UpNorthica

As Minnesota commemorates its Sesquicentennial, it’s great to see a number of the celebrations are in the best places our state has: the Outdoors.

On June 1st, for example, day admission to all state parks will be free, as they host the “Great Minnesota Picnic.” The aim is to encourage folks to bring their picnic lunch, perhaps even to state parks less-familiar to them. Overnight rates will remain in effect, so plan ahead and make reservations if you want to camp out.

Here’s a short list of state parks are high on our recommended list. If by some odd chance, you’ve never been to one of them, now’s a great time:
Temperance River
Judge C.R. Magney
Cuyuna Country
Cascade River
Afton

These photos made me smile. A family in Alaska had only assembled their backyard playset the night before they spied these bears breaking in the new equipment.

This is exactly why the idea of ‘fun-looking’ family tents like REI’s Hobitat 4, worries me just a tad. I’ll stick with plain and utilitarian, thank you.

via Treehugger.

The thirty acres of preserved landscape on Burntside Lake in Ely, was originally a personal retreat for Olson. He named the land Listening Point, “…because only when one comes to listen, only when one is aware and still, can things be seen and heard.” Though the revered author died in 1982, The Listening Point Foundation continues his legacy of wilderness education, and makes the original property available for visits. It’s good to see it acknowledged as the piece of history that it is.

Last Mother’s Day, I packed my wife in a boat and sent her down the river.

I didn’t buy any presents. There were no flowers or truffles, no pomegranate-clove scented facial scrubs in a gift bag with curlicue paper confetti; not this time. Instead, I launched her and her kayak into a half-day’s worth of solitude and quietude, with only the company of Nature. She loved it.

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We all have our favorite tents, whose designers have that first-hand knowledge of what makes a good tent. But who’s better-suited to make these temporary housing structures: Outdoorsy gear-designers, or disciplined architects?

We found an interesting discussion here, on where architecture does and doesn’t, should and shouldn’t, cross over into the design of tents and alpine porta-ledges.
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Here’s a good technique for splitting wood if all you have is a knife. Still, I wouldn’t try it with a Leatherman…

via Uncooped.

Researchers are studying the uncanny metabolism of Iditarod sled dogs, whose endurance among other creatures on Earth is almost unparalleled. In learning how the dogs can alter their own metabolism to “switch off” fatigue, the scientists hope to find a similar way for humans to better their endurance as well.

Me, if I had to eat semi-frozen Alpo for days on end, I’d find a way to switch off my metabolism, real quick too.

via Outside.

Probation to nine months’ jailtime for three of the BWCA shooters: Long enough? Not likely.

Three-year period in which they’re banned from entering the BWCA: Long enough? Thirty would be too short.

An upcoming weekend of hiking the Superior Hiking Trail has me prepping my gameplan for footwear. And how to deal with blisters, if and when I get them. Typically, we’ve found that the moleskin remedy does pretty well. Today though, I came across Band-Aid’s Blister Block stick, which is applied over blisters. Judging from the buzz, people are going apey over the stuff like they did when Magic Erasers came out for housecleaning. Anyone out there in UpNorthica tried this Blister Block? Opinions?

The 2nd Kettle River Paddlefest was held at Banning State Park this weekend. In addition to the kayak race and several paddling (even paddle-making) workshops, folks were treated to a River Rodeo. Which was basically people doing tricks with their kayaks in the rapids, but cool nonetheless. In case you missed the fun, the video here captures a daring young feller taking the Wolf Creek Falls.

Seeing this photo reminds me of about a hundred perfect moments I’ve had in the BWCA.

If you’re planning on doing some fishing across the border on your next canoe trip, be aware of the new regulations that came into effect this past January. The use of barbed hooks, live bait and formerly live bait are now banned. Barbless hooks reduce the damage done by a hook and lower the mortality rate of fish. Barbed hooks may be present in you tackle box; just not on your line. Crushing the barbs to make them flush with the shaft of the hook is acceptable. Live and formerly live bait are banned to prevent the introduction or spread of non-native species. Yes, this means artificial bait only. A ban on the use of lead, while planned, did not happen this time.

The ban is outlined on the Quetico Parks page and more in-depth information is available on the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources website.

Necky has begun to produce several lengths of their ‘08 Manitou kayaks, using 100% post-industrial plastic. Better still, according to their site, these materials have stronger properties than their standard Manitou models. Awesome!

I also like that 1% of their gross sales are donated to the Waterkeeper Alliance, a non-profit that works to preserve our watersheds.

Via Treehugger.

In the weeks before our family trips to the BWCA, my dad used to warm up by portaging our canoe around the block. This wasn’t a bad idea, or even uncommon today. But the thing isn’t exactly street legal and it’s hard to hand-signal your turns.

So, earlier this year, I asked a trainer at my fitness club to customize a workout routine for paddlers. In addition to cardio stuff like my runs, I wanted one to improve tone and balance for lifting, portaging, hiking and of course, paddling. After a month or so at it, I can say it feels Good In A Painful Way. I’ve posted the workout here, on a site called Gimme20.com. The free site allows you to subscribe to, print off workout sheets, as well as track your progress over time. And of course, it has a big social networking spin on it. So when you’re not actually paddling, here’s a focused workout that should at least keep your fitness treading water.

Honestly, I swear: I do not own a single piece of cheesy log furniture. But these Wooden USB Memory Sticks are pretty sweet. Each is made with a unique, hand-picked stick, with up to 2GB storage. And obviously, they look great plugged into both Macs and PCs. Might not look so hot, stuck in your pocket though… buyer, beware.