.
Bike Duluth Festival 2014 Video
Video by Dudley Edmondson from the Bike Duluth Festival.