August 17, 2002

A Great Summer!

8/17/02 - It seems as though each summer just gets better, but we are having just a lovely summer! It's going by much to fast, as usual, but we'll hope for a long fall - which we love almost as much as summer! We've been honored with wonderful guests - both human and otherwise! We've had moose visiting - along with loons, eagles, beaver, fox, wolves and the rest of the usual menagerie of northwoods wildlife.  Ely has had a wonderful assortment of new things to do this summer - and they have all added so much to what this area already has to offer. We've been treated to beautiful music, art and nature events, and most will continue through the year or next summer.

7/22/02 - Just a wonderful, wonderful summer! We are all having a great time exploring, sharing and enjoying. The rich variety of guests grows more pleasurable by the year!
Coming up to 'Blueberry Festival' this weekend, and blueberry picking!

7/12/02 - Fireflies, big dragonflies, baby loons, swimming, starry, starry sky, midnight swims ... summer days ....

7/3/02 - What a great summer! Lots of fun - lots of fish, lots of swimming! We have all been having a good time, and there's been a lot of new things to do in the Ely area as well.
More later ....

6/3/02 - The fish, they are a bitin'! Looks like another great summer of fishing on Bear Island Lake!

5/28/02 - We had a great Memorial Weekend Holiday - we are all ready for summer, and summer fun! We are having fabulous weather this week! Our big news this week is that our little Joshie turns 2 this week! Hard to believe how the time flies ...

5/05/02 - The Soudan Underground Mine is a great place to visit & explore, and there's a fascinating project going on there. An underground lab has been built for advanced physics research to study "neutrinos" and "dark matter" & to "..explore fundamental questions about the structure of our universe.". It's a joint project between Fermi Lab, MN DNR, the Universities of MN, & Berkeley CA. There was an open house yesterday, Joshie & Deb went - and it was incredible! Like something from a James Bond movie! It's quite exciting to think about the research that's being done right here, and to imagine what they might discover and how it might affect our future! This summer the lab will begin offering limited tours to the public - and we highly recomend including a visit in your vacation plans. For additional information about the MINOS project, see the links on our 'Nature & Activities' page.

5/02/02 - Lots going on around here! The birds have been amazing! A merlin flew into one of our windows, was stunned for a few minutes, so we had a chance to get a good look at him. Thursday morning, we went birding to the heron rookery, saw a saw-whet owl, loons. Back here at the lodge, we saw a hawk, grouse and found a bald eagle fishing along the shore! What a great morning!

4/26/002 - Ice-out and loons! These are big events here, the first loon calls, and having the ice go out on the lakes! Now, if we can just get some warmth to go along with the longer days! We've had blustery weather the past few days & some snow. But the wildlife watching has been lots of fun! The birdfeeders have been going crazy and we've been out birding. We've seen Eagles, Owls, Merganser, Herons and Harriers - it's been great!

3/24/002 - Spring is definitely in the air, the days are getting longer and the sun stronger - the melt is imminent! We will soon be hearing the loons. Last year, I thought I had lost my mind, when I heard the loons while the lakes were still covered in ice!

3/24/002 - We have finally implemented an e-newsletter, the 'eHowler'! Many of you have asked us to keep in touch with you, and we've wanted to send out a monthly newsletter for a long time now, and frankly, I've been a little intimidated by the whole idea, and worried about the quality and content. But, we are moving forward, and we hope that our subscribers will enjoy a monthly missive from the Timber Wolf!

We are busy preparing for Spring & Summer! Spring cabin cleaning has begun, and all of us are working like beavers. We're having an unusually busy late winter, with lots of folks just wanting to come up for the beauty and solitude.
Spring is wonderful up here! As much as we all love the winter, we are glad to feel the sun getting stronger, and to feel the days getting longer.

2/20/002 - We got yelled at by an owl today! Our maintenance guy Steve, was way out on the trails today, grooming , and got stuck in the snow on one of inclines. While getting unstuck, an owl began yelling at him, and carried on for quite some time. As Steve started to leave, the owl dive-bombed him! Maybe the owl liked the company and didn't want him to go ...

2/20/02 - It has been remarkably busy around here - our photography workshop was wonderful and the Spirit of the Wolf Sleddog Race was a success! Many of the other races in the had to be rescheduled or canceled, so we had a large turnout of racers. The course was on Bear Island Lake, and was a beautiful setting. And as long as we have snow, we will keep the course open for skiing.
Big news - the Mantel House is reopened! A lot of folks are thrilled - including us! Thank you, Chef Bernard and Pam!

1/16/02 - While our snow conditions aren't perfect, they are pretty darn good! Especially considering that we seem to be the only place in MN with ski-able trails! The snowmobile conditions are a little more iffy - we'll keep you updated here - or give us a call!

1/4/02 - Heee'sss bbaaacck! Oh, happy day! French chef Bernard Herrmann, of Ely's' Mantel House' restaurant, one of the top 100 chefs in the world, is back to give us sustenance! And The Mantel House will reopen soon, in the meantime, we can get take-out! If we sound a little excited, we are! Those who have had the pleasure of dining at the Mantel House will understand, and those that have not, well, you'll just have to come up and experience a world-class treat for yourself!

1/2/02 - We had a wonderful New Year Celebration here at TWL. We had a lot a families and folks just wanting quiet and solitude. We have wonderful snow conditions, and it's so much fun to be able to get out and play!

Just a little fun at Cabin 11 (Rendezvous)

The lake is now frozen over, so it's not making noise - but you can read about it below. We now have fresh snow - and it's lovely! We should think about a snow-cam so you can see what's happening at the lodge!

Bear Island Lake is noisily making ice - it roars! It's a most amazing sound. Our neighbors on the other side of the lake will be grateful when the ice is thick enough for the ice road (soon!), so that they can save some time getting to town. And playing on the ice is exciting - to be able to explore areas you normally have to paddle! And with or without snow winter is beautiful and peaceful. The changes are so dramatic, and wildlife is easier to view, the owls, moose, wolf and winter birds are easier to see in the winter.
Baby, it's cold outside! We had snow and then unusually mild temps like the rest of MN, but the recent forecast is predicting snow. And we are anticipating a fabulous winter season. Our trails up here are wonderful - and we can't wait to get out there!

All of us here love the winter and the Holidays, and are looking forward to getting out with our almost 2 year old Joshua. We've had beautiful Northern Lights and meteor showers recently - the sky has been fantastic! And Doug had an incredible experience this fall - while looking at the stars out over the Bear Island Lake, he saw a shooting star, streaming low in the sky. He was amazed to hear it hit the water! A once-in-a-lifetime experience!

We are incredibly busy, chasing Joshua, and helping get him down from whatever high thing he's managed to climb.  Trying to decorate for the Holidays this year is chaotic - but worth the effort!

We also were busy this summer & fall working on the 'Boundary Waters Blues Festival'. Music was added to the annual 'Harvest Moon Festival', and it was loads of fun and great success! Be sure to check back occasionally, as we put together next year's lineup!

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Wildlife Weekends!
Owls - Wolves
Lynx - Bear

 

Area Happenings:
Aug 6-9 - Speaking of Wilderness Writers/Artist Conference
Aug. 15 Ely's Loony Day, 15th Annual, Downtown
Aug. 19 Hawg Fishing contest
Aug. 25-27 Embarrass Region Fair, 61st Annual

September 6-8 - Ely's Annual 'Harvest Moon Festival' &
'Boundary Waters Blues Fest'!!
Feb. 1-11 Voyageur Winter Festival

 

February 2 & 3, 2002, the 4th Annual 'Spirit of the Wolf Sled Dog Race' happens right here, at the Lodge and on Bear Island Lake. These sprint races are very exciting for both spectators and mushers. The races are free and open to the public.  For more information, see: The Spirit of the Wolf Race.

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