National Parks and Voyageurs in the Spotlight
With National Parks getting a lot of attention these days, Minnesota Public Radio took a close look at the past, present, and future of Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota’s only National Park.
Parks & Regions
Invasive Mussels Found Near Isle Royale
A colony of non-native mussels has been found in Isle Royale National Park’s Washington Harbor, park officials revealed yesterday. The discovery raises concern over the island park’s large native mussel populations.
City to Build Voyageur’s Park Headquarters
In a city-park partnership that would have been unthinkable a decade ago, plans are set for the city of International Falls to construct a headquarters building for Voyageurs National Park. The city intends the building to be the starting point for a multifaceted recreational development.
Groups Request More Action to Reduce Haze in National Park and Wilderness Areas
Last week several environmental groups asked federal agencies and the state of Minnesota to take a more active role in preventing air pollution that contributes to haze over Voyageurs and Isle Royale National Parks and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
Quetico Visitor Numbers Down Again
Despite 100th anniversary activities, the number of people visiting Quetico Provincial Park is down some 10% this year. It’s the second straight year that Quetico visitor numbers have declined.
Voyageurs Plans Burn for Thursday
Voyageurs National Park officials plan to burn an area on Tar Point near Blind Indian Narrows in Namakan Lake Thursday. The burn is intended to help determine what effect fire has on archeological artifacts and help determine the effects of fire on vegetation.
McGuffins Release Quetico: Into the Wild
The celebration of Quetico Provincial Park’s 100th Anniversary continues … in book form! Renowned nature photographers Gary and Joanie McGuffin have produced Quetico: Into the Wild after nearly three years of photographic and paddle-and-portage effort.
Grand Portage Rendezvous This Weekend
In a comemoration of the great mid-summer rendezvous of the fur trade era, Grand Portage National Monument will host the 2009 Rendezvous Days and Pow Wow starting this Friday.
Friends of the Quetico Celebrates 25 Years
It’s the 100th aniversary of Quetico Provincial Park this year, but 2009 is also the 25th birthday for the Friends of Quetico Park, an organization whose objective is “the preservation of Quetico Provincial Park as a unique wilderness area.”
Grand Portage State Park Closed Weekdays
Grand Portage State Park will only be open on weekends until mid-August, due to site preparation work for a new 5800 square foot visitor center. The park will be open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, but parking will be limited.
Guns in Voyageurs: Not Yet
A law passed in May that will allow loaded firearms in Voyageurs and other national parks is not in effect yet. That’s the message Voyaguers officials are spreading, noting that the law doesn’t take effect until February 22, 2010.
New Book Celebrates 100 Years of Quetico
Thunder Bay author Jon Nelson has published a new book celebrating the people and history of Quetico Provincial Park.
Paddlers Celebrate 100th for Quetico, Superior
A paddling expedition that pushed off yesterday is celebrating the 100th birthdays of the Superior National Forest and Quetico Provincial Park. Representatives of the Heart of the Continent Partnership will paddle a 24-foot voyageur canoe across the region.
Island Life Author to Speak at Voyageurs
Ted Gostomski, the co-author of Island Life: An Isle Royale Nature Guide and a Biologist/Science Writer at the Great Lakes Inventory and Monitoring Program of the National Park Service, will speak on Friday at Voyaguers National Park in International Falls.
Fee-Free Weekends at Grand Portage National Monument
Visit Grand Portage National Monument this weekend—for free! The National Park Service is offering three free weekends at sites across the country this summer.
Quetico Provincial Park Sturgeon Study Receives Funding
Canada’s Ministry of Natural Resources is funding a new study of the sturgeon population in Quetico Provincial Park. Once abundant, the sturgeon is now considered a “species at risk.”
Report: State Sweetened Vermilion Park Deal
The Minneapolis Star-Tribune is reporting that the State of Minnesota looked for ways to sweeten the deal for U.S. Steel to sell land to the state for a state park on Lake Vermilion. The paper questions whether laws were skirted to procure land for the park strongly supported by Governor Tim Pawlenty.
Namakan Sturgeon Study Enters Third Year
A study examining the health of the Namakan Reservoir’s sturgeon population has entered its third year. The study, which could have an impact on proposed hydroelectric projects on Ontario’s Namakan River, seeks to establish baseline information on health of the species of “special concern” in both Minnesota and Ontario.
Loaded Guns to be Allowed in National Parks
A new bill will allow park visitors to carry loaded rifles, shotguns, and semi-automatic weapons in National Parks, including Voyageurs National Park in International Falls.
2009 Superior National Forest Prescribed Burn Plan
The US Forest Service recently released its Superior National Forest Prescribed Burn plan for 2009, including several locations in the Gunflint and Tofte Ranger Districts.