Stepping Outdoors With Craig

This past fall the U.S. Forest Service made the announcement they were getting rid of the lottery process for Boundary Water Canoe Area Wilderness. Instead those wanting to travel into the BWCAW, can now go to a website and see what is available and make their selection for a permit. So it's first come first serve and permits are availble now. Actually I did a little spot checking for some summer dates at various entry points and it looks like permits are plentiful now. So if your thinking of a trip into the Boundary Waters this summer, now is a great time to secure your permits. You can do that here.

Friday night the annual kick off event for the Hibbing Winter Frolic will take place! This year's luminary ski was of course in question because of the lack of snow. However the recent snowfalls have given us just enough to ski the Black Forest Loop at Carey Lake. The evening is expected to be mild, so bring the family and come out for a bon fire, cookies and cider. Skiing gets underway at 6 p.m. along the lit ski trail, beginning at the first parking area. Below is a current snapshot of the Carey Lake ski trails. Be aware the trail doesn't all look like this and there are some rough spots, and I won't be skiing with my best skis.

See you Friday night at 6!

Over this past weekend I went searching for winter and I found it! After years of threatening to go ski in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, I finally did. The snow is there, as are the cross country skiers, downhill skiers, snowboarders, and snowmobilies. However that is not to say things are crowded, just busy with a lot of happy faces enjoying the snow. I started out skiing a small donation only ski trail called Miljes, which doesn't have a lot of miles of trails yet but has some good plans for expansion. They did, however, have snow as you can see.

Next up was the Legendary ABR, widely known among cross country skiers as a place for early and abundant snow. While this was the busiest place I skied, with 66K of trail you can quickly find yourself all alone on the trail. Top notch grooming is another thing ABR is well known for and I was not disappointed.

Wolverine Nordic calls themselves the Mountains of the Midwest, and they do have some challenging trails. Which includes working your way to the base of a ski jump and to the top of Big Powderhorn downhill ski area. It also snowed a lot while I was in the UP, but the sun did come out at Wolverine for the afternoon.

So if your looking for winter it's not far away. Only about a 3.5 hour drive to Ironwood and you will have plenty of snow to play in. I found a good reasonable ski package at the Indianhead Motel, and look forward to going back again for more skiing soon.

I've know about a certain website for a few years now, but I haven't bothered to spend much time on it. But now they have an App, and I'll admit I'm addicted! They post an item with a time limit and number of the items remaining and with a click you can make a purchase. Here's a screen shot of a recent "steal":

Steep and Cheap sells outdoor related goods, everything from the above latern to name brand clothing. And there prices are usually pretty good. So now that they have an app, I'm checking in several times a day just to see what the latest "steal" is. I'll haven't bought anything....yet. But it's probably only a matter of time. Check it out, but warning it could be habit forming!

Sure many of you are enjoying what is passing for winter this year, but there are a few of us that definitely are not! Winter is the time of year I look forward to all year. Yep even in the middle of summer I can be found day dreaming about a freshly groomed cross country ski trail. Here's a photo comparison: First last year skiing at Sugarbush:

Now here is what we are skiing on this year, and this is after our "BIG" snow this week:

Things have gotten so bad shoveling parties are being organized starting today at Theodore Wirth Park in Minneapolis for this weekends big City of the Lakes Loppet ski race! Sorry winter haters, but we need more snow!

Well Double J and I were at the Governor's Fishing Opener in Grand Rapids, and early Saturday morning found ourselves out on Pokegama Lake. Now if it had not been for the knowledge of our fishing host, Rob Hamling, we would certainly not have caught as many fish as we did. As we found out at the shore lunch most of the fish in Pokegama were not cooperating on the cold at times wet morning. In fact walleyes were very hard to find with only about 4 being caught, and again thanks to our host, I was able to catch one of them.

Northerns were a bit easier to come by, but they were not jumping in the boat by any means either. Justin reeled in one of the northern, and we rounded out our fish catching with a few perch.

A big thanks to Grand Rapids and all the volunteers that put on a very fun and successful event. From the golf outing at Pokegama Golf Course, to the Community Picnic, to the celebration dinner; it was one very well run event.

Cross country skiing is a mostly solitary sport, which is one of the reasons it appeals to so many of us. But every once in a while you meet someone out on the trail that has an interesting story to tell. The other day I was skiing the Cowhorn Lake trail near Grand Rapids when my friend and I began to notice little piles of bird seed along the trail. Eventually we caught up with the Birdman of Cowhorn Lake who was feeding the birds, and he told us there was a spot coming up you could feed them out of your hand. Curious we agreed to ski ahead and meet up with him at the spot he mentioned. We arrived first and all was quiet, then he skied up and whistled a couple of times and there were at least 15 chickadees and nuthatches on the scene. In less than a minute I had birds using my hand like a bird feeder! Now that’s a great day out on the ski trails!

Okay, so I realize that headline is not going to get a lot of support. However, I do have a case to plead. Now I'm not looking for the amount of snow the Twin Cities got over the past couple of days. 19 inches is just a bit of overkill, but a good 4 to 6 sure would be nice. My point is, we still have a lot of winter left to enjoy, so lets do it with snow. That is the only good thing about winter; it's not the cold! This Snow eagle was part of a winter celebration at Scenic State Park over the weekend. 

Last week's meltdown was not good for the area trails! Snowmobile trails are looking thinner, and I can say first hand the ski trails have been come rock hard and icy. So really it wouldn't be such a big deal if we got a few more inches? Come on, who's with me....anyone...anyone...hello??

Spent some time on the North Shore recently, and of course this time of year that means skiing! Explored both Split Rock and Gooseberry State parks on skis. While I have skied at Gooseberry before this time we hit the trails down closer to the lake. Often snow conditions do not allow for close skiing to Lake Superior, but this year there is plenty of snow down along the water. Split Rock allowed the better views of the lake, since much of their cross country ski trails run right along the rugged shoreline of Lake Superior.

Split Rock also had plenty of deer along the trail, and while they wouldn't pose for any photos they were abundant. Rounding out the weekend was a great fun place to stay. Northern Rails just north of Two Harbors is a hotel made out of ten railroad train cars. Now once you are inside, you would never know you are in a train car, but in the hall and from the outside it is a pretty cool place.

More proof you don't have to venture too far from home to find some great things to see and do in a Northern Minnesota Winter. Here is one more view of Lake Superior, while standing on the Split Rock ski trails.

It is all about being in the right place at the right time. And ever since I have started Cross Country skiing, I have wanted to view a Moose while on my skis.

Well, it still hasn't happened! I just recently skied the Stoney Ridge Trail north of Nashwauk, but I didn't see anything except a few birds. Now I did see plenty of tracks and there were a few I suspected were made by a Moose. But it was skier Bob Conzemius, that got these shots from the trail.

So if you ski the Stoney Ridge Trail, or any trail for that matter, keep your eyes open you just never know what you'll see!

"Get out there!" That would be the best way to sum up this cross country ski season. The conditions are fantastic all across the area, and in most areas of the state. I recently talked to a guy at an area ski trail that has not been out skiing in over 30 years. He was thrilled to be back out and enjoying such great scenery. If you have never tried skiing, now is the year to give it a shot. Skis are available for rent through Hibbing Parks and Recreation as well as other places. With the amount of snow we have received this year, great ski conditions should continue into early March. And all tha snow has created one of the most scenic years to ski in a long time. Here is shot from McCarthy Beach State Park on the Red Top Trail.

Notice the nice snow depth and also the nicely groomed trail. There are numerous trails from Virginia to Grand Rapids to get out and explore, and if you want to travel farther you can find many places to ski. Below is from a trail I skied last month in Bemidji, Three Island Park, where the trail follows stretches of the Turtle River.

A lot of trails, and a lot of snow. Go skiing today and send me some of your ski pictures and trail recomendations.

The cross country ski season is underway for the season, with one of the earlier starts we have had in many years. It has always been my thought, if you can ski by Thanksgiving you will have a great snow year. However it has been a long time in which there has been skiable snow by then, like we have had this year.

Grooming efforts are just getting underway in the Northland, and the places with the earliest groomed conditions have attracted the skiers. I spent this past Saturday up at Giants Ridge, which had over 40 kilometers groomed and ready to go. While some of the trails were still in early season condition, with some brush and weeds poking through, a lot of the trail system was in mid-winter shape. With some of the best groomed trails around this early, they drew skiers from all over the Northland and the Twin Cities. While the cross country trails were maybe a bit busier than normal, I still went many kilometers without ever seeing anyone, which for many of is one of the big draws of the sport.

If you have been waiting for a chance to get out and try cross country skiing, make this the year. Conditions are improving daily, and it is an activity that you can do at your own pace. We are fortunate to live in an area that has many quality trails to choose from, and most all trail systems have a loop or two suitable for beginners. Many places also rent equipment, including Hibbing Parks and Recreation.