February Afternoon on West Bearskin

Gunflint Trail, MN - A beautiful afternoon overlooking West Bearskin Lake from the Caribou Rock Trail.  

Enchanted Winter Night

The night sky this past week has been incredible.  First we had nice cold temps around zero or just below, now we've got really mild temps with daytime highs approaching 40 degrees.  This usually will bring in cloud cover but that hasn't been the case the past couple of nights. I heard the northern lights were even visible one night.  Unfortunately I've been recovering from a cold for much of this week so I haven't been able to get out and enjoy the warmer temps.  This photo was made on one of the colder nights. It was taken along Old Highway 61 in Grand Portage, MN.

Night Ice, Lake Superior shoreline

Here is another photo from the other night when I went out to photograph the ice and stars.  For this one, there was a vehicle approaching behind me on Highway 61.  It was about a mile away but due to the curve of the shoreline and the road and the lack of trees between the highway and the lake, the headlights illuminated the ice in front of me for about 20 seconds out of this 30 second exposure.  It was a subtle illumination though and I rather like the way that it accented this scene. 

Stars over the Ice Fortress

Last night I got out to enjoy the clear, cold weather and the crisp views of the night sky.  I drove about a half hour down the shore to a place where there are some awesome ice formations. Waves from Lake Superior have splashed up and coated a bunch of the shoreline trees in ice.  I've been wanting to photograph the icy trees with the night sky for some time.  Last night the conditions were perfect for doing just that. 

Otter tracks in deep snow...

This was fun to find the other day while driving through the Superior National Forest!  There was a small creek with just a little bit of open water and the otter trail went right into it (or came out from it?).  I can only imagine how cool this shot would have been if I had seen the otter bounding his way through the snow!

Mountain Ash Berries

I've been seeing a lot of Mountain Ash berries this winter, but until now none of them have caught my eye enough to pull over and take a picture of them.  When I saw this bunch I couldn't resist.  There were so many clumps and the berries were still in pretty good shape.  And they all had nice little caps of snow sitting on them!

Lone Tree

An interesting tree and its shadow that caught my eye while on my way to work the other day. 

Winter at Trail Center

A typical winter day at Trail Center along the Gunflint Trail in northern Minnesota. The snowmobiles outnumber the cars and trucks. If you've been up the Gunflint but never stopped at Trail Center, check it out sometime.  Great food and great people!  I can't resist their maple milkshake :-) 

Winter Fish Camp

An intriguing scene, one that I could not resist taking a picture of, while hiking the Caribou Rock Trail along the Gunflint Trail in northern Minnesota.  The snowmobile tracks sure made for an interesting photo. 

Wispy Winter Sky

This was a cool sight to see as I drove along County Road 60 near Grand Marais, MN the other day.  These clouds which looked like waves definitely begged for a stop to take their picture.  

Fresh Snow Morning

The drive to work yesterday was extra special thanks to roughly 4 inches of fresh, wet snow that coated everything in a beautiful blanket of white!

Winter Fog on the Gunflint Trail

A rare but beautiful thing when it occurs, fog obscures the view of a fire-scarred hillside near the end of the Gunflint Trail in late January in Cook County, Minnesota.