Outdoor Activities
It’s not often that a PFD serves as a four-season piece of gear, but something about zipping up this fair weather friend in freezing temperatures makes me all warm and fuzzy inside. I’m going to need it. The temperature is touching 15 degrees.
Today we’re on the same waters we ply with canoe paddles during the warmer months, and at the boat launch there’s the familiar anticipation of heading out onto the lake, but this time it’s different. It’s dark and we’re in for a winter-only treat: gliding on the water rather than through it.
The North Country is notoriously hard to traverse. Thick undergrowth often keeps even the most intrepid hiker from straying far from the beaten path. Happily, during the winter months, wide hiking expanses open up when area lakes freeze over. Suddenly, hikers (especially those equipped with snowshoes) can head just about anywhere they can imagine.
The beauty of winter hikes and snowshoe treks is the woods’ open invitation to break your own path through the snow. Because the North Country is such a big place, we’ve compiled a list of some of our favorite winter tromps. A word of caution, some of the suggested hikes require traversing frozen lakes and rivers. Safe ice conditions can’t be guaranteed; please be a vigilant hiker.
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The dark black skies of winter offer the ideal conditions for photographing the northern lights. This winter and spring could provide even better conditions because NASA is predicting that a solar maximum will occur in early 2013. The solar maximum is the peak of solar activity in the sun’s natural cycle, and it occurs approximately every 11 years. During a solar maximum the number of sunspots increases and the sun’s corona, its atmosphere, develops active regions. These active regions could erupt and send a coronal mass ejection (CME) towards earth. When a CME hits, it often causes northern lights. To help you get ready to capture the event with your camera, here’s a quick and dirty guide to photographing the northern lights.
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Two reasons people travel to Africa are the dramatic landscape and the wildlife. Travelers shell out for airfare and safari fees and arm themselves with cameras in hopes of absorbing the beauty of the savanna and the majesty of the Big Five: lions, leopards, buffalos, rhinos and elephants. You don’t have to cross an ocean to experience awesome animals. The Northern Wilds boasts its own Big Five: moose, wolves, black bears, lynx, and eagles. If you are sharp-eyed and lucky this fall, you may spot one of these creatures against the backdrop of the forest in full color.
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Duluth has a bounty of trails: cross-country ski trails, the Superior Hiking Trail, and the Lakewalk. Not enough for you? How about 100 miles of singletrack woven into the city? It’s called the Duluth Traverse, and it is the vision of the Duluth-based organization Cyclists of Gitchee Gumee Shores.
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When it comes to winter recreation, it can be tempting to stick to the same activities year in and year out. After all, you’ve already got the gear and know-how. But trying a new activity challenges your body (and brain!) and can help ward off mid-season boredom. Here are five Gunflint Trail area adventures that just might reheat your love affair with winter.
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What can beat watching the stars on a lazy summer night? Our first treat comes early, when Mars makes a close pass over the bright star Regulus in Leo, the lion. Looking to the west around 10 p.m. on June 6-7, you’ll see the reddish planet less than half a degree above Regulus, anchor of the Sickle of stars forming Leo’s head.
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These days selecting a paddle can be a complicated and sometimes overwhelming process. With materials and designs of paddles constantly evolving, consumers have more options than ever to choose from. To help you make sense of the plethora of paddles available, local paddling experts have weighed in on what’s what in the world of paddles.
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On a snowy afternoon in mid-January, 50 8th graders pile off a charter bus, ready to spend the next four hours exploring a variety of winter activities at Positive Energy Outdoor (ed)Ventures, a not-for-profit organization I co-founded with my husband, Blake Cazier, in 2004.
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As we drive closer, my 5-year old daughter Grace says, “I’m faster without my poles.” My 8-year old son Sam says he’s going to try to use skate technique instead of just diagonal stride. There must be something in the air at the Boulder Lake Cross Country Ski Trails just north of Duluth. The kids turn into Nordic Evel Knievels.
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