A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
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The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources estimates much of northern Minnesota - including Carlton County and the North Shore - is at 75 to 100 percent of peak for fall colors, with Duluth and the surrounding area "past peak," according to its online map. Southern Minnesota remains at 25-50 percent of peak colors. For those looking for communal appreciation of fall colors, Jay Cooke State Park will hold a "falling leaves walk" 9-10 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 13. The DNR is updating its fall color...
I hastily loaded my car and headed west in late September. The trees lining the highways showed hints of fall colors. I cranked up the Jim Croce CDs I've listened to hundreds of times and sang along carefree. The duck opener was on the horizon. The lakes, surrounded by graying landscape, seemed to glow in the dimming light as I approached our Traverse County campsite. When I arrived, I listened to my father-in-law explain how the next morning would work, despite the fact I'd been up since 1...
Natural resource officers with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources have reported calls this month about nuisance bears in the area. Cloquet area officer Tony Elwell said, "trash cans need to be secured inside, and all food sources including dog food and especially bird feeders need to be removed completely, or bear problems will continue." Brookston officer Derek Peterlin said that once the attractants are inaccessible, "the bear will likely move on and have no reason to return."...
Hunters reviewing the 2024 Minnesota hunting regulations will find season details in most areas of Minnesota similar to what they were last year, including northern areas with lower bag limits intended to increase deer populations. Here are some key deer season dates: • Deer hunting licenses can be purchased now. • Archery, Sept. 14 through Dec. 31 • Antlerless lottery deadline, purchase your license by Sept. 5 • Youth and early antlerless, Oct. 17 through Oct. 20 • Firearms, Nov. 9, various closing dates. • Muzzleloader, Nov. 30 through Dec...
There was a spectacular show in the night sky Sunday and early Monday morning across Carlton County as the Northern Lights appeared along with the Perseids meteor shower. This is from St. Louis River Road north of Cloquet....
Frequent photo contributor Will Stenberg found a black-capped chickadee hanging out for some food Saturday near his home. According to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, insects, especially caterpillars, make up most of a chickadee's diet in the summer. In winter, they consume seeds and berries. This one may have been collecting for a wintertime store....
The old saying goes that water holds memories, and if that is true, the beach at Moose Lake city park holds its fair share of mine. Moose Lake was one of the campgrounds we would hit almost every year as I grew up. Now we bring our children to the same hallowed haunt where I spent many a summer day playing with my best friend, Kyle Burggraff, my sister, Hailey Graves, or any of the other family friends that joined us for the journey. If you are looking for a day trip or even to spend a few...
The berries provided the red and blue, while clouds were the white on the Fourth of July at the berry fields at Farm LoLa in rural Wrenshall. Farm manager Brett Amundson works the busy stand in the middle of the honeyberry fields. Lucie Amundsen helped a curious young customer. The farm is among many in Carlton County bursting with berries this month, with blueberries next. By the afternoon on July 4, the strawberries had been picked out. Call ahead if you want to go out to area farms, because...
Dan Malkovich spotted a turtle on a trail in late June. "After all the rain ... Little Otter Creek had flooded the Munger Trail near Carlton, and I was walking my bike through ankle deep water when I spotted this painted turtle." Will Stenberg captured a white admiral butterfly on wild parsnip along the Grand Portage trail in Jay Cooke State Park on July 1. He also found lady sippers there on the Fourth of July. Do you have cool photos to share? Send them to news@PineKnotNews...
Join the Carlton County Master Gardeners for its signature event of the summer. This year’s garden tour will showcase five gardens in the Cloquet area. Highlights of the tour will include a small-space garden with a children’s area; a garden where a resident grows garlic and herbs and harvests maple syrup; stops at a beekeeper and a berry farmer; a community garden; and, as always, lots of perennials and garden art. The free, self-guided tour runs 4-7 p.m. Tuesday, July 16, rain or shine. Maps will be available after July 9 at the Ext...
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has added Aitkin County in a deer feeding and attractant ban to reduce the risk of chronic wasting disease spread, following CWD detection in two additional wild deer near Grand Rapids in fall 2023. Feeding deer and using deer attractants is now banned in 24 Minnesota counties where disease surveillance efforts indicate a greater risk of CWD spread. The feeding and attractant ban is now in effect in Aitkin, Beltrami, Carver, Cass, Crow Wing, Dakota, Dodge, Fillmore, Goodhue, Hennepin, Houston,...
Photographer Will Stenberg captured a bluebird, above, and waxwing doing their thing last week near his home in Twig. The male bluebird was doing some birdhouse cleaning while the waxwing went for a juneberry....
It looked like Cale Prosen was going to end his 42-day kayaking trip around Lake Superior paddling in pouring rain through the Duluth Ship Canal. But the rain lifted and, just like that, part of a rainbow appeared on the horizon. "There are some gnarly currents," the 20-year-old told his dad, who was standing above him on the Aerial Lift Bridge, as the waves roiled between the concrete walls of the canal. Cale handled it easily. After all, he'd had six weeks of practicing navigating in his sea...
Unrelenting rainfall this past spring has culminated in historic flooding across the state, especially during the first weekend of official summer last week. Carlton County was not spared, but while water levels were high and rapidly moving water posed a risk, the area was spared any major damage. The St. Louis River in Scanlon crested at just more than 11 feet Monday, and slowly receded as the week went on. Carlton County Emergency Management director Marlyn Halvorson said close monitoring...
Frequent photo contributor Will Stenberg from north of Esko captured the moment a dragonfly landed on a lady slipper while out taking shots north of Deer River June 20. Do you have some cool nature and people photography to share? Send it to us as [email protected]....
Sisters Addy, Lily and Nova Haglund of Esko play "sharks" in the water at The Beach at Pinehurst Park in Cloquet Tuesday as nearly 500 people come to cool off with temperatures in the low 80s....
Storm chasing is a dangerous and unpredictable hobby, but it can also be incredibly rewarding. For me, there’s nothing quite like the thrill of chasing a storm cell and trying to capture the perfect shot. I had the opportunity to do just that when a severe thunderstorm warning was issued June 12 for our area. I grabbed my camera and headed out into the field, hoping to get a glimpse of a tornado or just amazing cloud formations. As I drove, I watched the storm clouds build in the distance. T...
This time of year the Golden Gates of Summer swing wide open in the Davey house. School is out for our girls and me, with one question looming high above all else: Now what? For us, that answer is, and always has been, camping. We kick off our summers with a low-maintenance, activity-filled trip to the Hayward KOA. This isn’t your scout camp of yore. It’s easy. It’s fun. And if you need to check those imaginary boxes of what is and isn’t camping, you can always yell at each other while backing i...
During Great Outdoors Month, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is offering special programs and incentives to encourage Minnesotans to get outdoors. The DNR will host a Free Park Day on Saturday, June 8, which allows free entrance to all state parks and recreation areas in Minnesota. The DNR this week announced special programming Saturday and all summer at Jay Cooke State Park as it celebrates the 100th year since the creation of the swinging bridge over the St. Louis River there....
The Brule-St. Croix Chapter of the North Country Trail Association celebrated on June 1 the completion of the new State Line Trailhead and new segment southeast of Wrenshall off the Military Road. Speakers, a ribbon cutting, and guided hikes marked the occasion. U.S. Senator Tina Smith was there to help cut the ribbon, along with Carlton County land commissioner Mark Westphal, former land commissioner Greg Bernu, Superior Hiking Trail Association executive director Lisa Luokkala, and leaders...
The Minnesota Fishing Challenge is one of the largest fundraisers supporting the work of Minnesota Adult & Teen Challenge, helping people break free from the chains of addiction and restoring broken families. Top fundraisers Stu Nelson and Rich Brummer of Cloquet are passionate about restoring the lives of people who feel enslaved by drugs and alcohol, and brought in $102,000. In all, 14 of the teams raised at least $10,000. Anglers set another annual record by raising more than $611,000. The cu...
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is beginning a new three-year research project in northeastern Minnesota to gather additional data on deer populations. The DNR will place cameras on public and private lands to gather additional deer density data in deer permit areas in portions of Cass, Beltrami, Itasca, Hubbard and St. Louis counties. Traditional deer population modeling relies heavily on hunter harvest data. This project will provide additional data to increase confidence in making harvest decisions in the study area. The data...
Celebrate the new State Line Trailhead grand opening event Saturday at 6 County Road 4 in Wrenshall. Light refreshments will be available at 9 a.m. and the program and ribbon cutting begins at 10 a.m. Hikes ranging from one to three miles in length will depart from the trailhead following the presentation. Those interested in the three-mile hike are asked to park at the Wild Valley Trailhead on Bandle Road in Wrenshall. Shuttles will be provided to the State Line Trailhead. The North Country National Scenic Trail stretches 4,800 miles across...
Carlton SWCD hosts one of the largest native plant sales in the region, and this year is no exception, with over 300 orders already. We are so proud of all the people actively creating important native habitats. This year we are keeping the pollinator momentum going by combining the fifth annual native plant and seed pickup day with a new Pollinator Powerhouse event in June. It will be the grand finale of national pollinator month and will run in conjunction with our plant pickup from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, June 28 at the Carlton County...
Photographer Kalin Kauppila shared this adorable owlet photo earlier this month. His family has a pair of Barred Owls that nest on their land in the Blackhoof area, using a nest box his father built over the past couple years. "This is the first time I was able to get a good shot of an owlet emerging from the box (new lens last year)," Kauppila wrote. "As I was leaving, the mom came back into the area and was giving some warning calls to me and/or the baby. To my surprise a second baby popped...
