Outdoors
Perfect Day for a Double Header
The first five people to mention Perfect Duluth Day at the box office will win a pair of general admission tickets to today’s Duluth Huskies double header vs. the Alexandria Beetles.
Tonight is Gold’n Plump Night – The Gold’n Plump Chicken folks are on hand with a great giveaway.
It’s also another Thirsty Thursday! All Domestic Beer is 1/2 price including Bud or Bud Light 16oz. cans in the stands.
The Swarm
I am thoroughly enjoying the throng of dragonflies that have appeared over the last week or so (tho seems to be waning) but also cringing as I drive through swarms of them on the road. Delighted because I am under the impression that they are voracious bug eaters and don’t bother people too much. If anyone has special insight on the life of dragonflies in the area, I’m all ears and wings.
Thanks Mom: Baby brown thrasher eats foot-long garter snake
While out doing bird surveys for the Minnesota DNR, Sparky Stensaas came across a baby brown thrasher trying to swallow a foot-long garter snake.
Various Critters
Mink, or Marten -- I've been told both -- with a spinal injury
Summer’s long days are the busiest days at Wildwoods. Following on yesterday’s eagle, here is info on other species passing through. (more…)
Eagle recovers at Wildlife Rehab Center
Bill and Fran found this beautiful but emaciated mature eagle in the bushes. It had blood in its mouth. The eagle was brought to the Wildwoods rehab location for help with what appears to be lead poisoning. (more…)
North Shore prime
If you can find a place to park other than the side of Highway 61, this would would be an ideal weekend to explore North Shore state parks without all the crowds. Boldly enter at the gates or use the trails (SHT) running into them. And the lupines up the shore are stunning right now.
Head’s Up…
The Munger Trail is CLOSED between the Grand Ave./Co. Rd. 23 bridge and the 93rd. Ave. W. bridge. Figured I’d save somebody the leg work.
Duluth Kayaking – Saturday Evening Paddle
After checking out the great Park Point Art Fair this evening, what a gorgeous night Perfect Duluth Paddle.
Seen on a run along Grand Portage Trail, Jay Cooke State Park
False Soloman’s Seal
Yellow Lady Slippers
Also seen in bloom, but not photographed: strawberries, mertensia, wild roses, the last of the large flowered trillium, thimbleberry, and buttercups.
The sun is shining and the trails should be drying out if the weather holds. Perfect time to get outside and discover what wildflowers the trails in and around Duluth hold!
Fun and flowers this weekend at Jay Cooke State Park
It’s Duluth’s own backyard state park. In half the time it takes to drive to Gooseberry, you can get reach this big park straddling the rugged St. Louis River valley. You could even ride your bike out the Munger Trail.
Head out to Jay Cooke State Park this weekend and check out the lady’s slippers that are blooming. Or get up early for a birdsong walk with Larry Weber. The St. Louis River should be raging under the Swinging Bridge. These ideas and more are on my blog.
Note, none of the reservable campsites are available. If you zoom up to the park tonight or early Friday, you could still snag one of the first-come, first-served campsites.
Public input needed to prioritize parks and trail needs. Meetings scheduled.
The public is invited to attend public meetings which will solicit citizens’ opinions on city park and trail priorities. The meetings will be held 6-7:30 PM on the following dates;
Wednesday, June 22 at the Central Hillside Community Center located at 12 E. 4Fourth St.
Thursday, June 23 at the Duluth Heights Community Center located at 33 W. Mulberry St.
Tuesday, June 28 at the Portman Community Center located at 4601 McCulloch St.
Wednesday, June 29 at the Morgan Park Community Center located at 1242 88th Ave. W.
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“reLeaf Duluth” Tree Planting Party!
The city of Duluth seeks volunteer tree planters for its “reLeaf Duluth” program. Sunday, June 26, 2-5 PM. Meet at Portland Square at the corner of 11th Ave. E. and E. Fourth St. No experience needed, all ages welcome! Training provided by city of Duluth staff and Louise Levy, certified arborist and tree care advisor. For more info contact jgibbs @ duluthmn.gov or 218-730-4308 or 218-269-4712.
American Cancer Society Relay for Life
Join the American Cancer Society at this year’s Duluth Relay for Life at Bayfront Park on July 22.
The event beings at 5:30pm and continues until 6am the following morning. Join us for the opening ceremonies at 6:15pm, the Luminaria lighting at 9:15 or check out Mynx performing from 8-9pm! There will be food for sale, a climbing wall and Japanese Restorative Therapy sessions. Come out and support your local American Cancer Society!
Transplant endangered Duluth plants!
Can anyone help this Eagle Scout? He is attempting to move plants out of a gorgeous old growth forest that is to be bulldozed for a building on the corner of Rice Lake Road and Pecan this Sunday. He writes a good description below.
Hello Everyone,
I am in desperate need of volunteers for my Eagle Scout project this Sunday. My project involves taking native plants and trees out Webb Woods, and moving them to new locations so they will be saved from the bulldozer.
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Make Way for Ducklings: Vintage Duluth to Forest Hill Cemetery
Yesterday, Wildwoods volunteer Kate VTB was shopping with Clare and Katherine at Vintage Duluth downtown.
The owner was stroking her shoulder oddly. It seems a duckling had wandered in, found nothing in its size, and had lost track of its mom.
Kate leapt into action, calling the licensed rehabber for advice. She needs to be released into a pond, Kate was told. A hat-box was prepared with holes for air, tender goodbyes made, and we were off. (more…)
MDA planning gypsy moth treatment
Some residents of Duluth will be seeing a plane fly over their homes Sunday morning. But it’s nothing to be alarmed about. The Minnesota Department of Agriculture is using the plane to try and stop the spread of gypsy moths. The MDA is planning to treat about 342 acres in Duluth’s Central Hillside, in an area approximately from North Sixth Avenue East to North 17th Avenue East and Skyline Drive to East Fourth Street.
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Squirrel begins life of hard labor … via Wildwoods Rehab
This is Delilah, our developmentally delayed grey squirrel. We normally don’t pet the animals in our care; we need to keep them as wild as possible. Delilah is a bit “special,” so we love her up. (more…)
Neighborhood Housing Services of Duluth Golf Fundraiser
NHS Duluth serves all of Duluth’s core neighborhoods in home improvement, homeownership, and revitalization efforts. It is a 401(c)3 non-profit organization, making any donations tax deductible.
We are holding our first annual golf fundraising outing on Friday, June 17, and are looking for any players or sponsors who may be interested. To sign up click here. Cash Prizes! Golf Prizes! A Friday on the golf course!
For more information, contact Dan at 218-727-8604 x. 207 or at dollhoff @ nhsduluth.org.
“A Major Aurora Event”?
According to Science Buzz, astronomers are predicting some sexy Northern Lights tonight:
A major eruption on the Sun on June 7 sent high-energy particles spewing into space. They are expected to reach Earth on the night of Wednesday, June 8 (Minnesota time). Astronomers are predicting a major aurora event, with the Northern Lights visible overhead as far south as Milwaukee, and possibly visible on the northern horizon as far south a southern Indiana and Washington DC!
The most recent case of awesome Northern Lights in Duluth I remember was seven years ago. Tomasz Majewski captured the image above for Perfect Duluth Day from his home in the Piedmont neighborhood on Nov. 7, 2004.
This week at Hartley
Busy week at Hartley Nature Center:
-Tuesday, June 7 Our first volunteer garden work night in the Butterfly Garden, 6pm.
-Wednesday, June 8 COGGS members lead a trail bike ride, 7pm.
-Thursday, June 9 Yoga night, Back to Basics 4:30 pm & Hatha 1 6 pm.
And there are a few summer day camp spaces left for youth ages 4-15. Register soon!
More information at www.hartleynature.org
An Open Letter To Our Community
Dear Citizens:
“Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and understand each other, we may even become friends.” — Maya Angelou
And perhaps we can understand each other right here.
We, the members of our state and local community, ask you, the members of our state and local community, to join us in making Saturday, July 9, 2011, a milestone.
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Plantin’ Trees (seedlings) is good
Chester Bowl and Amity Creek got another helping hand from employees of Loll Designs, Epicurean Cutting Surfaces, and Intectural last Thursday.
The West Duluth companies completed an annual tree planting initiative on May 26, their fourth year breaking out the shovels and getting their hands dirty. Nearly 2,500 trees were planted in two locations; a tree sparse area in the upper part of Chester Creek Park in the city of Duluth was planted with a mix of evergreen and hardwood species, and for the second year in a row a fallow field was planted with white spruce in the Amity Creek area in East Duluth. 15 employees participated in this year’s event.
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Sick of the fog? Here’s a wildflower that L-U-V-s that fog!
Okay, it’s another foggy day in Duluth. While you plumb the depths of your commitment to this fine town, while you wonder if the weather here is worth the sacrifice you’ve made in career advancement, take heart from the example of the lowly Mertensia paniculata, a flower for which every foggy day is a perfect day.
And if you’re the type that longs for western landscapes, for the slopes of the Cascades or the northern Rockies, this same flower gives you a psychic link to those lovely places. Like you, it lives here in Duluth, but it’s got serious western roots.
There’s lots more about the Tall Lungwort/Northern Bluebell, Mertensia paniculata, on my blog.
Porcupine Feasting at Jay Cooke State Park
This video was shot by Mark “Sparky” Stensaas on May 3 for his blog, the Photonaturalist. Local porcupines have moved out of places like the West Duluth Porcupine Hotel and are giving up their diet of tree bark in favor of the more scrumptious catkins of Pussy Willows. Sparky’s specific post on this is called “Porcupine Spring Snack.”