The Minnesota DNR recently announce that the Gunflint’s Banadad Trail Association will receive a $4500 grant to upgrade the 3.5 Kilometer Tall Pines Ski Trail located south of the Lace Lake Trail and near the Banadad Trail’s eastern end. The project will inable the Association to hire a contractor with a bulldozer to level and clear rocks and stumbs from the surface of the previously hand-cut trail.

The trail was first marked in the fall of 2005. Later the North Stars Ski Touring Club and the Minnehaha Acadamy’s Ski Team help to hand clear the trail. However the trail has been to rough to be very usefull as a ski trail. It is expected the latest trail work should be completed by this fall and the improved trail ready by this winter season.

The trail was built to extend the Lace Lake Ski Trail and to connect the Trail with lodging facilities at the Tall Pines Yurt camp with

PRESS RELEASE
Superior National Forest

May 29, 2009

Contact: Kris Reichenbach,  Superior National Forest  218-626-4393 or Sue Ahrendt, Gunflint Trail Association 218-388-2221

The Gunflint Trail Association and Superior National Forest have partnered on development of the Becoming a Boundary Waters Canoe Area Family program to encourage families to enjoy and explore the Boundary Waters Area.   The goal of informational materials and seminars is to help kids and parents feel comfortable, confident, and safe in the north woods and on the border lakes.

To meet this goal, a series of family-oriented presentations are scheduled this summer at several locations along the Gunflint Trail north of Grand Marais, Minnesota.  Every Tuesday, between June 16 and August 18^. Forest Service representatives will talk about a wide range of topics relating to natural resources and the history of the area.   On  June 16, June 23, June 30, July 7, July 14th outfitter presentations will provide practical advice about camping and traveling in the Boundary Waters area.  Titles include “Woods Wisdom”, “BWCA Boot Camp”,   “Paddling and Portaging Basics” and more.  All seminars are offered at no cost and are approximately 1 hour long (unless otherwise noted).

In addition to the interactive program, a booklet has been prepared as a supplemental resource which can be obtained through the Gunflint Trail Association.

See Becoming a Boundary Waters Canoe Area Family web site for more information.

Matt Baldwin at Clearwater Lodge

The Memorial Weekend seemed to be a good time for fishing for everyone. Randy Baldwin comes up every year, for 12 years now, with his Scouts and they usually take a BWCA trip. This year schedules were hard to arrange for everyone so they tried a cabin instead. Fishing was good and this is a photo of Matt Baldwin

From the dock of a cabin at Clearwater Lodge, Tom Baumberger got a nice surprise when he threw one last line in before lunch. He brought in this lake trout that was 36 inches and 14 lbs.

Lake Trout on Clearwater Lake

Nordic Skiing is normally considered an eco-friendly sport, northeast Minnesota’s Gunflint Nordic ski trail managers have taken this one step further. The Central and Upper Gunflint Ski Areas connected by the Banadad Ski Trail known collectively as the 210 Kilometer Gunflint Nordic Ski System this year went carbon neutral.

The trail managers calculation the cost of sequestering the carbon emissions produced from the maintenance and grooming of the trails based on information from the Chicago Climate Exchange, “Regional Estimates of TreeAnnual Carbon Accumulation,” and the Gunflint Ranger District, USFS tree plant cost estimates.

Then, yesterday, May 5, at the Gunflint Trail Association’s Spring Meeting ski trail representatives presented a $896 “carbon off-set” check to Nancy Seaton, Gunflint Green Up chairman, The money will be used as seed money for next year’s tree planting. Since the Gunflint Trail’s 2007 Ham Lake Fire, the Gunflint Green Up has annually purchased young trees and organized volunteers to plant the trees. To date the Green Up has planted over 100,000 new trees in the area burned over by the Fire.

According to Ted Young, Banadad Trail manager, “It was a great snow year for the Gunflint’s ski trails. That translated into lots of grooming hours. And as a result we put lots of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere- by our calculation the maintenance and grooming of the Gunflint’s three ski systems created some fifteen metric tons of CO2. We feel that offsetting this carbon by planting trees in our neighborhood, to us, is the right thing to do for the Gunflint and our environment.”

Resorts participating in Gunflint Nordic Ski Trail’s Carbon Off-set project are Gunflint Pines, Hestons and Gunflint from the Upper Gunflint Trails: Boundary Country Trekking from the Banadad and Bearskin from the Central Gunflint Trails. Golden Eagle Lodge, that maintains half of the Central Gunflint Trail offset the carbon their maintenance and grooming created by planting trees on their own property.

Green Up receive CO2 Offset Check-Left to Right Ted Young, Boundary Country Trekking, Nancy Seaton, Gunflint Green Up Chairperson, Dennis Neitzke, Gunflint Ranger USFS, Shari Baker Gunflint Pines Resort, and Sue McCloughan, Bearskin Lodge.

Opening weekend has come and gone - but the reports are still coming in. Generally speaking it was a good opener. The ice went of Gunflint Lake May 2 & 3rd and we’ve had some good warm weather since then - (except for the little joke Mother Nature played on us opening morning - which you read about earlier). Gunflint Lake Trout have been accomodating with most guests picking up 4lb average fish either trolling or casting a dead bait from shore and letting it sit on the bottom.

A few Northern have been reported chasing smaller caught fish as they’re being reeled in. The walleye are in the spawning areas, but guests who night fish have been catching the 27 - 30 inchers, taking pictures and releasing them to finish their job! Thanks - that’s so important.

09 Opener Lake Trout Catch

There’s good news and bad news about the Minnesota Opener on the Gunflint Trail. The good news is the ice is off of all of the lakes, the bad news is anglers awoke to snow on the ground. There’s also more good news, the snow won’t stick around and the ice won’t be back for months.
The folks on the Gunflint Trail are ready for visitors so come on up for a stay, but please stay longer than the snow did today!

Posted by the Boundary Waters Blog Lady from Voyageur Canoe Outfitters

This past weekend the Gunflint Trail saw an influx of people. These folks came from near and far to participate in the Gunflint Green Up and Ham Run. This special weekend is the way Cook County Folks show why living here is so awesome.
Two years ago today the Ham Lake Fire began. Local volunteer fire departments rushed to the Gunflint Trail to help with fire fighting efforts. Community members, fire fighters and people from all over came to Grand Marais to see how they could help out. People cooked meals, invited evacuees to stay with them and supplied them with whatever they needed in their time of emergency.
The Gunflint Green Up is a way to bring back that special sense of community. The volunteers flock to the Gunflint Trail, not to fight a fire, but for renewal. To plant a tree, run along the path the fire took in 2007 or just to reflect on nature and all it has to offer. People from all over get the opportunity to experience the Gunflint Trail and residents of Cook County who are there for each other when needed. That’s what community is all about.

Posted by the Boundary Waters Blog Lady from Voyageur Canoe Outfitters

Don’t miss out on a weekend of green fun on the Gunflint Trail. The recent rain we’ve had on the Gunflint Trail has helped in changing the landscape from brown to green. That combined with the hundreds of volunteers ready to plant and release trees on Saturday will really make a difference.

There will be lots of folks on the Gunflint Trail and in Grand Marais Saturday. Registration and Packet Pick up for the Ham Run Half Marathon and 5k Fun Run will be held at the Lake Superior Trading Post from 10am until 4pm on Saturday. Those people who want to walk or run the 5k and haven’t signed up to do so yet can head over and pay $20.00 to participate. They’ll have the option of purchasing their own pasta feed, t-shirt and race bag.

The Pasta Feed will be held from 4pm-6pm at My Sister’s Place Restaurant in Grand Marais, MN. Participants will eat for free and guests can enjoy a spaghetti dinner for $8.95/adult and $4.95 per child.

Up the Trail Green Up participants will plant trees and thenl enjoy a dinner in the big tent. Music and a celebration of the 100th birthday of the Superior National Forest will follow dinner. Those who are looking for evening entertainment can dance to the music of the Trail’s End Band.

Ham Run participants will no doubt be hitting the sack early in preparation for the Half-Marathon on Sunday morning. We hope you will join us for a weekend of Green Fun on the Gunflint Trail.

Posted by the Boundary Waters Blog Lady of Voyageur Canoe Outfitters