We Found Your Missing Lynx: If you've lost some lynx (lynxes?), you might want to try Shuniah, just up from Thunder Bay. Three of the big kitties decided to hang out on the deck of Susan Thompson's home there. Susan told Jessica Faulds of Cottage Life, “There were three of them on the deck, leaping in the trees trying to catch squirrels. After leaping from tree to tree, they decided to watch us from our front deck.” The family dog and cat also appeared fascinated by the wild visitors, and Susan speculates the lynx, which did not seem deterred by knocking on the window or even honks from the family truck, were trying to lure out the dog with hisses and meows. Pooch Tyson stayed safely inside. “My husband and I have lived in Shuniah, Ontario, for 14 years and have seen lynx on the road and in the bush, but we have never experienced a close encounter like this," Susan told Jessica. Since the cats were in no hurry to leave, Susan did manage to make some terrific photos, a couple shared here.
Thinking Small, Y'all: Weather willing and the snow and ice don’t rise, we’ll be waiting for you here at 310 E. Superior St. tomorrow (Nov. 30) at the Lake Superior Gift Shop. Our editor will be greeting at the HUGE BOOK SALE by the door and the more knowledgeable staff will be inside to help with all your holiday shopping and with offers of treats and coffee and samples of regional hot chocolate (which we also sell). We're having a clear-out-the-stuff RUMMAGE SALE, too. So visit from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. If the driving turns nasty, we will not open tomorrow, but will shift our specials and sales to next week on Dec. 7! If you want to make sure the doors are open, watch our Facebook page, where we'll post the latest update.
74 & Counting: Wisconsin underwater archeologist Tamara Thomsen posted some good news about a wreck located near Port Wing, Wisconsin. "So excited – received notification that Thomas Friant was listed to the National Register of Historic Places! A big thank you to Tom Crossmon/ Crossmon Consulting, LLC for his help with ROV work during our survey, to Ken Merryman and Jerry Eliason for sharing their early diver and drop camera footage, to Titus Seilheimer for his help identifying equipment, and especially to Marti Peterson for generously sharing her family's history with the vessel! #74 – Woooo!" The 74 refers to the number of wrecks in Wisconsin waters now on the National Register. Good work all around, History Folk! Wisconsinshipwrecks.org (a highly recommended site) has a good page on the Friant, built in 1884 and sank in January 1924 to a depth of 300 feet. It got stuck in ice, which caused major leaks, and it was unable to return to Cornucopia. Before it sank, the fishermen in the giant fishing tug all made it safely to shore, though, in a small boat on board.
Meanwhile, in 1905: Another hunter and preserver of wrecks, diver Tim Pranke of the Great Lakes Shipwreck Preservation Society, posted some great 3D work of the 436-foot Madeira, drowned at Gold Cliff near Split Rock Lighthouse as one of 17 damaged vessels during the Nov. 28, 1905, Mataafa Storm. Tim mentioned the heroism of one crewmember: "Realizing they were quickly breaking up, seaman Fred Bensen threw a coil of rope over his shoulder and at the next heave of a wave jumped to and climbed the cliff. Once on top he tied the rope to a tree and dropped it down to the deck. The rest of the crew was able to climb to safety except for the Mate who climbed the rigging and was never seen again." The GLSPS, past winner of the Lake Superior Magazine Achievement Award, monitors many Lake Superior wrecks, including the Madeira.
New Incarnation: "Over the past 47 years, your families have grown with ours and we thank you for choosing our resort and restaurant as a location to celebrate your special events and vacation experiences." It was with these words on Facebook that Karen, Ben, Sylvia, Army, Robin, Dustyn and Doris bid "Auf wiedersehen" to the friends of Lake Shore Salzburger Hof Resort in Batchawana Bay, Ontario. The Salzburger Hof, known for its Austrian cuisine and warm staff, was sold Nov. 14 to the Batchewana First Nations "for private use." The resort was purchased by Ann and Ralph Elsigan in 1972, and they developed it into the Salzburger Hof that harkened to their home country of Austria, from which they emigrated in the 1950s. Ann (in photo) died in March 2018, and her children took over the resort. "This is a bittersweet moment in our lives as we made the sale our parents wanted," the family said in the post. How many lives they touched is obvious from the 85+ comments, many echoing this one: "We will miss your exceptional food and friendly service. You have always made us feel special and like we were family. You will be so missed by us!"
Where the H2O Benefits Live: A study mapping ways in which people benefit from large bodies of water was published recently in the journal Ecosystem Services by University of Minnesota Duluth Large Lakes Observatory researchers. "Humans are drawn to water – in fact, the earliest human cultures likely arose near large lakes in Africa," lead author Bob Sterner, director of the Large Lakes Observatory and professor of biology, is quoted in the University of Minnesota release about the study. "However, until now, we have not had a solid framework for understanding the specific ways people benefit from these immense bodies of fresh water. Our study illustrates how the benefits people gain from nature depend greatly on the social and ecological context of the communities that surround these lakes." How communities use their lakes varies, the release notes. "These ecological and social factors greatly affect the way different communities utilize their large lakes: The Great Lakes of North America are important economic drivers, supporting power generation, freight transportation and recreation for the U.S. and Canada; fisheries in the African Great Lakes are a tremendously important source of protein in a location where malnutrition is common; other lakes provide important sources of water for irrigation or for human consumption." The study identified and tracked quantitative data for most of seven large-lakes ecosystems identified by the researchers. "Fresh water is distributed unevenly across the globe," the research abstract notes. "Earth’s 21 largest lakes hold 2/3 of all global, liquid, surface, fresh water and occupy diverse ecological and social settings." According to the study, recreation, fisheries and commerce are the main ways these watery resources are used.
Oh Buoy! All Done for the Season: On Nov. 26, the Superior Watershed Partnership and Land Conservancy sent out a notice about the buoy retrieval in the Marquette area. "Braving rain, sleet and cold a small scientific team recently ventured out onto Lake Superior to retrieve the last wave and weather monitoring buoy still deployed near the town of Grand Marais (Mich.). This concludes the fifth consecutive year of the 'Superior Buoys' program, now funded by Northern Michigan University and coordinated by the Superior Watershed Partnership in cooperation with Lentic Environmental Services. The program includes three state-of-the-art monitoring buoys that are usually deployed near Grand Marais, Munising and Marquette." Most of the buoys and webcams are offline for the winter season, but the camera at lonely Stannard Rock Lighthouse remains on (for now) and videos are posted. "Since 2015, the buoys have provided valuable nearshore marine weather and wave data to the National Weather Service, U.S. Coast Guard, National Park Service, and recreational and commercial boating operations from Marquette to Grand Marais," the story notes. "This includes measurement of the largest wave height ever recorded on the Great Lakes (28.8 feet), which was measured by buoys at Granite Island and Munising on October 24, 2017. … The largest wave heights measured this year were a 14-foot wave event at Grand Marais on November 15 and a 9-foot wave event near Munising on October 16." The buoy program resumes early next summer, including redeployment of a Granite Island buoy. "We've gotten a lot of positive feedback and support from the communities and agencies that use the buoy data," the story quotes Dr. John Lenters from Lentic Environmental Services, "and we look forward to continuing to provide them with valuable marine weather data in 2020." The well-respected Partnership celebrated its 20th anniversary this year.
Artfully Thankful: The Village Gift Store in L'Anse, Michigan, posted a thank you note earlier this week to local artist Bryan Welsh, who turned the store's outside wall into work of art (seen in this before and after photo). "Thank you Bryan for painting not only a beautiful mural for our building, but for creating a wonderful new landmark for the Village of L'Anse! You did it!! And we love it! Now we can't wait till spring so we can finish up the last little details, landscaping and sculpture installation!" We can't wait until spring, too – for the mural and lots of other reasons (just joking winter lovers).
Photo & graphic credits: Susan Thompson; Small Business Saturday; C. Patrick Labadie Collection/Wisconsin Historical Society; Tim Pranke; Lake Shore Salzburger Hof Resort; UMD Large Lakes Observatory; Superior Watershed Partnership; The Village Store