The Chippewa Treaty at the Old Crossing of Red Lake River.

From the 1840's to the 1870's thousands of two wheel ox carts came and went from St. Paul Minnesota to the Red River Colony (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada). They carried badly needed trade goods through forested and swampy areas of north western Minnesota. The route used between St. Paul and Winnipeg became known as the "Woods Trail" because of the forested area south of Detroit Lakes. Locally the trail is called the Pembina Trail. The more westerly trail along the Red River of the North was dangerous because of attacks by the Dakota Sioux, so ox cart drivers began using the Woods Trail which was in an area controled by the Ojibwe then known as the Chippewa. In 1863, the lands in Northwestern Minnesota belonging to the Ojibwe were ceded to the United States at Hout, Minnesota.

The Red Lake Band and the Pembina Band of Ojibwe signed away their ownership to over 5,000,000 acres of very fertile lands of the Red River Valley land extending 30 miles on each side of the Red River of the North. This was the sixth session of land in Minnesota by the Ojibwe and it opened up homesteading after the Civil War primarily as a reward to the displaced veterans who had served the Union Forces. There was also pressure from an influx of immigrants from northern European countries looking for land.

The treaty was misrepresented to the Ojibwe bands with some show of force as a needed route for trade and travel and not as a land grab. Episcopal Bishop Henry Whipple stated sometime after the treaty was signed that the treaty was "from beginning to end a fraud...".

Federal Airborne Reaction Twits (F.A.R.T.) screw Minnesotans

The Devils Lake Journal reported in an article titled "clearing air may raise power costs in MN, ND", that a federal program to "cut haze in natural areas like national parks" will raise electric rates even more. The only haze that is polluting this area of Minnesota and North Dakota is from the hot air coming from politicians and bureaucrats.

Kristi Schlosser Carlson, an attorney for Minnkota, said early tests also show the EPA's technology will not work with the lignite coal used in Minnkota's plant. Schlosser Carlson said the cooperative prefers a technology that cleans the air without more big rate increases for members. What the EPA wants would cost a half billion dollars but visibility improvements would not be noticeably. Half a billion dollars from the people of Minnesota and North Dakota who cannot afford it with no visible improvements and no one will say anything because no one want to be accused of being on the side of pollution. Just shut up and pay the bill even if it is a stupid fix that does not work.

Bufo hemiophrys (Canadian Toad)

While mowing the lawn I came across quite a few of these little toads. The Canadian toad also known as the Dakota toad or the Manitoba Toad is remarkable because it survives the cold winters of this area. The cranial boss or bump between the eyes is the only way to distinguish this toad from the American toad. This little guy survives the winter in a burrow below frost line. Many will overwinters communally within small earth mounds, called mima mounds. These mounds sometimes hold several hundred toads over the winter. It would be interesting to find one of these mounds in the fall and spring to see what it looks like. Canadian toads have glands in their skin that puts off a bad tasting liquid that can make animals that try to eat them sick. You will find that this liquid squirts out of them as soon as you try to pick one up.

Clearwater Lake MN East of Clearbrook

One of the most attractive lakes in North West Minnesota is Clearwater Lake and true to its name the water is realitively clear for this area. There is very little published information on this lake and I could find very little information online about it. I would need to go to the county seat of Clearwater County, which is Bagley, Minnesota and do the paper and pen type of reasearch there. What I have found online is that the Clearwater lake as we know it is the result of gravity dam on the Clearwater River. It is owned by the state of Minnesota and has been there since 1931. The length is sixty feet and County Highway 4 uses the dam to cross the river. What is really nice is there are a number of islands on the west side of the lake and a few of the islands have homes and cabins on them.

DNR's Web site is Closed but Gov. Dayton's is up

Without really thinking about the government shutdown I logged on to the computer after coffee and wanted to find the access to a lake I had never fished on. Well that was a dead end because the MN DNR shut down their site "MN Lake Finder" because of the budget impasse. I tried other DNR sites, all of which are shut down. Then, I thought to myself "I bet the governors web site is up and running". I was right on the money. It is up and running and there is a place to contact him with your thoughts.

Now I just wanted lake access information, no big deal, but other people have had to cancel plans because the parks are closed. Some have had made reservations a year or more in advance and payed for them, but yet the governor's site is up.

There are two questions. Number one question if a revenue generating site like the DNR's is compelled to shut down, then why is the governor's still up and running? Number two, is this being done for political reasons?
Blame who you want, any politician who has a Minnesota government fund site up and running should have it shut down and that includes the Governor Dayton.

You Don't Need No Fricking Fishing license!

Midnight, June 30th is the cut off for the purchase of fishing licenses, so says the state Minnesota, but the DNR will still catch you if you are over the limit. Whats funny is the FAQ that the DNR has put out. Fishing is of course number 2 and 3 on the FAQ. This says quite alot about Minnesotans and what matters to them.
Here is the FAQ:

2. Am I still able to purchase a fishing license?

No. The sale of all fishing, hunting and trapping licenses, including online and telephone sales, will be suspended as of midnight, June 30. Likewise, no boat, ATV or other licenses will be sold.

All natural resource and license laws will remain in effect during a shutdown and will be enforced.

3. What are the implications for a shutdown to anglers?

Licensed anglers can continue to fish. All existing rules and regulations will be in force. A mid-season walleye fishing regulation adjustment on Lake Mille Lacs will be delayed or cancelled depending upon the length of the shutdown.

I understand the need for the DNR to enforce fishing laws but wouldn't selling licenses bring in much needed revenue for the state?

Powassan Virus In Minnesota

According to the Winona Daily News the first death in Minnesota was recorded on Wednesday June 28, 2011. The Winona Daily News goes on to tell the history of the virus, where it has occurred and how it is spread.

It is spread by deer ticks in this area. Scientific name is Ixodes Scapularis. While this article contains good information, it leaves out one important thing. What a deer tick looks like and also what a deer tick looks like compared to a wood tick.

I hate ticks and I have found only one way to avoid them and that is stay indoors. That is not going to happen. Winter is long and outside is where I am going to be. So do the normal stuff, wear the right clothes, wear deet and eat garlic and don't freak out if you can help it when you find a tick. Below are a couple of pictures of deer ticks and wood ticks.

Wood Tick, Dermacentor Andersoni

Deer Tick, Ixodes Scapularis