2011 Potpourri

During the past year Cristin and I have visited some outstanding outdoor locations that never made it into a previous blog post so here is a round-up of some of them.



The Grand Marais harbor on Lake Superior.

Pittsburgh, PA

On the last weekend of October, Cristin and I visited her hometown of Pittsburgh.  We timed our trip so we could take in a Steeler's game.  Pittsburgh is at the Three Rivers confluence, where the Allegheny R. and Monongahela R. join to form the Ohio R.   The land area between the converging tributaries at the confluence is known as  the "Point" and was a strategic western location early in our nation's history and played a key role in the start of the French and Indian Wars; George Washington slept here :)  This area is now downtown Pittsburgh. 

We saw the Steelers play their nemesis the New England Patriots and Tom Brady at Heinz Field on a cool and pleasant Sunday late afternoon. The Steelers won 25-17 in an exciting, dramatic game. The victory resulted in the Steelers having the best record in the AFC.

Steeler's Girl #82

View from our seats at Heinz Field. Wow! 

Enjoying a post-victory dance-off at Redbeard's Bar and Grill in Mt. Washington.

The nightime view from Mt. Washington with Heinz Field still lit up after the game. 

A view of the Three Rivers confluence, the 'Point', and Heinz Field
from Mt. Washington.

We took the Monongahela Incline up to Mt. Washington.
 A unique and useful feature of the Pittsburgh public transit system!

We also had some time earlier in the weekend for an out-of-town excursion to tour Frank Loyd Wright's famous Fallingwater and a short hike at Ohiopyle State Park.

Fallingwater is built over a waterfall on Bear Run Creek.

Cucumber Falls at Ohiopyle State Park.

The Youghiogheny River Gorge, nicknamed the 'Yough',  is a whitewater
recreational paradise. 

Sandhill Cranes at Crex Meadows, Wisconsin

On Saturday October 22,  Cristin and I drove to Crex Meadows Wildlife Area near Grantsburg, Wisconsin, about 70 miles from the Twin Cities,  to check out the sandhill cranes, which are at peak numbers this time of year.  I have been to Crex many times and this trip was by far the best ever.  The cranes spend the evenings in the refugee, fly out in the morning to feed in nearby farm fields, and return en mass around sunset.    The Refuge is an area within Crex Meadows in which no access is provided or allowed. The best viewing is on the roads that surround the Refuge. We arrived about 5PM, drove around the refugee, and realized the south perimeter along Main Dike Road provided the best viewing.  Many others were there to witness this natural wonder under clear skies and temperatures falling from the 50's.  We saw thousands and thousands of cranes, arriving in endless waves in flocks of various numbers - from 2-3 to 50-100.  The call of the sandhill crane is a unique chortle and once heard, is never forgotten.
 

Click below for more pictures. The skies were filled with cranes; the black spots of various sizes are cranes at various distances.  Click on pictures to enlarge.

The Best of Times: Fall in Minnesota

 St. Croix River in Stillwater tour with Cristin and her parents.

 My favorite time of the year is September and October.  The heat and humidity of the summer gives way to  sunny and comfortable days and cool nights;  the bugs die off, and the fall colors emerge.  This September was memorable for being the driest ever, which is a mixed blessing: not so great for natural resources and agriculture  but good for outdoor activities!!    Below are pictures from some of this fall's fun and adventure.

Quetico's Cache Bay Pictographs

On our August 2011 trip to Quetico, Cristin and I sought out and found the Cache Bay pictographs, located a bit off the beaten path in a dead-end bay on the west side of Cache Bay.  Please see the companion blog "Quetico" for more on our whirlwind Quetico trip.  See also a description of our epic snowshoe hike in January 2011 to the Hegman Lake Pictographs in the BWCA.

Quetico

Sunday, August 28, 2011: Straddling the international border
between Ontario (left) and Minnesota (right) on Lake Saganaga

Cristin and I made a whirlwind 3 day trip to Quetico Provincial Park in Ontario the last weekend of August. Quetico is the Canadian equivalent of the Boundary Water Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) in Minnesota, a pristine canoe wilderness full of nothing but lakes and rivers, rocks and trees.  Both Quetico and the BWCA are about 1 million acres but Quetico has about 1/10th the number of visitors each year, making it a much more remote experience.

Cristin's goal was a trip to Quetico that included waterfalls, pictographs, lots of paddling, a great campsite, and complete solitude - all in 3 days and 2 nights!  The challenge was on.

Day 1 Paddle Route (dashed line)

Biking the Stower Seven Lakes Trail in Wisconsin

Today I decided to check out this 13-mile crushed linestone state trail between Dresser and Amery, Wisconsin.  It was recently featured in Midwest Weekends.  Click here for trail information from the Wisconsin DNR.

The Stower Seven Lakes Trail and North Twin Lake in Amery