Ely Winter Times 2017

Ely

Š Jason Mandich

Winter Times

2017-2018

CONTENTS Day on a Dogsled Husky for Your Family?

Ely: A Hot Spot for Pots Dining Guide Thoughts While Skiing Goods and Services Guide Ely Area Maps Spiritual Gatherings

4 12 13 19 22 26 27 31

Business Opportunities Bigfoot in the Northwoods January Pouting The First Snowmobiles Books for Blizzards Ely Area Calendar 100+ Community Donations Arts Resources & Galleries

32 34 35 39 45 49 54 55

Cover: “Snowshoe Repair” from Root River Photography. See pg 34 for info about hares.

For a subscription within the US, send check or money order for $8.00 or order at our website, www.ravenwords.com. Archived articles can be found there. © 2017 Raven Productions Inc.

© Heidi Pinkerton RootRiverPhotography.com

The Ely Summer and Winter Times is published twice a year by Raven Productions, Inc. For editorial information or advertising rates, contact us at PO Box 188, Ely, MN 55731, 218-365-3375.

3

© Theo Theobald

Day on a Dogsled It’s 6:30 am on a January morning.

Granite, the sled dog, pulls his tail away from his nose to look over the dog yard in hopes that his human is bringing soup.

Chris, a dogsledding guide and Granite’s human for the season, has just arrived at the mushers’ shed and is mixing up 10 gallons of nutritious mink-and-minerals slop to ensure the dogs are well hydrated for a day of pulling sleds. Jane, Jeff, Jess, and Jo are at Britton’s Cafe scarfing down a high-calorie breakfast per Chris’s instructions, in hopes of

4

White Wilderness teams on the trail staying warm for their first-time dogsledding adventure.

GRANITE(GR): I smell it! Is it soup yet?!

So exciting!! Everyone else is excited too!

I just have to jump and pull! What a day!!

WHAT A DAY!!! AhhhOooo!! Yip! Yip! AHHHHOOOOooooo!!

Chris the Guide (CG): Where do those dogs get all that energy first thing in the morning? (Yawn...) OK. Time to scoop poop and serve soup. I’m out the door.

Jane, Jeff, Jess, and Jo (Js): We could eat bacon and pancakes every day if we

The Ely Winter Times

were mushers. I wonder if I have enough layers on. It’s well below zero and I’m kinda wimpy when it comes to cold and snow. I love dogs, and this looked like so much fun on the Facebook page. But just standing on those sled runners could be cold. Well, we can trade off sitting in the sled wrapped in a sleeping bag. That should be cozy. And the woods will be beautiful with all this fresh snow.

At 8:15 the Js pull into the kennel area where Chris has three sleds ready to set up. Granite is playing Can’t-CatchMy-Tail with his neighbor, Gabbro, while Greenstone looks on. These two-year-old dogs are from a litter with rock names.

Another litter mate, Slate, is in training to be a lead dog because she is smart and mostly well-behaved. Two more mature dogs make up their team: Birch is an experienced lead dog helping to train Slate, and Aspen is in wheel because he is big and strong. As Chris welcomes the Js and leads them to the sleds, the dogs realize some of them will be going out today and all 60 of them begin to bark and lunge against their tethers in an 2017-2018

excited frenzy.

Js: Whoa! I knew they had a lot of dogs, but this is wild. And noisy. How do they ever get them hitched to a sled?

CG: All set? We have a lot to learn before we hook up, so gather around.

GR: Yip! Yelp! RahrRahrRahr!!

Chris holds out what looks to be a mishmash of nylon rope and a variety of hardware. Jess takes the big carabiner that’s on one end to the front of the sled and Jo stretches the other end out. Chris explains that this is the gangline, with a center line attached to the sled, pairs of tug lines that attach to the back end of

© Chilly Dogs Sled Dog Trips

5

steering and managing the team a bigger challenge.

CG: The main thing to remember when you’re driving the sled is not to let any slack occur in the gangline.

Js: How do you prevent that?

CG: Use the brake.

Js: There’s a brake?

CG: See that flap of black rubber between the sled runners where you stand? That’s a brake to add drag to the sled and slow it down. It won’t stop the sled with a 6-dog team, but they’ll slow

© Kahsha Hyde

the dogs’ harnesses, and neck lines that attach to the dogs’ collars. There are two wheel dogs closest to the sled, usually the biggest and strongest dogs, because they exert the most forward power. The lead dog is in front, and often two lead dogs are paired up. Behind the lead dogs are two point dogs who, when they are well-trained, help steer so that the sled doesn’t cut corners and run into a tree or toss off the musher in deep snow. Dogs between the wheel dogs and point dogs are team dogs, adding power but making

A portion of the dog yard at White Wilderness 6

The Ely Winter Times

© Kahsha Hyde

Most dogs are cooperative when getting their harness on. down when they feel the extra resistance.

When you step on the bar above the rubber, it has teeth that will dig into the snow and stop the sled. The dogs know the command “Whoa,” but only in the context of feeling the extra drag that the brake creates. And sometimes, like when they’ve just taken off or if they see a squirrel, they may ignore you.

Js: So we just stand on the runners when we’re going and on the brake when we want to stop, right?

CG: Not quite. Standing on the runners is kind of like standing on skis while you’re going downhill. It’s more than standing.

You need to stay loose and move with the

2017-2018

sled, leaning hard away from anything you don’t want to hit, like trees, rocks, or people. And you just put a foot on the brake, like driving a car.

GR: Will they ever be ready? Will I get to go? Guess I’ll just curl up and take a nap.

CG: The lead dogs know the commands “Gee” for right, and “Haw” for left. We don’t use the command “Mush” like you see in the movies. They don’t really need a word for “Let’s go,” but we may say it anyway. Once they feel some slack in the line, they’re off. We may say “Hup, Hup” to encourage them to go faster or pull harder if they slack off.

Chris gives a few more instructions then demonstrates putting a harness on a dog, points out the dogs on the three teams they’ll be taking, and orders the Js to make a final potty visit and check that their belongings are on the sled. Then out come the harnesses. The dog yard goes wild again with every dog barking in their excitement to be chosen.

Js: OMG! This is nuts! We’d better hurry or they’ll all have heart attacks. Or we will. Yikes! What are we getting into?!

GR: Yay! Me! Choose me!! I want to go!!

RahhrRahhrRahhr! WoofWoof!! Me! Me!

7

Three happy Wintergreen dogs CG: Ahh, yes. Another nice day for dogsledding. And these seem like good people who’ll have this down after the first hour or two. This is a great job.

With the dogs straining at their chains and creating an enormous ruckus, it’s hard for the inexperienced to stay calm and focus on what needs to be done. But eventually, with Chris and another dog yard helper lending a hand, three teams of dogs are hooked up to the sleds. Chris is in the lead so that if anyone behind loses a sled, the dogs might stop when they catch up. Or not...

The adult Js are driving the other two sleds with the kids bundled up and riding.

At last they are ready to go.

GR: We’re going to go now! I just know it!

Now!! Well, now!!! NOW!!! I can’t wait any longer! RaahhrrRaahhrrr! Yip! Yip!! Yip!!!

Maybe I’ll just bite Gabbro’s ear to help him calm down. No wait! We’re going now! NOW!!!!

Js: OMG! This is going to be fun. What if we tip over? What if I do something wrong? What if there’s slack in the gangline? Oh yeah, just step on the brake. And yell if we lose the team so

Launching from the Wintergreen kennel 8

The Ely Winter Times

Chris knows they’re coming. And run to catch up so Chris doesn’t have to hold two teams, which seems entirely impossible. OK. NOW!!!

CG: Here we go! NOW!!!

The dogs leap ahead. No slack ganglines here. And luckily, or through someone’s good planning, no corners or downhills for the first half mile. There is sudden quiet as the dogs put all their energy into running and pulling, so happy to be out doing what they love to do. Sled dogs love to pull like retrievers like to chase balls and shepherds like to corral everything. It’s what they live for.

The miles slip by under snowy pines and across wilderness lakes as the adult Js realize that dogsledding is a much more active sport than they had imagined. Soon layers are coming off as they lean, pedal, run up the hills, and occasionally get bumped off the runners for a few steps. Tired after an hour, and with the kids impatient for a turn to drive, they stop their sleds to switch places.

The dogs, nowhere near tired, scoop up some snow for hydration and begin to bark again, eager to go. Chris checks in to see that everyone is warm and doing well, and then they’re off again.

In the middle of a long downhill slope, Jo’s team starts to catch up with Chris’s sled. Jo grips the handle tighter, but the sled is careening out of control. Glancing back, Chris yells “Use the brake!!”

Oh, right. Jumping on the brake with both feet, Jo hits a rock hidden under the snow and is tossed off the sled like an 2017-2018

apple core thrown out of a moving car.

Jo: Ouch! Oh, I’m not hurt. HaHaHa! Oops—I’m supposed to yell so Chris knows my team is loose. UhOh! They are catching up. I’d better run. What if Chris can’t hold them? I’ll have to walk back, and we must be 50 miles from the kennel. Hey, Chris!! Catch my sled! I’m coming as fast as I can! Hey! Hey! CG: Good thing we’ve been out here a while. And Birch will listen to me, but

Chilly Dogs on the trail 9

who knows if Slate will follow her lead.

Glad I ate my Wheaties for breakfast!

Other Js: Is Jo OK? Yes, looks fine. That was funny—didn’t know Jo could fly.

HaHaHa. UhOh! Can Chris catch that sled? Are we going to run into them?

Brakes! Brakes!

GR: Oh boy! Less weight! I can pull even harder and catch up to those other guys!

Maybe even pass them! Come on, team— let’s go!

Chris is able to hold the team with the help of Jeff, who was riding in the sled.

The three teams move on until they come to a spot where the trail splits.

CG: Gee! I said Gee!!

Birch: Come on, Slate. We gotta turn right.

Slate: I don’t hear anything. Let’s go this

Wintergreen team 10

way. I smell a squirrel this way.

CG: Slate, Gee! Birch: This way, Slate. Chris says “Gee!” Slate: I don’t hear anything but a squirrel over here to the left.

GR: Go right, Slate! We have to follow Birch. She knows what she’s doing.

Slate: Oh, OK. I can’t pull the whole team to the squirrel. But geez... it was so close.

In another hour, Chris pulls over and ties off the lead sled, then helps the others do the same. Lunch time! The dogs, used to this routine, settle down, making little beds in the snow or cozying up to their neighbors for a short game of Mouth Wrestling. One watches the raven that playfully teases. Chris passes out treats, careful to place them clearly in each dog’s reach and not where another dog will want to claim it. Keeping a close eye on the dogs, the humans relax by a fire and enjoy hot brats and cocoa.

In an hour the dogs are getting restless again, and the people are eager to move to keep warm. Back on the sleds and comfortable now with the flow and glide over the snowy trail, the Js feel like they’ve been doing this all their lives.

Instead of needing to focus on the sled, they notice the moose tracks crossing the trail, a grouse startled from its snowy cave, and how some trees arch over the trail in architecture created by heavy snow earlier in the season. They take photos to remember this day when they are back in the city. The light begins to change, becoming soft and rosy as the The Ely Winter Times

White Wilderness team relaxing at lunch time sun nears the horizon. Even though it’s GR: Hey everybody! We’re back! I got to been hours of running, the dogs keep a go! I pulled really hard! Where’s dinner?! steady pace, never seeming to tire. They Hey! Dinner!! Now!! I’m hungry! NOW!!! pull into the dog yard just as a beautiful RaahhrrRaahhrRahhrr!!! sunset silhouettes the pines in pink and orange.

Js: Whew! Didn’t imagine this would be so tiring. But what fun! We’ve got to bring our friends and do a longer trip next time.

Glad we’re staying at Grand Ely Lodge.

That hot toddy before dinner is going to taste great, and the hot tub will ease my aching muscles.

CG: A perfect day. These are really nice folks. I hope they come back for one of our overnight trips next year. OK—get everything put away and head to the Riding with Steak House for fun with my friends. But Chilly Dogs not too late—gotta do this again tomorrow. What a great job!

2017-2018

11

Wintergreen pup

Is There a Husky in Your Future?

Husky puppies have a knack for stealing peoples' hearts. There’s a lot of personality rolled up into those fluffy little bodies, making them hard to resist. But the truth is, husky puppies can be a tremendous amount of work, and the work continues many years into the dog's life. Huskies were bred to be high energy athletes, needing more exercise than the average person is ready to

Dogsledding in Ely

(see ads for contact)

Chilly Dogs 1 or 2 hrs on trail at a time, lunch break for full day trips. Perfect for all abilities, young, old, and reluctant White Wilderness 1/2 day to 5-day trips w/ yurt, lodge, or camping overnight choices. Ice fishing & photo trips Wintergreen 1/2 day to 6-day winter camping or lodge trips plus Arctic trips to Greenland and Hudson Bay Voyageur Outward Bound Join a group for winter camping, skiing, and dogsled adventure education. Youth and adult.

12

supply. Without a daily outlet for their energy, a young husky will find its own ways to burn off excess energy. A highly intelligent and independent breed, their methods can be both creative and destructive. For some people, such a young dog is a perfect match, but for those whose lifestyle does not include long daily runs or bike rides, a husky as a companion is not out of the question.

At many sled dog kennels, dogs that are nearing the end of their pulling career are put up for adoption. These dogs are very well socialized with both humans and other dogs. They are usually around 8 years old—past the crazy stage, but with plenty of spunk and personality to make a great companion for many years.

An added benefit of adopting a retired sled dog is that if the husky doesn't seem to be a good fit, the kennel will take the dog back. Sled dog retirees are like family to their mushers, so a good home is important to them. The new owners are set up for success, an important bonus of adopting a retired sled dog.

– Heather Jeske, White Wilderness Guide

White Wilderness retiree The Ely Winter Times

Š Linda Trapkus

The Pottery Shop at 127 E. Sheridan Street

Ely Ceramicists It may be hard to believe, but Ely is a hotspot in Minnesota for pottery and metal sculpting, with perhaps the best facility north of the Twin Cities. What makes a pot hot spot? Kilns. What does Ely have that most places don’t? A wood-fired kiln, several gas kilns, and also a foundry. Why Ely? Artists who specialize in ceramics and like living here, community members who are willing to donate work and wood, and a

2017-2018

college willing to house the equipment and provide studio space in their art department.

There is a surprisingly enormous amount to learn about clay, glazes, firing, kilns, and techniques of transforming clay into functional and aesthetically pleasing objects. Meet Vermilion Community College (VCC) art teacher Chris Koivisto, who knows more than most well-schooled ceramicists.

13

Chris Koivisto, VCC art teacher, sculptor, and ceramicist. His Lake Bowls combine his two majors–Art and Geography.

14

©Chris Koivisto

Originally a chemistry major in college, he brings science and math into his art room, to the dismay of some students who thought that an art class would be a breeze. (Although Chris is such a good teacher that most students end up with a deeper understanding of science painlessly while creating pottery they can be proud of.) His back room looks more like a chemistry lab than a storage space, and his students learn molecular math as they mix glazes.

Although he’s an excellent potter and is able to earn income from the functional pieces he makes, Chris thinks of himself as a sculptor and his finest art is bronze casting. But one piece of such art can cost thousands of dollars in

materials to create, so he mostly works in cast iron and aluminum. He is able to teach casting with the new foundry at the college. (Old tent poles and car parts are his best source of aluminum, and free.)

Chris is always finding something new to learn and to teach. He’s added a course in Environmental Design at VCC and has developed an online Wilderness Digital Photography class. He studied porcelain in China for his sabbatical. This fall he offered the first Wood-Fired Ceramics class at VCC. Firing up the new kiln requires enough wood to heat a cabin for a winter–about three and a half cords. But the wood isn’t chosen for its BTUs. The wood ash itself becomes the glaze on the pottery fired. The colors and textures vary from one type of wood to another.

Tamarac, pine, and sunflower stalks are colorful; maple is dull. It’s not just the Pottery in the wood-fired kiln after firing

The Ely Winter Times

species that creates coloring, but also the location where it grew and the minerals in the soil. Then the way the flame travels in the kiln as it burns creates the patterns, so that a piece at the top or next to an edge will have a different look from one in the middle.

Wood firing is a collaborative effort for the college and the community. The Natural Resources Tech students helped get the wood and two other professional ceramicists in town helped out.

Although there are wood kilns at two other college campuses in Minnesota, students would need to be midway through their junior year to have the opportunity to use them. VCC students were delighted to get this experience in their first semester.

A wood-burning kiln has a limited life time as each firing wears away some of the bricks with its caustic smoke and ash. That, and the amount of work and wood required, means it will only be fired about twice a year. It’s also very expensive to build, so few potters have them in their private studios. And so Chris invites other serious local potters to participate with a few pieces at each firing. In return they help out with the students, collecting the wood, and managing the process.

Chris and the VCC students are looking forward to casting metal with the new foundry during the winter semester.

You can visit during open house Feb 3rd.

ŠChris Koivisto

VCC students had big smiles at the wood kiln’s first firing.

2017-2018

15

Like Chris, Ely ceramicist Wade Pharr likes teaching as much as making pottery. He was a high school junior when a new art teacher, who knew very little about using the wheel, enlisted the help of the advanced students to teach the art of throwing clay to the younger classes.

Wade found his calling and his passion right then. Within a few years he was teaching community education classes in the Minneapolis area, which gave him access to the equipment he needed to hone his pottery skills. He was working several jobs, but longed to live in Ely, where he had spent fourth grade and made such good friends that he visited as Wade’s work on display at Art & Soul Gallery

16

Wade working on a snow sculpture. His beard is blue in preparation for the Great Nordic Beard Festival. often as possible once he had his driver’s license. He made the move, tenting on an island for the first few months, working as a carpenter, and taking community ed classes to gain access to VCC’s studio.

Soon Chris had turned over teaching those classes to Wade.

Eventually Wade found a wheel he could afford, built a kiln, and created a studio in his home (no longer a tent). It’s humble—he doesn’t invite many people down to his basement and through his closet to get to the studio space. But it allowed him to create more work, which he sells at Art & Soul Gallery, the Front Porch, and The Pottery Shop. He also does commissioned pieces, making mugs for local businesses and non-profits. Mugs pay the bills, but also give him the time to do more creative work. From dragons to lily pads, he likes playing with shapes and color. He has hopes of helping establish a pottery The Ely Winter Times

Linda adding wood to the VCC kiln

had to somehow get up every morning and function. Her art saved her, not in some dramatic way so much as just keeping her going. Later, when she’d moved to Ely as a co-owner of a resort she and her partner split and he left town.

Linda stayed on even though she’d never imagined herself living in a small town.

The lively arts community was the most important factor in her decision to stay, although she also believes the area is the most beautiful place she has ever seen (being not all that fond of driving in mountains).

Linda’s work is almost all functional.

The fine art creative part comes in shaping, coloring, and texturizing pieces.

She finds herself noticing everything.

Just sipping coffee at the Front Porch she reported being aware of the color and ©Linda Trapkus

studio at Ely Folk School, as there are many community members who would love to have a place to learn and practice ceramics.

Linda Trapkus, owner of The Pottery Shop, also pays the bills by making mugs. And like Chris and Wade, she had a natural talent for the wheel right from the start. Attending college in Iowa, she would walk by the ceramics building and admire the students’ works displayed in the window. Eventually she was able to sign up for a ceramics class, and soon–to her astonishment–her pieces were on display being admired by others. To gain access to the kilns and wheels, she took every ceramics class offered, then registered for Independent Study while she completed her degree in Occupational Therapy.

Working on the wheel was what kept her going when, as a mother of young children, she experienced trauma and

Mugs by Linda

©Chris Koivisto

2017-2018

17

shapes of bags of coffee and the shifting shade and sunlight on the wooden shelves.

Each year Linda has to move two tons of clay from the warehouse at R&R Transfer to her garage in summer, then to her basement in winter. The 50-lb boxes give her plenty of weight-bearing

18

exercise, but even so she works out almost daily. Ely has strong women.

When asked about what inspires their work, Chris, Wade, and Linda expressed how the woods, water, and wild places around Ely provide their source of creativity. But it’s not something easily put into words that don’t sound like clichés. All three blend the functional with the aesthetically pleasing. They recognize the greater demand for something useful but have the talent to make those practical items also be things of beauty.

You can meet Linda at her booth at the Holiday Festival at Miner’s Dry Thanksgiving weekend, or in her shop.

You’ll find Chris and Wade working on their professional snow sculptures during Ely Winter Festival. And you can see the work of other Ely area ceramicists at the Art & Soul Gallery. Local art makes great gifts, and with the work of these and other Ely potters you can give both a practical present and a work of art.

The Ely Winter Times

© Ka

Dining Out Around Ely Northern Grounds, a place to rev up with coffee or relax with wine An outstanding choice of excellent foods in a variety of atmospheres this winter!

Hours vary, so call for current open times. $: dinner entreés, or whatever it would cost for a meal for those not serving dinner. C: children’s menu, V: vegetarian items, GF: gluten free. # location on the maps pg. 27-30 Many places have menus on their websites, which are easy to find searching the name + Ely.

Britton’s Café • Great local flavor in the food and the guests, Britton’s has been in continuous operation longer than any other Ely restaurant. Hearty breakfasts, served until 2 pm, keep you warm all day. Homemade breads, donuts, and baked goodies, French toast, Ely ethnic specialties, soups, and lunch specials. Take-out available. 5 E Chapman St, 365-3195 $5-12 C V GF #7 Ely Steak House • If you’re hungry for a meaty meal, this is the place. Perfectly prepared steak, walleye, chicken, the famous Bucky Burger, and prime rib on weekends. Discounts for early diners until 4:45 and for seniors. Full bar with seasonal specialty warm-you-up winter drinks. Ely’s winter night hotspot with pool and karaoke. 216 E Sheridan, 365-7412 $12-40 C V GF #20

Evergreen Restaurant • & Antlers Lounge at Grand Ely Lodge. B’fast, lunch and 40-item menu with steaks, seafood, pasta, and chicken. Don’t miss delicious creamy chicken wild rice soup.

Lounge has special late night snack menu, happy hour, and Vikings game specials. Easy access from Trezona and snowmobile trails. Open 365 days. 400 Pioneer Rd, 365-6565 $8-26 C V GF #68

2017-2018

19

Front Porch • Ely’s coffee and computer hot spot with free wi-fi and fireside sofas, kids’ play

area, and a more private room for meetings. Fair trade coffee and tea, special hot chocolate flavors, chai, lattés, pastries, quiche, homemade soup and chili, smoothies, muffins, and desserts.

Ely Winter Festival Headquarters. 343 E Sheridan St 365-BEAN $4-8 C V GF #27

Gators Grilled Cheese Emporium • Warm up with a fireside seat for breakfast, lunch, or dinner that takes the chill out–grilled cheese sandwiches and macaroni and cheese, the oldfashioned way or in tempting varieties, plus soups, pizza, desserts, and much more. Beer and wine.

Board games for fun while you wait. Free wi-fi. 955 E. Sheridan, 365-7348, $7-16 C V GF #64 Insula Restaurant • Gourmet seasonal menu with many locally sourced and organic ingredients served in a congenial atmosphere. Fresh and unusual flavor blends inthe New American cuisine and old favorites like reubens and fried chicken. Breakfast frittatas, delicious desserts. Specialty cocktails, wines, and beer. 145 E. Sheridan, 365-4855 $9-32 C V GF #31

Kell’s Kitchen • All-you-can-eat fish or shrimp on Fridays until 7pm. Open and serving b’fast

every day 7am-2pm. Don’t miss the Peter Mitchell porketta sandwich and homemade soups.

Lunch specials and desserts in the northern Minnesota tradition. Catering for every need–nothing is too small or too large. Babbitt Shopping Center, 827-3565 $6-10 CV #85

Northern Grounds • Early morning espresso, roasted-on-site coffees, teas, and hot

chocolate. Enjoy them with made-from-scratch fresh-baked scones, pastries, and breads. New this winter—Sunday brunch with live music, quiche, bottomless mimosas. Fine wine, MN crafted beer, plus light appetizers. Open year-round from 6am to 9pm. 2 W. Sheridan St.. $5-8 V GF #6

Organic Roots • Organic local foods to go or eat in the intimate setting. Special dietary

needs can be accommodated without a fuss. Daily flatbreads, soups, salads, and sandwiches with vegan options. Deli counter, ready-to-go wraps and salads, healthy sweets. Also bulk organic produce. Organic wine and beer. Lunch Mon-Sat,. 141 E. Chapman St 365-2799 $5-14 V GF #22

Sir G’s • Special Italian cuisine at one of Ely’s most popular dining spots. The pasta is made by

hand right there, and they season their own meat for flavorful fillings and delicious meatballs.The best pizza in Ely. Save room for the Italian desserts. Wine and beer. Take-out (call ahead) and delivery. Special prices for seniors over 55. 520 E Sheridan, 365-3688 $10-19 C V GF #34

Smitty’s on Snowbank • Make a reservation the night before, then take the 20-mile scenic

drive on the Fernberg to the doorstep of the BWCAW for a homestyle breakfast or dinner at this historic resort on a wild lakeshore. Single entrée, vegetarian by request. Friendly folks! Beer and wine coolers. 14564 Snow Lodge Rd, 365-6032. $19 complete dinner and dessert. V #92

20

The Ely Winter Times

Fast Food Options Dairy Queen - 1441 E. Sheridan (closed Dec 10 to Jan 3)

Please thank our advertisers!

© Heidi Pinkerton

Crapola - 16 N. 1st Ave. E Log Cabin Coffee - 1340 E. Sheridan Northland Deli - 1230 E. Sheridan Plum Bun Bakery - 402 E. Sheridan Subway -1520 E Sheridan Zup’s Deli - 303 E Sheridan

Dining out for the birds at the Dorothy Molter Museum

Boathouse Brewery Growlers to go. Appetizers, hearty sandwiches and burgers, salads, and pub specials. Family dining room or bar with big screen TV. 47 E. Sheridan St, 365-4301, $9-16 C V GF

Oriental Orchid More than 90 Vietnamese and Chinese menu items.Weekday lunch specials. Call ahead for faster take-out or eat in. Free hot tea. 506 E. Sheridan St., 365-7502 $8-17 V

Stony Ridge Open most winter weekends, Fri-Sun. 50 varieties of the biggest burgers in Ely, plus stuffed hashbrowns, ribs, and chili. Beer and wine. 60 N. Lakeview, 365-6757 $10-22 C V GF

Winton Roadhouse The menu changes daily with specialty flatbreads, meal-size pretzels, and pizza. Full bar, sports on big TV, pool. Special events. 252 Main St, Winton, 365-3339 $6-10

Taste of Ely Lunch and all-day breakfast in the historic Klun’s Grocery building. Classic breakfasts, stuffed hashbrowns, salads, wraps, burgers, desserts. 117 N. Central Ave, 235-9686 $7-12 C V

Two Gringos Real Tex-Mex food with flavor and heat to warm your winter nights in a cheerful space. Full margarita menu. www.2GringosGrill.com 32. E. Sheridan St., 365-8800 $9-15 C V GF 2017-2018

21

© Noelle Grunwald

Ski Musings

by Becca Manlove My adult daughter and I ski together often. We coach Climbers 1 together for the Minnesota Youth Ski League. I have no trouble keeping up with our Climbers.

They are mostly between five and seven years old. But when I ski alone, my speed is more a meander than a stride. When I want a challenge, I ask Celin to ski with me. Maybe I’m really asking her to let me tag along behind her. If you are a fast skier and won’t ever be slower than your kids or competitors, then don’t bother reading this. But if you hope to age

22

Skiing the Trezona Trail - a beginner’s trail right in town

(gracefully or otherwise), you might understand thoughts that sometimes go through my head: I’m losing sight of her, better ditch efforts to improve technique. Oh good, she’s waiting for me. Be still, my heart.

Um, not still as in stopped, but maybe not trying to pound your way out of my chest.

I just caught up but she’s ready to take off again. When do I get to rest?

When she was little, I would give her the grip end of my ski pole and tow her up

The Ely Winter Times

2017-2018

if I was a frog. My frog legs have developed rigor mortis. The snow-laden branches of these balsam trees are really lovely. Maybe someone should stop and appreciate them.

Ah, here comes a long, lovely downhill. Won’t last long enough. Don’t fall, don’t fall, don’t fall. Just a little more effort up this small hill. There she is at the top waiting.

What an idiot. She asked so kindly “How you doing, Mom?” And what do I say? “Great. I should wax these skis— they’re slowing me down a little, but this is wonderful. Feels good.” Why didn’t I say “My lungs are bursting, my legs burning, and my nose running?” Why didn’t I say, “I have a deep personal problem we need to discuss right now

© Celin Williams

the hills. Would be embarrassing to ask her to do that for me. But a tow would be nice—never mind we’re on the flat.

Should have brought my dog, Mantis, and the skijor harness. Had the dog tow me. But then Celin would think she should get a turn skijoring too and I’d watch both daughter and dog disappear.

Mike, her dad, used to get way ahead of me too.

Skate skiing is supposed to be faster than classic skiing and I’m wearing the skate skis.

When our son, Joe, was three, Mike made a short ski trail on our land. Celin, just three months old, rode in a pack on our backs, and we could ski together. By the time his sister was three, Joe was ready to cover more territory. We split up two and two but Celin didn’t like falling behind. She learned quickly. Twenty-four years later, I feel like the three-year-old.

A few years ago, I proudly showed her my newly-learned skate skiing skill.

Her reaction: “Um, yeah, you look pretty good for a woman over 50 learning to skate ski.” Smart Aleck—should not have insisted she join the ski team in 7th and 8th grades. Mike bribed her with rides to Giant’s Ridge so she could snowboard.

We’re only at the one-mile marker?

Will she keep this pace up for the next three miles?

Thank goodness—a little downhill— don’t fall, don’t fall, don’t fall. Maybe I should have taken up snowboarding.

Maybe I could learn now. Celin might teach me.

Why do uphills always follow downhills? I asked a skate skier for suggestions once. He said to ski uphill as

Mother and daughter - can you tell which is which?!

23

Just let me catch my breath first?” Too much oxygen in my brain to fabricate a problem urgent enough to give us pause.

Yep, this long flat stretch right next to the road, in front of houses, this is where I fall. Maximum embarrassment. A couple cars slow down and Celin turns around. Even with sporadic yoga practice, getting my knee on a ski and leveraging myself up—it’s not graceful.

Maybe consistent yoga practice would be helpful.

Nice to be back in the woods, out of sight of the road, but dang this uphill.

Scratch yoga—should be building leg muscles doing hill-bounding in the fall.

Some people do both—but they are young or retired.

Celin is up there, at the top of the hill.

Watching. Waiting. But, wow, I’m hot.

This little flat spot is a good place to take my jacket off. The pole straps and then the mittens have to come off first—good time to stuff my neck warmer into a pocket too. Better tie my jacket more snugly around my waist.

She’s getting cold. I can’t figure that out.

This is really a lovely stretch of the trail. No need to rush through it. Celin reminds me I’m on skate skis—also that we don’t have that much daylight left.

She lets me catch up and she’s laughing. She shows me the selfie she took—Celin in the foreground grinning.

Me a little struggling figure far, far behind her. She threatens to put it on Facebook.

The traitor.

Before Facebook and cellphones (there was such a time), we skied at Giant’s Ridge. Mike was working Ski Patrol so the kids and I went out on the Nordic trails. Joe was about seven years old so Celin was about four (years before she discovered snowboarding). Going down a fairly mild hill, I knew even before I hit the snow that I’d thrown my knee out (an old gymnastic injury). The kids had gone down the hill ahead of me. I called for them and suddenly there was my little sprite in her pink snowpants.

She skied off to catch her brother. Her strong little-girl voice echoed through the aspen, “Jooooe, Joooee!” When they

Minnesota Youth Ski League at Hidden Valley–a wonderful program where Becca and Celin both volunteer 24

The Ely Winter Times

found each other, she told him to go get Dad at the chalet, then she came back to my side. A man had stopped to help me up. He released the bindings on my skis.

Then I asked him to ski ahead to my son to be sure he didn’t get lost. Later, we heard that Joe reached the patrol room and his dad before the guy caught up to him. Joe yanked his hat off and threw it on the floor, he was so hot. He was able to tell Mike which trail we were on. The rescue snowmobile soon roared up to us.

Joe rode behind the patroller driving the machine while Mike held Celin and me in the sled.

We share the Family Rescue story again—she remembers hearing the guy say “Grab my elbow” as he helped me up. Then she says, “No more stalling, Mom. You said you wanted a challenging pace.” Huh, don’t remember asking for

that. She pushes off down the trail and is soon far ahead.

She was so adorable in those pink snowpants. Glad we’re still skiing together. Maybe I’ll forgive her even if she does put that picture on Facebook. © 2017 Becca Brin Manlove

A Collection of North Woods Essays

by Becca Brin Manlove

Watch for a second book coming next summer

Raven Productions, inc

Call for a catalog of our books for children and adults, journals, & cards 2017-2018

© Celin Williams

Order from RavenWords.com or 218-365-3375

25

Information, Goods, & Services Books, Arts, and Crafts Kekekabic Studio

Stained glass professionals. Custom work, restoration, and fine woodworking. 118 E. Chapman St, rfshepherd@gmail.com. 231342-2842

Chapman Street Books

Home, Cabin, & Beyond Full Service Insurance

Don Sovil Insurance Agency, Inc. is your local State Farm agent. Insure your cabin or home in the Northwoods. Enjoy our discounts. 35 E Chapman St., 218-365-5104

Snowmobiles & Small Engines

Quality used books on all subjects. Free box.

Bring your used books in for a discount.

Prairie Fire Tobacco has imported and domestic blends. 139 E. Chapman St. 365-2212 This business is for sale. See pg. 32

Whether you’re moving snow or riding over it, Joe’s Marine and Repair can help. Mechanics are on duty to keep your snowblower and your snowmobile ready to go. Parts in stock.

25 W. Chapman St., 365-6264.

Ely’s award-winning publisher is at the Holiday Craft Fair and Ely Winter Festival Market, and online at RavenWords.com. Call for a free catalog of books, cards, and journals. 365-3375.

From J&L Hardware. Tables, event tents, forklifts, things you might not even think you needed. Drop in to see what will make your life easier and get projects done.

Traditional crafts, natural history, music and dance, and much more. ElyFolkSchool.org

Keep it out of the landfill. At http:// groups.yahoo.com/ElyFreeStuff

Meditation, Pickleball, Ice Skating, Art. Help with taxes and technology. ElyClasses.com

Traffic Conditions

Detours and weather-related road problems.

Call 511 or go to www.511mn.org.

For the Kids Ely Recreation Center

North and West sides on odd days, South and East sides on even days. November 1–May 31.

Raven Productions

Ely Folk School

Ely Community Education

Outdoor skating and hockey. Indoor activities and special events–table games, movie nights, game nights, dances. Snacks available during open hours. After school and weekend open hours posted on City of Ely website; generally 3:30-8:30 PM. Closed on Wednesdays. Go to ElyCommunityResource.org or call 365-5254 about special events. 1043 Main St.

Ely Public Library

See pages 48-53 for lots of free programs.

Just visiting? You can still get a card to check out books, movies, and music.

26

Rent Anything

Ely Freecycle

Ely Calendar Parking Health & Safety Seniors & Caregivers

Northwoods Partners will offer Power Tools for Caregivers in February, and Tai Ji Quan for seniors starting Jan 4. Also help for caregivers who need a break. Call 365-8019.

Free Clinic

Every Moday 5:30-7pm in the Frandsen Building. For anyone without adequate insurance to cover their costs.

The Ely Winter Times

Maps of the Ely Area Downtown Area

Camp St. 17 5

1

18 31 19 28

8 9

26

27 30 32 Sheridan St.

21

16 7 12

4

33 22

20 17

29 24

34

23

Central Av.

Chapman St. 14 11

10

13 25 Harvey St. 15 Conan St.

Alley A Realty Art & Soul Gallery The Art Corner Brandenburg Gallery Britton’s Café Chapman St. Bookstore Crapola City Hall/Fire/Police Ely Bloomenson Pharmacy Ely Clinic and Hospital Ely Community Resource Ely Folk School Ely Free Clinic Ely Public Library Ely Steak House Evergreen Cottage

33 32 1 8 7 22 33 23 2 2 21 28 21 10 20 11

The Front Porch Gardner Trust Incredible Ely Hq. Insula Restaurant J&L Hardware Joe’s Marine & Repair Kekekabic Studio Lakeshore Liquor A Laundry Room Mike’s Liquor Northern Grounds Organic Roots Bistro The Pebble Spa Piragis Northwoods Co Plum Bun Bakery Prairie Fire Tobacco

School 4 Ave

1st E

2

8 Ave

6

Whiteside Park

3

27 23 16 31 14 4 14 24 24 30 6 22 28 5 29 22

Post Office The Pottery Shop Senior Center Sir G’s Sisu Yarn Shop State Farm Insurance State Theater Steger Mukluks Sustainable Ely Voltz Washington Auditorium Wintergreen Northern Wear Women’s Wilderness Dvry Zup’s Grocery

25 18 13 34 4 12 17 9 20 29 32 19 32 26

Please thank our advertisers for providing you with this free publication.

2017-2018

27

Public Landing

Shagawa Lake

Pioneer Rd

68 69 55 Public Landing

Miners Lake

59 55 Semer’s Park

r St. Chandle W.Shagawa Rd.

M

55

Dr. iner’s

58

Main St.

Washington St.

56 Madison St. Camp St.

12 Ave

8 Ave

Whiteside

6 Ave

65

Harvey St. 1st E

Central Av

1st W

54

51

62

64

Sheridan St. Chapman St.

2nd W

Hwy 169 to Tower

3rd W

53

10 Ave

See Detailed Downtown Area Map on Page 39

Conan St. School

Hospital & Clinic

White St.

52

Pattison St.

Ice Arena

50 James St. Boundary St. Wilson St.

Golf Course

Hwy 21 to Babbitt

Please thank our advertisers for providing you with this free publication.

Beacon Hill

Adventure Inn Amici’s Event Center Dorothy Molter Museum Ely-Bloomenson Hosp./Clinic Ely Chamber of Commerce Ely Northland Market Ely Rec Center, Skating Rink Ely-Winton History Museum 28

62 50 73 52 67 57 58 61

Snowmobile trail maps are free at many businesses and the Chamber of Commerce. For snowmobile events and trail conditions see www.elyigloo.com.

Ski and snowshoe trail maps are available at Piragis Northwoods Co. and the Forest Service. For more area XC skiing info see www.elynordic.org.

Evergreen Restaurant Gator’s Grilled Cheese Grand Ely Lodge Hidden Valley Recreation Area International Wolf Center Miners Dry, Arts & Heritage Ctr Pillow Rock R & R Transfer Storage

68 64 68 72 71 69 59 74

The Ely Winter Times

57

ELY CALENDAR PARKING November 1 through May 31

Pioneer Rd

55

Hwy 88

Savoy Rd 55

74 Vermilion Community College 61 66

17 Ave

60

Park on the North or West side on odd numbered days, the South or East side on even numbered days.

You may park on the next day’s side after 6pm.

70

5

Hwy 169 to Winton/Fernberg Trail

Sheridan St. 71 73

15 Ave

Cemetery

Hwy 1 to Airport and North Shore

14 Ave

67 Hi dd

en

Kawishiwi Tr Va lle y

63

Rd .

72

N

W

Ely

E

S

Recycling Center 53 Studio North Fitness Center 60 Trezona Trail 55 Wolf Track Classic Start (maybe) 63 USFS Visitor Center 70 VCC Admissions 66 VCC Theatre 61 Veterinary Clinic 56 2017-2018

29

82 Echo Trail

WINTON Burntside Lake

Hwy 88

95

93 94

Shagawa Lake

87

Fall Lake 83 88

Kawishiwi Tr 89

Ely

92 Fernberg

Garden Lake Farm Lake

Hwy 169

White Iron Lake

Hwy 1 Hwy 21

81

86

91

90

85 84

Alder Inn Babbitt & Embarrass Bear Head State Park Camps Du Nord and Widji Chilly Dogs Great Lakes Logbuilding Kawishiwi Falls

85 85 81 82 84 86 88

Courtesy Janisch Realty © RAOR

30

Kell’s Kitchen Koschak Farm Log Cabin Hideaways The Long Branch Nordic Home North Arm Ski Trails St. Louis Co. Landfill

85 94 92 87 81 82 85

Silver Rapids Lodge Smitty’s on Snowbank South Farm Ski Trails Veteran’s on the Lake Voyageur Outward Bound White Wilderness Dogsled Wintergreen Dogsledding

89 92 91 83 86 86 90

Winter can be very cozy at Ely’s resorts or vacation homes.

The Ely Winter Times

Ely Spiritual Gatherings

Berean Baptist Church 2281 Hwy 169 365-5413 Ely Gospel Church 3 E Allaire St 365-5272 First Lutheran Church LC MS 915 E Camp St 365-3348 First Presbyterian Church 226 E Harvey St 365-5130 Grace Lutheran Church ELCA 301 E Conan St 365-5605 Ledgerock Comm. Church 1515 E Camp St 365-4890 Oasis Int’l Church Ely Senior Center 235-1151 Call for mid-week service times. They are always held but times vary.

Praise Fellowship Christian 302 E Boundary St 365-6033 St. Anthony’s Catholic Church 231 E Camp St 365-4017 St. Mary’s Episcopal Church 715 S Central Av 365-4914 Thursday Night Group location varies, call 365-3346 We do not subscribe to any one path for spiritual enlightenment.

United Methodist Church of Ely 305 E Camp St 365-3355

Sun 10:30 Sun 10, Wed 6:30 Sun 10:30, Mon 6pm Sun 11 Sun 9:30 Sun 9:30 Sun 10 Sun 10 Sat 5 pm, Sun 10 T, W, F 8am Sun 9:30 Th 7pm Sun 10

Ely Area 12-Step Meetings

AlAnon Catholic Church Basement, Room 4 Babbitt Woodland Presbyterian Church Alcoholics Anonymous Catholic Church Basement, Room 1 Women, Open – Ledgerock Church Miracle on Camp St, open – 1st Lutheran Church Big Book open, Babbitt Woodland Presbyterian Church Open, Hospital multi-purpose room (get directions at nurses station) Keep It Simple, open - Babbitt Woodland Presbyterian Church Open Step and Traditions meeting - Presbyterian Church Happy, Joyous, and Free, open, Presbyterian Church Open meeting - Hospital multi-purpose room Codependents Anonymous Catholic Church Basement, Room 3 (use west entry by parsonage) 12-Steps for Any Addiction Women, Open - Catholic Church Basement, Room 3

2017-2018

Sun 8 pm Thu 7 pm Sun 8 pm Mon noon Mon 7 pm Tue 7 pm Wed 8 pm Thu 7 pm Fri 7 pm Fri 7 pm Sat 7:30 pm Fri noon Thu noon

31

© Kellen Witsche, Black Feather Creative

Do You Like Movies?

Thousands of Ely area residents and tens of thousands of visitors have to drive an hour to go to a movie theater.

And now there is a newly remodeled historic building with not just one, but two theaters capable of showing movies and hosting live performances and musical events, plus space for a café and retail sales. Imagine Ely with several film festivals a year plus weekly shows—a place to go out for date night, and hang around for a glass of wine and socializing with friends after the show.

The State Theater marquee has already become an Ely icon, symbolizing for many the renewed activity in downtown storefronts and the vibrant, diverse economy that, along with the access to nature and adventure travel,

makes Ely a place people want to live, work, visit, and enjoy retirement.

This is an exciting business opportunity for the right person or group.

Alley A Realty owns the theater and is only months away from completing this historic renovation project. Now it is ready to lease to someone who would provide a much-desired entertainment spot to Ely and surrounding towns.

If a cozy used bookstore is more your style, Chapman Street Books offers a quieter but equally desireable chance to own a business in Ely. With an inventory of hundreds of thousands of books—new, old, and rare; none of which have been exposed to internet shopping—this is a bibliophile’s dream. It comes with a 3story building that includes two apartments, a deck with a view of Alley A Realty • 218-288-1109 www.elystatetheater.com

Chapman Street Books • 218-365-2212 139 E. Chapman St., Ely, MN 55731

Raven Productions Inc. • 218-365-3375 www.ravenwords.com Incredible Ely • www.IncredibleEly.org

Ely Chamber of Commerce • 218-3656123 or 800-777-7281 32

The Ely Winter Times

How About Books?

Shagawa Lake, a tiny carefree back yard with an impressive garden, and possibly a cat. Prairie Fire Tobacco is also part of the business, which already has a loyal local customer base. After 20 years, the owner is ready to pass this legacy on to a new generation.

A second book-related business looking for a new owner is Raven Productions, Inc. Their main product is successful, award-winning books, primarily children’s nature books but also several adult essay collections and adventure memoirs, plus note cards, blank journals and the Boundary Waters Calendar featuring the work of local artists and photographers. The book production could easily be separated from the more local and regional items, and so be moved to any part of the

2017-2018

country. (They also publish this magazine.)

Being an entrepreneur in Ely comes with a ton of support. Incredible Ely, the Ely Chamber of Commerce, the Northeast Entrepreneur Fund, Northland Foundation, and IRRRB are available to provide business plan help, financial strategizing and banking access, special opportunities for women, education in various business management and marketing skills, and much more. So don’t worry if you are lacking an MBA. A desire to do well, a positive attitude, a good portion of common sense, a willingness to work hard and ask for help, and a sense of adventure go a long way to making successful Ely ventures.

33

© Kelly Godfrey

Winter Camping? With Wolves?

I might get cold. And what if we heard wolves howling really close by?

Worry no more! Here’s your chance to winter camp in a warm place, safely among wolves, and contribute to a scientific study at the same time.

Ely’s International Wolf Center invites you to join their “Wolves After Dark” project. Participants will be trained in data collection techniques by Wolf Care Department staff then spend the night observing the wolves from the warm side of the Center’s viewing windows, possibly awakening to howls while camped out cozily in the auditorium.

34

One of the best parts of this notTOO-adventurous adventure is that it happens during Ely’s Winter Festival, so you can enjoy all the other great activities after your night as a citizen scientist. Take in the snow sculptures, try out a fat bike, and check out winter shelters (in case you might want to camp outside next time) at Whiteside Park. Do the Art Walk and take the kids to the Dorothy Molter Museum for a campfire and free hot chocolate. Enjoy the best Fish Fry of the year at Veteran’s on the Lake, then stop by the Ice Bar at the Winton Road House. It’s the best part of winter for a visit to Ely. If an overnight isn’t in your schedule this year, consider joining the campers at the Wolf Center in the morning for a continental breakfast and private photo session with the wolves. And if you won’t be in Ely, you can participate in one of the Wolf Center’s webinars.

“Wolves After Dark” and the photo session are on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 2 and 3. You can find more details and webinar dates at Wolf.org/programs. For Ely Winter Festival events go to ElyWinterFestival.org.

The Ely Winter Times

Winter Pouting

©Chris Williams

by Kristen Williams

“This isn’t a field?” I realized, my eyes widening.

Ron Schmidt laughed and, in retrospect, I can’t blame him. I sat in the passenger seat of his old Ford pickup, fishing pole in hand, and as a girl from southern Missouri, the largest expanse of uninterrupted white snow that I had ever seen was our horse’s pasture.

“You mean to tell me that this is your first time on a lake?” he asked, still laughing.

My eyes traveled down to the “road” we were driving on. It was smooth and inky black, with feather-like cracks stretching out in front of us. The snow piled to either side was almost level with my window. I had never seen anything like it.

2017-2018

Ice fishing on Snowbank Lake with Smitty’s When Ron and Julie Schmidt— owners of Smitty’s on Snowbank—asked my family to go “pouting”, I had been confused on several levels. First, images of a group of Minnesotans sitting in the woods having a mutual tantrum flashed through my mind. After realizing that “pouting” meant fishing for eelpout (burbot), I was then baffled when Ron mentioned a bonfire. Did we warm up by the fire, then run out onto the lake? And lastly, why in the world were we going to do it after dark?

Why? Because that’s when you can catch the eelpout, of course.

After a while, I grew accustomed to the little spurts of water that puffed up in front of Ron’s truck. I got used to the fact that there was approximately fifty feet of

35

©Chris Williams

The author pouting on ice skates

icy black water under our tires. And if I didn’t think about it, it really was just like driving on a field.

We pulled up to the Snowbank Lake equivalent of a parking lot. There were four trucks already there, evenly spaced.

Ron parked close to his collection of little red fishing houses.

“This is the best ice we’ve had in years,” he told me, shouldering open his truck’s door.

“It’s OK to park this close to everyone?” I asked, once again skeptical as I opened my door and narrowed my eyes suspiciously at the ice.

“They used to use teams of horses to drag lumber across this lake,” Ron said.

I gaped at him, not entirely sure if I should take that seriously. But Ron seemed indifferent enough as he started unloading firewood.

When I stepped down from the truck, the metal creepers on my boots clacked against the ice with a satisfying crunch.

There was already a large group of people milling between the fish houses, 36

centering their work around a large cauldron. I saw my dad drilling holes in the ice and a couple of friends were already getting their poles ready.

I turned slowly, a little overwhelmed.

Snowbank is not a small lake, but I’d swear that it looked even bigger in its frozen state. The shoreline was a distant, dark line in the twilight. The snow reflected the reds and peaches of a sun I could no longer see. I looked up, and the sky was a purpling dome.

We unloaded the firewood near the cauldron. I peeked down a few of the fishing holes, visions of me somehow managing to fall into one flashing through my Missouri-oriented brain.

These thoughts faded as we got a fire started in the cauldron, though. Julie Schmidt set up a table of hotdogs and picnic food in one of the fish houses, (a house not for fish, but for anglers to warm up and hang out) and soon we were sitting around a bonfire in the middle of a lake under a crystalline sky.

The more devout fishermen—mainly Ron and my dad—sat a little back from the fire, huddled over their fishing poles.

They used glow-in-the-dark jigs that they lit up with their headlamps. I The Ely Winter Times

appointed myself to the task of breaking the thin layers of ice that would form over the fishing holes.

My dad was the first successful “pouter”. As his pole bent and he stood, my family scampered around him, eager for the first sight of this strange creature.

When it came free of the ice, I realized that ‘eel’ was an apt nickname for the burbot, which is also called ling cod, lawyer, poor man’s lobster, and other names that we can’t print here.

It was about a foot-and-a-half long, narrow and wriggling. When my dad removed the hook, it wrapped around his arm like a snake. The fish was mottled browns and blacks, an almost cat-like camouflage, and it had little whiskers on its chin.

We were fishing in mid-January, and the catching was plentiful. As a distant relative to the salt water cod, the eelpout looked unlike any fish I’d ever seen. They rely on their camouflage and rows of small teeth to catch prey, rather than speed, feeding on perch and walleye as well as fish eggs, clams, and crayfish.

“Do they really taste like lobster?” I asked Julie, more than a little skeptical.

“You’ll find out soon!” she promised.

We fished and enjoyed the bonfire long into the night. It was by far one of the most unique evenings of my life, and every now and then I had to laugh at how strange it was to see not only trucks and little houses on a lake, but a bonfire as well. Strange though it was, I have to say that I’d never enjoyed a fishing trip more.

At Ron’s suggestion, I’d brought my ice skates along. After we packed the trucks up with our fish and supplies, I strapped the skates on and followed my friends back down the long road. The ice beneath my feet was as black as the sky above me, lacy cracks gliding under the blades as I passed through the mirrored stars. To the north, a subtle, greenish glow marked the beginning of an aurora.

I’d never known such beauty.

We returned to the lodge together.

Ron cleaned the eelpout with almost 2017-2018

37

Burbot spawn in mid-January in shallow gravel beds in rivers or on reefs. One female can lay up to a million eggs, which is good because they are among the smallest hatchlings in the fish world, being about 0.15” long, and hence food for many other aquatic creatures. Ely Field Naturalists usually take a field trip to see the burbot at spawning time. To learn more or join them visit their Facebook page or ElyFieldNaturalists.wordpress.com

38

The thought of sub-zero temperatures no longer horrifies me, and I often make my way in to town via my snowmobile. I enjoy our winters just as much as our summers, each season filled with its own unique adventures.

And every year, we make time for at least one pouting trip to Snowbank. It is still among my favorite experiences. I hear that there’s an Eelpout Festival in Walker, Minnesota, and I’d like to make it down there to see how other Minnesotans do their pouting. But I have to say, I don’t think anything will ever outdo a Snowbank bonfire and Julie’s legendary cooking.

© Ken Hupila

military efficiency while Julie boiled a pot of water. She added a can of lemonlime soda and a heavy sprinkling of Old Bay seasoning. Ron cut the pieces of pout into inch-long cubes.

“You only cook them for a couple of minutes,” Julie explained, dropping the chunks into the boiling water. “We’ll get some butter melted to dip them in.”

I’ll admit, I’d had my doubts. I just couldn’t imagine anything that looked like an eelpout would taste like lobster.

But as I put that first piece of fresh, sweet fish into my mouth, I realized how wrong I was. It was—in a word—delicious.

I’ve lived in Ely for seven years now.

The Ely Winter Times

By Mike Hillman, photos courtesy of Ely-Winton Historical Society

Ely’s Earliest Snowmobiles This article originally appeared in the 2007-8 edition of the Ely Winter Times.

Mike Hillman’s historically-based stories about Ely and its people were a popular

and lively part of the Times, and they’ve been missed since his death in December 2014. So we’ll be including some (perhaps condensed) in future issues.

I will always remember the first time I saw a snow machine. It was at one of the Trout-A-Rama fishing contests when I was a boy. Every winter there would be two fishing contests. The first took place on Shagawa Lake as part of the annual Winter Carnival; the second happened later in the winter and was held on Burntside Lake.

Fishing contests were great fun for the town. The winters back then were much longer and colder than they are now. The snow was deeper, and there were weeks on end when the temperature didn't make it above zero.

Most of the country was beyond reach, streets in town grew narrow with snow,

and everything seemed to press in on us.

That was why things like the Winter Carnival and Trout-A-Rama were so important to the mental health of the town. We needed a way to get people out of their houses in the winter or attacks of cabin fever, which happen to some degree every winter, would grow to epidemic proportions.

And that also was why there was so much talk about a snow machine coming to that long ago Trout-A-Rama. It gave people the hope that maybe there was something to break winter's hold on the country, and dozens of skeptical people were there to witness this great event.

That winter, rumors abounded in the

2017-2018

39

area coffee shops about a strange airboat that skimmed through the Everglades in Florida, easily crossing land and water with good speed. There wasn't anything that this airboat couldn't go over. Anglers, who dreamed of getting back to the same lakes they fished in the liquid season, had visions of trophy fish dancing in their heads as they saw themselves sitting in an air boat, whisking over the snow and ice, heading

north to the promised land. It was a great winter for dreams.

The day of Trout-A-Rama, Burntside Lake was filled with trucks and cars, and the ice on the lake had more holes in it than a slice of Swiss cheese. About one o'clock that afternoon, a truck pulled into Kaleva Bay, and behind it was a trailer covered by a great green canvas tarp. A group of men from the fishing contest helped the driver remove the tarp, revealing the very airboat of their dreams. The machine looked like a small, flat-bottomed fishing boat, except that this old boat had an airplane propeller mounted on the back.

Hundreds of curious spectators crowded around the airboat, forming a great horseshoe of people eager to watch the launching. I can still hear the roar of the engine as we watched the pilot throw the switch to start the propeller spinning.

All of a sudden the world was lost in a blizzard, and for a few moments everyone was blinded by the snow. Then, gradually, the air started to clear, and people looked toward the far horizon, expecting to see the airboat gliding across the frozen lake, but the only thing out there was winter.

A Winter Carnival on Shagawa, out from Semer’s Park

40

The Ely Winter Times

The airboat hadn't budged more than a few inches. It worked well in the liquid swamps, but was nothing but a big bag of wind in a northern winter. It was all blow and no go.

A year later, someone came to the Trout-A-Rama contest with a doubletrack machine that looked much like today's trail groomers. He demonstrated his invention to the dubious group of anglers who clearly remembered the airboat debacle of the year before. They were impressed, but this vehicle cost a small fortune, and it was much too wide to go across the portages.

It didn't take long for garage mechanics in places like Minnesota and French Canada to take the lessons learned from these initial failures and build a machine that would meet the demands of the winter landscape. These modern Edisons came out with a practical design that sported a pair of fat skis in front, a small motor for power (built for the slow and steady), a pair of handlebars to guide the skis, and a circular rubberized single track that pushed the machine over the snow.

Soon names like Polaris, Arctic Cat, and Ski Doo entered into conversations at coffee counters all over town, and men would come in for a quick cup of coffee wearing military flight suits. There was no ideal clothing to go along with the new industry, and the people who rode snow machines during those pioneer years quickly realized that the old wool clothing, which had served them well in the past, just wasn't warm enough when they were creating their own wind on a snow sled. The only place they could find clothing and foot gear up to the task was the military, so people in cumbersome, silver-colored flight suits was a common—and often hilarious—sight.

Soon people were making their own portable fishing shelters. Old kerosene stoves were cut down to size to provide heat in these homemade canvas shelters. There was no such thing as store-bought when it came to this brand new industry of the late 50s and early

60s. Around Ely, many homemade sleds were built to hitch to the snow machine and then load with all the extra things needed to make winter fishing a comfortable and enjoyable experience.

In the beginning, two kinds of snow machines were developed: a larger and heavier sled, made by companies like Polaris and Arctic Cat, and the small sled called Ski Doo that was made in French Canada.

Many of the summer fishing partnerships now expanded to take in the winter season. Often one of the partners purchased the big beast while the other invested in the smaller sled. The small sleds would break the trail, and the bigger sleds would follow in the same track. It was ill-advised for riders to venture out on their own, especially in one of the bigger and heavier machines, because there was the chance of hitting pockets of slush—the wet, heavy layer between solid ice and surface snow formed by water pushing up through cracks in the ice. Slush never seems to 41

freeze, even in the coldest weather. There was always an element of danger involved in the early days of snow machines. You never knew if you were going to make it there and back again without breaking down. So most of the people who went traveled in teams.

If it weren't for the slush, I might not have been added to the winter fishing team, but when those old machines went down in a pocket of slush, a lot of help was needed to get out of what could be a terrible situation. I remember standing

there in my white felt bunny boots, with bread bags for liners over an inner layer of heavy socks in an effort to keep my feet kind of warm and dry. No matter how many plastic bags I wore, the cold water always found its way in. I was a good sized boy then, bigger than my dad, so I held up the back end of the machine to keep the track out of the slush.

Johnny, the engineer, kept the track turning, and Joe, Dad, and I grunted and groaned as we pushed that cumbersome bucket of bolts through the pocket of slush. We had to keep the track moving or it would freeze solid, and then we were in a world of hurt: dragging this huge, frozen chunk of steel, rubber, and ice towards the closest shore in order to build a fire to melt the ice off the machine and get back into motion.

Snowmobiling in its early days was all about winter fishing. Once, when we were all set up to fish but the trout were busy doing something else, I asked my dad if I could take the machine for a ride around the lake. He looked at me in a very surprised way and told me that these machines were made to get people from the landing where the trip started to the fishing ground and back again. They

Possibly a Trout-A-Rama? Anyone with info about photos please share it with EWHS.

42

weren't made for joy riding, they were made for a purpose, and that purpose was winter fishing.

The anglers all knew each other back then, and just like in the open-water season, they had divided up the country amongst themselves. The snow sleds were unloaded and moved down into a long line that formed in front of the landing. When everyone was ready, the lead machine would head out, and the rest of the troops would follow. There was something about it that almost looked like a group of old crusaders marching to a holy cause – winter fishing.

I remember humming the old hymn “Onward Christian Soldiers” as we headed off one especially cold morning: Onward northern anglers, onward through the snow, Marching off to winter fish where none have dared to go, Now the royal Arctic Cat leads against the foe, Onward on Polaris, see those Ski Doos roll...

As the caravan headed up the Moose Lake Chain, small groups headed off in different directions. Some went toward Basswood, some toward Knife Lake, and we headed to the far end of Carp Lake to fish for trout. Walleye could be found closer to home. When we went north to the border country, we were fishing for 2017-2018

trout. Joe and I fished outside, but when we got cold, we went into Johnny's or Dad's shelter to warm up around the cutdown kerosene stove.

Once, one of the regulars bought a brand new make of snowmobile. The other veterans soon dubbed it the Ski Don't. One brilliantly cold morning, everyone was waiting for the Ski Don't to finally fire up, and the men were teasing the owner of what was best described as a useless piece of junk just waiting to break down. Someone suggested they get Father Mike to sprinkle some holy water on it, because the Ski Don't needed all the blessings it could get. At the end of the day everyone headed back on the same trail they went out on, and usually the caravan would reassemble for the trip home. Everyone was back at Moose Lake landing, with the exception of the Ski Don't, and the talk turned to the whereabouts of the group's black sheep and what they were going to do.

The sun was gone and the last light was going from the west. The stars were popping out all over the cold blue-black sky, and the country was booming as the lake made more ice. We all moved to the shore and looked down the darkening lake. There was talk of sending out a rescue party when someone spotted a faint light off in the distance. At first we thought it was another star, but gradually 43

the light got brighter as the Ski Don't made its way slowly toward the landing.

Someone commented that it was hard to imagine something with an engine could move that slowly. Another person laughed and said it looked like he was racing the island in front of the scout base. Someone else said he’d bet on the island, and the entire group roared with merriment.

Finally, just before the world's slowest snow machine arrived back home, the men went back to their cars. Some got in their trucks and left, but we waited until Bobby pulled up to his truck and started the engine. He was wearing a ski mask all rimmed with frost, and you could see he was tired and cold. After the truck was

running, and we knew he had heat, Dad and I headed over to help him load his machine. Dad asked if it had been one of those days, and Bobby answered by saying it was one of the worst days of his life. Then he thanked us for waiting, got into his truck and drove home.

The world has changed a lot since those early days when a few anglers got together and decided to challenge winter by building a machine tough enough to handle the cold and snow. Now, the country seems bigger in the winter, and things don't press in on the town like they did when I was a boy.

Some of that is due to those intrepid people who dreamed a dream and dared to see it through to fruition.

A precursor to today’s Water Cross. Anyone know more about this? That balloon has to make it a special event.

44

The Ely Winter Times

Books for Blizzards If you’re a fan of the lakes and forests along the Minnesota-Ontario border, there are two very special books to enrich your library this winter. A Year in the Wilderness is lush with photos of the 366 consecutive days that Dave and Amy Freeman spent in the Boundary Water Canoe Area Wilderness.

Experienced wilderness travelers, they had crossed North America by canoe and dogsled, among other impressive adventures. National Geographic named them Adventurers of the Year for 2014.

Their travels were part of their business, Wilderness Classroom, an interactive online educational venture that connects thousands of school children and their

2017-2018

teachers with wild places and the indigenous residents there. But Dave and Amy had never spent a whole year without a cafĂŠ, warm house, electric lights, or pizza delivery. For a year they did so with some elegance, some fumbling, occasional panic, but mostly lots of gratitude for this time in a large wilderness area. The book will appeal to Boundary Waters travelers who will recognize the lakes, portages, and campsites, but also to anyone who loves adventure tales. Many weeks of their travel involved water too thin to walk on and too thick to paddle through, so there is much creative problem solving and a bit of frustrated holing up. Try to imagine

45

re-entry after a year, and see if you can restrain yourself from skipping to the end of the book to see how they managed flying to Washington, DC two days after returning to civilization. This is also a wonderful title to pass on to future generations as a reminder of how precious wilderness is, and what it takes to preserve it.

In the decade between 1906 and 1916, Howard Greene joined a gang—his word for friends, sons, and brothers who went on canoe camping expeditions along the lakes and rivers of Minnesota, Ontario, and Wisconsin. Howard took along a Graflex camera and blank journals. When he returned home from each trip he created carefully-crafted books for each member of the travel group. His daughter who inherited these fine books loved reading through them and treasured the way they portrayed life a century ago and the adventures of this gang of paddlers. Realizing that others might also find them fascinating, she and the University of Minnesota Press have 46

created the book Border Country, worthy of the fine leather-bound volumes Harold Greene made years ago.

Here are the every day activities of canoe camping—many changed very little for today’s paddlers. Also here are the ways of camping before nylon, plastic, and sleeping bags; when Ojibwe families paddling birchbark canoes were met on the portages; when logging operations meant dams and sluiceways to portage around in what is today’s Boundary Water Canoe Area Wilderness and Quetico Provincial Park. The photos are amazingly crisp and clear; the writing straightforward with details of fish, bad weather, tough paddling, camaraderie, and hard-to-find portages in places that today’s Border Country canoe campers will recognize.

And speaking of generations of wilderness travelers, Canoeing with José is another pair of guys attempting to follow Eric Sevareid’s classic journey to Hudson Bay, as described in his book Canoeing with the Cree. But there is a big difference between these two and every other group that has provided an account of paddling that route. José is an inner city gang member convinced (sometimes by devious means) to make the trip by the author who, working as an inmate counselor, met José as a client.

Things didn’t go smoothly, of course, and the resulting tale is often humorous, sometimes tense, and always unpredictable. Whether getting waylaid

by José’s girlfriend in Winnipeg or becoming so hypothermic that death looks pretty attractive, Jon Lurie and his companion somehow keep going, until they don’t. No spoiler here—you’ll have to read it yourself to find out if they both make it.

Need a chilren’s book to send to your out-of-state families this holiday season?

Where Are All the Minnesotans? Lets everyone know that, except on the occasional windy thirty-below day when school is closed and it’s time to bake cookies, outside is where the fun is.

Whether they’re sledding, rounding up a The Ely Winter Times

game of pond hockey, skiing under the stars, ice fishing, or finding other winter fun, the quirky characters in this book entice children to don their mittens, scarves, hats, and boots and get out the door.

Once it’s time for a bedtime story on a chilly winter night, choose one of the seven fables in Seven Ways to Trick a Troll. Kindness, intelligence, patience, and courage are just a few of the human virtues that empower children to overcome trolls and other troublesome beings in their lives. In each story the trolls are distracted, defeated, or made so angry they burst apart when confronted with clever children’s courageous acts.

Entertaining, funny, but also meaningful, these stories were gleaned from folklore across the world to stir the imaginations of kids and those who read to them.

The title Onigamiising means “place of the short portage” in Ojibwe, and refers to Duluth, where travelers crossed what is now known as Park Point to move between Lake Superior and the St. Louis River. But the stories in this book contain the language, history, and spirit of Ojibwe people throughout northern Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. The topics range from ribbon skirts to boarding schools, pre-European contact to last week, babies to grandparents as if the reader were having a casual conversation 2017-2018

with the author, Linda LaGarde Grover, an Ojibwe Nokomis (grandmother), college professor, and award-winning author.

There’s much to learn about the language: the names of the four seasons, Mino-bimaadiziwin (the Good life), and that the Ojibwe word for moccasin is moccasin. And Indian culture in the modern world: pow-wows, traditional foods, and shopping at the mall. It’s everyday life, which in the best of situations infuses meaning and gratitude and awareness of life’s gifts into the consciousness and behavior of those seeking the Good life. This is a book that can be read for fun, for education, or for inspiration—or all three.

From another Indian culture we have The Sioux Chef, which is much more than a cookbook. Casual stories similar to those in Onigamiising blend with historical tidbits, foraging tips, wild food descriptions, and recipes to provide hours of browsing or moments of motivation to prepare food from the many ingredients you can find just out the door. Raised on his grandparents’ ranch on Pine Ridge in South Dakota, 47

author Sean Sherman began his chef career by feeding his younger siblings. Now famous for his innovative use of indigenous plants and animals, he has at last put not just his recipes, but also his philosophy of food and his wisdom around eating well, into a book that lets readers partake of his talents even if they miss his MPR shows or New York Times contributions.

Just in case you don’t have time to dig wild turnips or can’t locate a nest with duck eggs, the book provides alternatives you can find at your grocery store and resources for obtaining the more obscure items. One of the best parts of the book is a description of several events at which he has provided meals (“catered” just doesn’t fit what he does) and food education, and how the foods reflected the purposes of the gatherings. Readers will come to understand how much more there is to food than something to eat.

48

The Ely Winter Times

Winter 2017-2018 Ely Area Calendar

The Bridge, © Roy Misonznick, ElyPix.com Check Ely.org and ElyAlmanac.com, posters, WELY, local papers and the Ely Shopper for updates and additional events. Ely Folk School classes are at their website. Events listed are open to the public; some may require prior registration. A high school sports calendar is available at the school’s general office. VCC - Vermilion Community College. Area code is 218 unless noted. Most locations are shown on the maps on pages 27-30; church addresses are on page 31. No reason to ever complain about “nothing to do” in Ely ...

NOVEMBER

18, 10-3 19, 6:30pm 22,7pm 23, 5-8pm 23, 6-9pm 24-Dec 3, 24, 12-4 24, 4-7 25 25, 10-2 25, 5-7pm

Gifts that Give Fair, fair trade & local gifts, non-profits Grace Lutheran Church Thanksgathering Community Celebration LedgeRock Comm. Church Celebration of Thanksgiving First Lutheran Church Festival Tree Lighting, Silent Auction & Raffle, Northwoods Partners Grand Ely Lodge Thanksgiving Night Shopping, ely.org Downtown Ely Festival of Trees, Northwoods Partners fundraiser Grand Ely Lodge Holiday Fantasy & Craft Fair, StoneSoupEvents.net, sleigh rides & more Miners Dry Bill Bulinski & George Faber Live Northern Grounds Small Town Christmas, ely.org, Downtown Ely Holiday Fantasy & Craft Fair Miners Dry Christmas Parade and Tree Lighting, ely.org, Downtown Ely

DECEMBER 2, 11-1 3, 11:15 4, 5-7pm 9, 11am 9, 1-3pm

Santa Day, bring the kids to visit with Santa, free Children’s Slovenian St. Nicholas celebration, all welcome "Memories Returned" Art Exhibition Open House High School Nordic Ski Race, Ely Invitational Mrs. Claus Party w/ Santa, ely.org

2017-2018

Grand Ely Lodge Catholic Church Basement Art & Soul Gallery Hidden Valley Amici's Event Center

49

A Wee Cabin outhouse is one way not to worry about frozen pipes!

Cut your own Christmas tree. Permits $5 at the US Forest Service.

9, 1-3pm 9, 8pm-12 10, 1-4pm 10, 6-8pm 11, 3pm 14, 7pm 15, 4:30 16, 4-6pm 16, 7pm 20, 1:15pm 21, 4-5pm 23, 7pm 24, 6:30pm 28, 11am 31, TBA

Christmas Cookie Sale ($7/lb) & Dessert Social 1st Anniversary Celebration, Live Music and Specials Kids Christmas Workshop EMPOWER Holiday Potluck Gathering Friends of the Library Book Discussion, Hidden Figures Ely Schools Winter Concert & Art Show Accidental Ensemble Holiday Music Embarrass Finnish Ice Candle Celebration 984-2084 Zach Baltich Concert, northernlakesarts.org Elementary Winter Concert Pinterest Projects Annual Alumni Hockey Game Christmas Eve Candlelight Service Library Scientists - Stomp Rockets New Year’s Eve Party, tappas and bubbles

First Lutheran Church Northern Grounds Grace Lutheran Church Ely Folk School Ely Library Washington Auditorium Ely Library Embarrass Town Hall VCC Theater Washington Auditorium Ely Library Ely Ice Arena First Lutheran Church Ely Library Northern Grounds

JANUARY 6, 10am-3pm 7, 2pm 8, 3pm 8, 5-7pm 12, 7pm 13-14 50

KCPRO Ice Racing MN Youth Ski League begins, ages 4-14, mysl@elynordic.org Friends of the Library Book Discussion, Hillbilly Elegy "Eyes From Above" Art Exhibition Open House Middle School Musical Theater Wolf Family Rendezvous, wolf.org

Longbranch Hidden Valley Ely Library Art & Soul Gallery Washington Auditorium Int’l Wolf Center The Ely Winter Times

13-14 14, 2pm 15-16, 5:30-8 18-21 19-20 20, 9-12 23, 3-4:30 24-28 25, 4-7pm 27 29-Feb 3 31-Feb 2

“Reflect on This”, Watercolor Workshop by Sarah Guy Levar, 365-2263 The Art Corner Middle School Musical Theater Washington Auditorium Auditions for Ely Community Spring Musical, 365-5070 VCC Theater Knitting Retreat w/ Sisu Designs, 365-6613 Camp duNord North Country by Dogsled, wolf.org Int’l Wolf Center Junk Journal Making, 365-2263 The Art Corner Metal Tooling Workshop Ely Library Northland 300 Snowmobile Ride, www.northland300.org Ely-Two Harbors Wine Tasting and live music, EWF fundraiser Northern Grounds Annual Fun Run rally, snowmobilefunrun.com Ely, Babbitt, Tower NLAA Amateur Snow Carving Contest Whiteside Park 3rd Annual Bird Feeder Design Contest rootbeerlady.com for rules and entry

FEBRUARY

1-11 1-11 1, 11am 2-3 2, 4-7pm 2, 6pm 2, 7-9pm 3-4, 10-5pm 3, 10am

Ely Winter Festival, elywinterfestival.com Ely ArtWalk, free guide at Front Porch and Chamber High School Nordic Ski Race, Ely Pursuits Wolves after Dark, wolf.org, Annual Spaghetti Dinner, Ely Comm. Resource fundraiser Great Nordic Beard Fest: Great Nordic Belt Concert: Twins of Franklin Open House and Tours Planetarium Fun, all ages

Ely Area Downtown Ely Hidden Valley Int'l Wolf Center Catholic Church Boathouse Brewpub Ely Folk School Dorothy Molter Museum VCC Gym

3, 10-1pm 3, 10-4 3, 11-2 3, 12-4 3, 1-3pm 3, 4pm 3, 6pm 3, 7-9pm 4, 2-4pm 5, 5-7pm 6, 7pm

Open House Downtown Arts Market, NLAA, 365-5070 for booth Whirlwind Family Activity Day Annual Fish Fry for All, yum... 365-6900 Ely ArtWalk Meet the Artists Traveling Telescopes with Mike Lynch Great Nordic Beard Fest: Main Competition Night Sky Show, elywinterfestival.com Performance: The Sebastian Project “Night Sky” Art Exhibition Open House Arrowhead Concert Association: Belov & Penn Duo

VCC campus TBA Dorothy Molter Museum Veterans on the Lake The Art Corner TBA Boathouse Brewpub TBA VCC Theater Art & Soul Gallery Washington Auditorium

Get schedules for the Ely Winter Festival & Wolf Track Classic online or in town the week prior to the event.

2017-2018

51

9, 5pm Dorothy Molter Annual Fundraising Dinner, 365-4451 Grand Ely Lodge 9-11 Winter Survival in the Northwoods, wolf.org Int’l Wolf Center 10-11, 10-5 Open house and tours Dorothy Molter Museum 10, 10-4 Kubb Tournament Whiteside Park 10, 2:30-4:30 Mesabi Symphony Orchestra Concert Washington Auditorium 10, 4pm Int’l Dark Sky Initiative & Amateur Astonomy w/Bob Kind TBA 12, 3pm Friends of the Library Book Club Ely Library 13, 7pm Star Trail Photography & Aurora Photography w./Ely Photographic Collaborative TBA 17, 9-12 Playing with Acrylics, 365-2263 The Art Corner 17-20 Great Backyard Bird Count, BirdSource.org/gbbc Ely and USA 20, 10:30 Vintage Aprons with Mary Lulari Ely Library 23-25 Wine, Women and Wolves: Northwoods Winter, wolf.org Int’l Wolf Center 23-25 12th MN Snow Run - Pink Ribbon Riders Grand Ely Lodge 24-25 10th Annual WolfTrack Classic Sled Dog Race, WolfTrackClassic.com Ely area 24 WolfTrack Classic Vet Checks, bring the family and meet the dogs VCC Parking Lot 24 WolfTrack Classic Musher Dinner TBA 25 WolfTrack Classic Sled Dog Race Starts TBA 2, all day BW Choral Festival & Concert at 7pm Washington Auditorium 2, 6pm Babbitt Figure Skating Show Ron Castellano Ice Arena 3, 9am High School Speech Meet Ely High School 3, 1pm Babbitt Figure Skating Show Ron Castellano Ice Arena 5, 5-7pm “Black & White” Art Exhibition Open House Art & Soul Gallery 8, 7pm Music in Our Schools Concert Washington Auditorium 10, 5:30pm Starry Night - Adult Prom, dinner and dancing, 365-2263 Amici's Event Center 12, 3pm Friends of the Library Book Club Ely Library 15-24 Ely Community Spring Musical, see posters for dates & times VCC Theater 24, 9-12 Fabric in Not Just for Wearing, 365-2263 The Art Corner 17, 7pm St. Patrick’s Day Dance: Friends on the Range Ely Folk School Apr ?

Annual ECR Art Auction, ElyCommunityResource.org TBA Apr 2, 5-7 “Ely Schools Show”Art Exhibition Open House Art & Soul Gallery Apr 9, 3pm Friends of the Library Book Club Ely Library Apr 18-27 Basics of Log Construction, 365-2126 Great Lakes School April 21, 9-12 Junk Journal Making, 365-2263 The Art Corner Apr 27 Arrowhead Concert Association: Prime Time Trio Babbitt HS Auditorium Apr 28, 6pm Jr.-Sr. Prom Grand March Washington Auditorium May 4, 7pm 4th & 5th Grades Musical Washington Auditorium May 8, 7pm VCC Graduation VCC Gymnasium May 8-18 Basics of Log Construction, 365-2126 (Register Early) Great Lakes School May 11, 7pm Middle School Musical Washington Auditorium May 12, Minnesota Fishing Opener Ely Area Lakes May 13, 2pm Middle School Musical Washington Auditorium May 15, 7pm Middle School Spring Concert & Art Show Washington Auditorium May 17, 7pm High School Spring Concert & Art Show, Washington Auditorium May 18, 7pm Studio North Dance Recital Washington Auditorium May 19 Jeremy Hiltbrunner Cystic Fibrosis Walleye Contest, 235-8134 Silver Rapids May 19, 2pm Studio North Dance Recital Washington Auditorium May 19-20, 9-4 Remember When Mixed Media Adventure, 365-2263 The Art Corner To be continued in the Ely Summer Times. Watch for it about May 20th.

Call or email your events for listings: 365-3375, raven@ravenwords.com

52

The Ely Winter Times

Regularly Scheduled Events (open to all - newcomers and beginners)

Mon thru Fri Mon thru Thu Mon, Wed, Fri Monday 2nd Monday 4th Monday Tuesday not Dec. Tuesday Tues bi-weekly Tuesday Wednesday Wednesday 2nd Wednesday 3rd Wednesday Thursday 1st Thursday 2nd Thursday 4th Thursday Friday Friday 1st Friday Fri, Sat Saturday Saturday Saturday 3rd Sat Sunday Sunday Sunday

Seniors’ Dinner, noon, all ages (60+$4) 24-hrs reservation 365-4139 Sr Citizens Ctr Open Swimming, 8am - 8pm Grand Ely Lodge Pickle Ball, 8:30-11 am, elyclasses.com VCC Gym Ely Community Health Ctr free clinic, 5:30-7 40 N. 1st Ave E. Friends of the Library Book Group Discussion Ely Library Memory Care Support Group, 10 am, 365-8019 Ely Hospital NHRP office Tuesday Group (Speakers & discussion), noon Grand Ely Lodge Ice Skating, kids welcome 1:30-2:30, elyclasses.com Ely Ice Rink Ely Farmers Market, 5-7pm Grace Lutheran Church Knitting Help Night, 6:30-8:30 Sisu Yarn Shop Memory & Movement Senior Exercise. 10:30, 365-8019 Senior Center Women’s Basketball, 7-8:30pm, elyclasses.com Ely Memorial Gym Ely Field Naturalists, 7 pm, 235-8078 CL 104, VCC Food Shelf open 11-6 15 W. Conan Community Exercise, all welcome, 365-8019 First Lutheran Church Writers’ Group, 5 pm, 365-2654 Boathouse Restaurant Ely Garden Club, 7 pm Mar-Oct, 365-5607 Grace Lutheran Church Heart of the Woods Quilters, 6:30 pm, 365-4907 Ledgerock Church basement Pre-School Story Time, 10:30 am, 365-5140 Ely Public Library Watercolor Painting Sessions, 9:15-12:00, 365-5696 Ledgerock Church Friday with Friends, 365-2992 Tranquility Wellness Ctr Ely Rec Center open for 5-12 grade, 4--9 pm Ely Rec Center Open Knitting, beginners welcome, free 1-3 pm Sisu Yarn Shop What’s for Dinner? 7 pm, 365-4695 Int’l Wolf Center Karaoke, 9 to Close Ely Steak House Community Kitchen, all welcome for dinner Ledgerock Church Ely Rec Center open for 5-12 grade, 4--9 pm Ely Rec Center Vermilion Range Amateur Radio Club Meeting Front Porch See church services and locations in Spiritual Gatherings, page 31.

NLAA was able to open a gallery on Sheridan Street last summer with the funding they received from 100+Women.

100+ Women Who Care In April 2017, 73 Ely women gathered together to make a positive difference in the Ely community. They didn’t need to form an organization— most of them were already up to their noses in volunteer activities and board positions. They didn’t need to go to more meetings every month, or discuss a strategic plan, or fill in IRS paperwork.

They just spent two hours munching appetizers and sweets, sipping wine, and listening to one another talk about their favorite Ely non-profits. Then they voted, wrote a check, and went home and told their friends. A total of 113 women joined and donated.

Six months later, 126 women gathered or sent in donations. As word spreads, the group grows, and more

54

good is done. All women are welcome to the next event in April.

Shortly after that first meeting, Northern Lakes Arts Association (NLAA) received the donors’ checks totaling $7,000. An organization that sponsors concerts and theater productions and supports the arts and artists in the Ely area, NLAA was able to open a gallery on Sheridan Street for the summer, displaying and selling the works of many local artists, and also earning enough to expand their contributions to the arts community for the coming year.

Ely Community Resource, responsible for many activities that benefit Ely’s youth in and out of the schools, received the award in November. More than $7,000 will help ensure that the Ely Rec Center is staffed and can be open consistently for youth to have a hang-out spot, ice skate in the outdoor rink, have movie nights and dances, and be well supervised.

Only registered non-profits are considered for receiving the award, with the stipulations being that they use the money wisely to further their mission, The Ely Winter Times

ART Venues & Information

Andy Messerschmidt

Art & Soul Gallery 427 E. Sheridan Street The Art Corner 301 West Sheridan Street The Brandenburg Gallery JimBrandenburg.com Chris Koivisto Ceramics ElyArt.com Ely Art Walk ElyArtWalk.com Ely Greenstone ElyGreenstone.org

Ornamental Hermit Studio

Ely Photographic Collaborative Find it on Facebook Front Porch Coffee & Tea Co. 343 East Sheridan Street Gardner Trust GardnerTrust.org Heidi Pinkerton RootRiverPhotography.com Kess Gallery and Frame Shop 130 East Sheridan Street Northern Lakes Arts Assn.

ElyArts.org

and the money must be spent in the Ely area. The donations are a windfall, with no grant-writing, phone calls, donor letters, or fundraisers needed so the charity can focus all its efforts on its purpose.

Ely has more than 40 non-profit organizations that qualify for nomination.

The scary part for some women is having to get up in front of everyone to present their entry, but the atmosphere is casual and speakers always receive plenty of

Ornamental Hermit Studio 132 N 1st Ave E The Pottery Shop 127 East Sheridan St. Snotty Moose Studio SnottyMooseStudio.com Steve Foss Images SteveFossImages.com Taste of Ely, upstairs 117 N. Central Tofte Lake Center TofteLake.com

kudos and applause from attendees, who may be inspired to support that charity through volunteering or future donations.

If you’re a woman with an interest in Ely you’re welcome to join, whether or not you can attend the event. You can learn more at their Facebook page, 100+ Ely Women Who Care, or the website, 100ElyWomenWhoCare.org, where you can download a registration form and sign up for email alerts.

The April 2017 gathering of 100+ Ely Women Who Care at Hidden Valley Chalet

www.RavenWords.com

Local Authors & Artists • Boundary Waters Calendar • Award-Winning Books 2017-2018

55