Trail Report

It's time for the unofficial Trail Report! In my ranking system, all of these hikes start with a 10/10 because the Superior Hiking Trail is beautiful, well-maintained, and free to use. Then, points are added or deducted based on my experience hiking the trail.

Carlton Peak from Britton Peak - Sunday, July 10

We started strong Sunday morning with the lovely 3.4-mile out and back trail to Carlton Peak. It was a very pleasant and gradual hike with a few steeper climbs near the summit. +1 for not being overrun, despite it being a beautiful Sunday morning. +1 for the large granite slabs at the summit. -3 for the mosquito action. Overall, a very respectable 9/10 and well worth your time!

White Sky Rock and Caribou Lake - Monday, July 11

This mini-hike makes a great pre-swim warm-up. With a stellar climb-to-pay-off ratio, White Sky Rock is a great option if you are in the area and are looking for a hike under one mile. +1 for a great view, -1 for the steep climb, +2 for the swimming option at the Caribou Lake public water access at the end of the hike, and -2 for the super short nature of the hike. So overall she's a 10 when you take the swim into account as well!

Oberg Mountain Loop - Tuesday, July 12

This hike is the region's most popular, and for good reason. With more scenic viewpoints than we have any right to expect (+3), this trail delivers pure hiking joy. Honestly, I only have good things to say, and it easily deserves a 13/10 or more.

Leveaux Mountain - Wednesday, July 13

Another beautiful morning for a hike! This was a rewarding 3.2-mile that starts from the same parking lot as Oberg Mountain. +1 for the amazing cedar forest and fresh pine scent that starts the hike off strong. -2 for a bridge that is clearly marked as structurally deficient. -3 for the mosquitos, although that may be a result of the previous night's rain more than the trail's topography. +1 for the very cool overlook with a glacial erratic conveniently posed for a photo. Overall, a solid 7/10. It's got to be hard to be the less popular sister of Oberg Mountain, so let's make sure we give Leveaux Mountain some love too.

Temperance River - Thursday, July 14

I didn't really follow this route, but you can see my full route on Strava here. This hike does follow the SHT, but the parking area is run by Temperance River State Park, so you need a State Parks annual or daily parking pass to park (-1). This hike gets major points (+3) for not climbing a mountain, and therefore being very flat. An additional +1 for the notable lack of bugs! There was a group cliff jumping higher up the river, and the margin of error for landing on rocks was so small that I nearly had a heart attack (I would subtract points, but should we really blame human stupidity on the trail?). Overall, this trail was extremely beautiful, impressive, well-maintained, and had cell phone service to boot. 13/10.

We loved it so much that we did the same trail again on 7/15.

Did we miss your favorite regional hike? Drop us a line and let us know!

Happy Trails!

Dessa with Aviva Jaye and Jelly

Dessa is my longtime musical crush. I've seen her perform at venues as diverse as The Minnesota State Fair, DC's Black Cat, The Minneapolis Women's Club, and with The Minnesota Orchestra. Dessa has a near magical ability to appeal to diverse and seemingly incongruous audiences. Yet I was still blown away by her ability to charm a completely random crowd at Papa Charlie's in Lutsen, Minnesota this Wednesday night along with bandmates Aviva Jaye and Jelly.

Watching Dessa walk purposefully back and forth across the dining room to the stage, the sound booth, the bar, and so on only 10 minutes before show time, I assumed that it might be a more casual show. But Dessa brought the same energy, passion, and professionalism to this Lutsen show as to all of her other performances.

Dessa was the first to say that the crowd was confusing and hodge-podge. "I have no idea why any of you are here," she admitted, adding that she recognized some faces from other Minnesota shows and from previous years at Papa Charlie's. Dessa spoke directly with Table 6 late in the show, applauding them for challenging her assumptions. "That table is going to like songs 4, 6, and 12," she related hypothesizing about the middle-aged white group at Table 6. Instead, one of the women was furiously chair-dancing during all of the fast rap songs. Dessa described the man next to the chair dancer as an enigma wrapped in a hunting jacket, to which he proudly pulled a Superman pose with his hunting jacket.

The dance floor was full of old Doomtree fans, new IDES fans, and one towheaded little girl who out-danced all of us. At some point mid-song, Dessa asked the bar for a shot of whiskey. When an audience member was too slow bringing it up to her, she took matters into her own hands, stopping the song and coming into the crowd to get it herself.

Dessa's set list paid homage to her earlier work, including Dixon's Girl, Call Off Your Ghost, Fighting Fish, and Dear Marie. As always, her lyrics were timely and haunting. The crowd went crazy for I Already Like You, from Dessa's latest release, IDES. By the encore, we were all yelling along to Fire Drills "I think a woman's worth / I think that she deserves / A better line of work / Than motherfucking vigilance / Don't give me vigilance / By definition you can't make a difference / If the big ambition / Is simply standing sentry to your innocence / That's not a way to live / That can't be what a woman is / That gives her nothing to aspire to / What that is / What that is / Is just a life of running fire drills".

By the end of the night, Dessa had the chair dancer and the enigma out on the dance floor standing up to dance. If you missed the show, check out her upcoming shows here. You won't be disappointed.

Dessa Performing in Lutsen 7/13/22

Past Dessa Sightings

Lovely Lutsen

Hello From the North Shore

Little Pringle pup and I are lucky to be traveling in Northern Minnesota this week! We are staying at just the cutest Airbnb in Tofte, MN. I have to say that stays up here get super pricy super fast, so be sure to book well in advance (we booked this cabin with no running water in December to ensure a good deal).

One of my favorite things to do up here is to listen to WTIP, North Shore Community Radio. Not only do they have great shows and local volunteer DJs, but they also keep you in the loop about community events. I'm currently listening to Swing Session, and Polka Time is up next. Honestly, what's not to love?

Pringle and I went for a great hike this morning at Carlton Peak. The pup was a trooper, although he did get the zoomies and run around like a loony toon at unpredictable times. The trail, part of the SHT, was very well maintained and beautiful the whole way out and back. The view from the top was perfection. The only issue was the mosquitos, which I hear are particularly bad this year. Overall, I give it a 9/10, pretty good for our first hike.

We also visited the Grand Marais Arts Festival, and had the pleasure of meeting the one and only Betsy Bowen! Betsy is well known in Minnesota for her woodblock prints and illustrated children's books. I was first exposed to printmaking through her work, and it was incredible to meet the woman behind the press. She inspired me to continue searching for somewhere to make relief prints in the Twin Cities.

I would be remiss if I didn't give Voyageur Brewing a shoutout here as well. Voyageur was where I had my first legal beer in the US back in 2015. Since then, they have expanded and now have a dog-friendly patio with a full menu! Pringle enjoyed trying to eat the deck while I enjoyed a blueberry sour (honestly a little too sweet for my taste, but when in Rome!).

We're excited to be up here all week before we go into the Boundary Waters next Sunday, so if you have any North Shore recommendations, please send them our way!

Happy Trails!