Blackflys 1 Fashion 0

Last Christmas I received a number of different items from my family in anticipation of spending my summer working in the boundary waters. These items ranged from tents and maps to sleeping blankets and water-bottles. One item that I received made me roll my eyes and sarcastically say that I never thought I would use the item as it represents a major fashion faux pas...this item of course is the horrific bug head net!

Bug Head Net: a major fashion faux pas

About a week ago here on the Gunflint Trail there was a major hatch of the dreaded black flies! While myself and other staff members armed ourselves with long sleeve shirts, pants, hats, and glasses and fought back valiantly with liberal amounts of bug spray and other long-shot remedies, ultimately our efforts were for naught as the black flies continued to grow in number and thereby were able to eventually overwhelm us by being a general nuisance that drove us to the brink of insanity and consequently threatened to bring our work to standstill. Thus several of us, myself included, in our desperation have brought out our secret weapon against these bugs.

I would like to tell you that when I wear the headnet I make it look good, but that would be like telling you that socks and sandals are a good combination....and we all know that is far from the truth (no matter how much certain fathers protest). As a result you will not find any photos of me wearing a headnet on this blog, instead you will just have to make due with the displayed google image rendition.

On the bright side we have projected lows of 28 and 22 degrees the next too nights, and while that is not great news when you live in an unheated dorm room without any type of insulation, it means the bugs may succumb to the cold and we could be granted a reprieve from their reign of terror, thus allowing us to put this embarrassing fashion trend behind us (for at least the time being).

Wildlife & Sunsets

Living and working on the Gunflint trail in Northern Minnesota can be a lot of hard work and not the greatest living accomodations, but if you do not mind roughing it (and I definitely do not) it has some great benefits! In particular I have seem some great wildlife and sunsets during my first week at Tuscarora.

On my way up to Tuscarora a week ago I mentioned to my parents how in all my time in the BWCA, in the Chippewa National Forest by our family cabin, and then our trip to Alaska I have never seen a moose in the wild. Not only did we end up seeing one by the road about 2 mins later, but over the next week I saw moose on seven different occasions! At this point it is basically a daily occurrence. Other wild life sightings include tons of grouse, foxes, & deer. A staff friend of mine has also seen several bears in the area as well.

In addition to the wildlife there has been no shortage of brilliantly colored sunsets. Me and a friend have started meeting up every night on the dock to watch the sun go down, and we are rarely disappointed. Below are some pictures of wild life and sunsets that I have taken during my first week up here, enjoy!










No doubt there will be many more wildlife and sunsets to come, all of which I am looking forward to. Today I have my first day off and am spending it in the roaring metropolis of Grand Marais hanging out and getting some random odds and ends. I am currently in the process of getting a season pass to the BWCA (you need permits to go in) and from here on out plan to spend many of my days off doing overnight trips to various lakes, trails, and places in the BWCA.

1 Week

Just one week till I arrive at Tuscarora, and despite the numerous rumors to the contrary it looks like spring may have finally made an appearance on the Gunflint Trail! Hopefully it will stick around...

Picture from Tuscarora's Blog (click to see more photos of spring)