Pine Knot News - A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news

My phone rang just late enough to make me nervous that something was wrong. I was right. My brother, Bruce, had fallen from his deer stand. He was in the emergency room. My heart raced. My mind...

Back to reality. The Baker household held tightly onto summer for as long as possible. But with two kids in middle school, one in high school, another off to college, and both parents teaching,...

I have a little secret my wife and kids already know. Sometimes, I have no idea what I'm doing. The last couple of weeks on the water, I've been making it up as I go. Some trips have worked out,...

My wife, Jamie, loves to put her fall decorations out at the first sign of autumn. A couple of cold mornings triggers her to journey to the recesses of our basement in search of her stash of...

We loaded the Suburban with most of the Baker crew plus an omnipresent extra child, and headed north. The big blue Lund stared back at us in confusion as we pulled away — it would remain unhitched f...

You can still find birds in August. They're not as noisy and easy to spot as in April or May and during fall's migration. They've found their mates - the goal of the glorious singing they treat us to...

The fog rolled across the surface of the water as we slid Keith Nelson's Alumacraft into the coffee-colored waters of Big Sandy Lake. I relegated myself to the back deck of his boat. I was here to...

One of the most important things a person can do in their life is to find their passion. Some people spend years experimenting and seeking out their passion, while a lucky few find what they are passi...

Stretching out in front of us, dozens of boats jostled for position, awaiting blastoff. My oldest son, Joseph, and I tucked into the back of the pack; based on the 200-300 horsepower motors...

Somewhere deep in the Colorado Rockies is an unnamed gravel road that twists and turns on its way up past little-known Grayback Mountain. Indiana Pass crests at 11,910 feet right on this road, and...

Over the years I've fished them all. Collectively referred to as the "big four" reservoirs north of Duluth, they include Wild Rice, Fish, Island and Boulder. They all have their own personalities, and...

The freshly fried walleyes had barely hit the cake pan when they were scooped up by the masses gathered around our picnic table. A Baker fish fry was in full swing. In all, 25 friends and family...

The week started with a real emergency around the Baker household. Phoenix, our resident gecko, was out of food. Normally, we would run to Duluth and pick him up some crickets or tasty mealworms. It...

I have always had an eye on the old sheds sitting in the meadow at North Cloquet Road and Midway Road. They are so photogenic in different lights each day. So, with the camera in the car and tooling...

Our anchor tethered us to the rocks below. The current ripped underneath our bow and poured out the backside of the Lund. I threaded half a crawler onto my orange jig and plopped it over the transom....

I half-walked, half-skipped to my truck. I had just polished off my second week of teaching summer school. Much like the fish I’ve been chasing, I’m transitioning to my summer pattern. In the...

Pollinators are key to Minnesota's environmental health. Without them, we wouldn't have some of our favorite foods. They are vital to a healthy environment. They're also beautiful and fascinating to...