Summer is Here

We have spent the last two weekends at graduations.  Brian’s son, Sam, drew us to California.  This fall Sam is on his way to the University of San Francisco where he is entered into a 4-year nursing program.  It was great to see him with a plan in mind for the future.

Last weekend Shawn’s daughter, Emma, took her place in the graduation march.  We get her for the summer as a server in the dining room.  After that Emma is off to St. Thomas University where she plans to major in business.  Like her cousin, it is great to see her moving forward.

During all this time, the seasons continued to move forward here at Gunflint.  Spring was gone.  The leaves are out and it seems like summer.  The leaves on the trees look really great.  I think we are finished with evening freezes.  That means it is time to start planting.

We planted a few things before the graduations.  They survived cool weather.  The green bean leaves were munched to nothing by what we assume was a rabbit.  They are growing more leaves but it put them back.  After I am finished with the blog, I will be going out to plant more flowers and vegetables.  There is a nice breeze so hopefully the bugs will not be too bad.

We had an interesting happening over on the Round Lake Road.  Just as you make the sharp left turn before the public landing, there is a small creek that comes in from the right and goes through a culvert to the Cross River.  It is so small that I think most people never see it.  That all changed the other day.  Somewhere above the creek there must be a beaver dam creating a pond.  With all the heavy spring melt and rains, the dam gave way over night.  Suddenly there was a flash flood taking out the road and rushing into the Cross River.  This brown mess of mud and dirt ran into Gunflint Lake.  It also ran into the water system of Cross River Lodge.  Their faucets were giving out brown water.  It all clears up in a day or so but at the time it is not nice to deal with.  Also the county had to come up to rebuild the road and put a new culvert in.  Even beaver engineers make occasional errors in judgment.

Speaking of rebuilding roads, about 6 miles of the Gunflint Trail is being rebuilt by our side road.  I think that section of the road has been rebuilt once in the 46 years that I have lived here.  You can be sure that it really needed some help.  The spring frost heaves slowed us all down.  I will not miss them at all.  It is surprising to see all the new culverts that are going in.  I suppose that will take care of the spring bumps and dips.

This is all you are getting.  My garden is calling me.