The Story Behind The Photo All my research had pointed to the Gunflint Trail. “There is no mileage in photographing a bear with a long lens—it has been done before—it is hackneyed pulp.” David Yarrow After meeting David in Chicago,…
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Your Dreams May Take Longer Than You Think
But They’re Worth Holding On To I have always been a dreamer. A big picture, can-do person who yearns for adventure and unique conversation starters. “Oh, I see you have a castle?” Yup, building a castle is on that list.…
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The Photography “This or That” Challenge
Recently, a group of photographers I follow began sharing some photography preferences through a quick writing challenge. With a few simple this-or-that style questions, I learned a lot about them. And myself. Here are my thoughts… 1. Prime or Zoom…
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When Can A Person Truly Call Themselves An Artist?
I’m about to order new business cards and I’m curious. Do you become an artist the moment you believe yourself to be one? Is it a title offered to you after you have completed a degree or other institutional process that includes fancy paperwork and back pats?…
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I Wasn’t the Hero or Mother They Wanted, but I Was the One They Needed
The story, behind the photo. “This is not what we trained for.” Mornings consisted of a.m. Ballet or Western Civilization classes. Afternoons were voice lessons, show choir, and nights of rehearsals or work-study shifts in the theatre. Rounding out the…
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This is How YOU Can Take Climate Change By The Horns
Ten Actionable Actions Here’s where I struggle. What can I, a single person, do about Climate Change? I am going to give you a few, outside-the-box ideas, that can have an immediate impact. Plant a tree. I want to quote…
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The Street Kitties of Lebanon
A tale of kings and queens, cushions and streets. When the rush of day and traffic fades away, the raucous sound of traffic jams and near misses transitions into a new auditory treat. Sweet Night Sounds To Sleep To Shadows emerge…
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The Lesson of a Lifetime, Was Hidden in my Vegetables
How being a genuine guest, changed my life forever. Riding a train from Germany to Switzerland did little for my hangover. While my head was muddled, my heart was struggling. She had finally kissed me that morning, the first time. She would…
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In Order to Make Frugal Maple Syrup, You Will Need One Of These
A DIY maple syrup evaporator, to help you make sweet, sweet tree juice. And will it bring the taste of spring to your own table? I’m getting serious about syrup making. Like real serious. A cuppella’ buckets of sap and…
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Getting Your Work Out There
The Art of Crafting Calendars In 2020 I went forward with a project to visit all of Minnesota’s State Parks and Recreation areas. Now I had a ton of photos but wondered, what do I do with them all? I…
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2021: A Year Worthy of Review
2021: A Year Worthy of Review The Year Of Firsts Whenever the next right word to write escapes me, my gaze turns out the east window. Snow and the red sheds of my parent’s farm greet me. In winter it is…
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Dead in the Mountains
Nobody talked. It had been this way for a couple of hours. Occasionally there might be a murmur, or accidental nervous laugh. Some couple trying to keep their spirits up. Useless It is impossible to know what we were all…
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Your Photos Will Outlive You, But Not The Way You Want
How Too Much of a Good Thing, Isn’t So Good Photography is Everywhere I wanted to start this article by describing to you the power of photography. Through an experiment. Check this out. “Take a break from your screen. Look around…
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2021 Greater Minnesota Calendar
In 2020, I was quick to realize that I needed to stay cognizant of finding as many silver linings as possible. As events and job opportunities faded to closings and being rescheduled, the calendar actually opened up a little bit.…
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The Bunad – Norway’s Traditional Folk Costume
What Is A Norwegian Bunad? Simply put, the Norwegian Bunad is a folk costume based on traditional rural clothing and 20th-century folk costumes. But what makes the bunad so special? How come you don’t see them every day on the…
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Open For Business – Minnesota State Parks Offer Escape From Corona Virus
Stay away from others. That seems to be the best advice I could give or receive in regards to the COVID-19 pandemic. While I would encourage everyone to stay at home almost exclusively and limit their exposure from others, at…
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March Update: MN State Parks
March is…an interesting time to be outside in Minnesota State Parks.
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The Minnesota State Parks Passport and Hiking Club Programs Project
Gotta Catch ‘Em All What Am I Doing? I have a photography/adventure project involving all of the Minnesota State Parks and Recreation Areas. Let’s catch you up. Lake Louise State Park played host to large groups of rambunctious pre-teens for…
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Spur Trail Winter Adventure Essentials
To save you sometime and give you some insight on how I go about winter activities, I can be your crazy friend. And you can ask me what I use. What you’ll notice is quite an eclectic collaboration of bits and bots.
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Tettegouche State Park – Winter
In winter it is as if you get a fresh start every time it snows. A new story can be told, a narrative reworked if you didn’t like the way it came out the first time.
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Gooseberry Falls State Park – Winter
The paths around Gooseberry Falls State Park were quiet though well-trafficked. With heavy snow falling, my tracks disappeared behind me. Not uncomfortable, it was just below freezing and I was fine with a single pair of socks. That’s a good thermometer.
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Split Rock Lighthouse State Park – Winter
On this frigid day in January, I awoke in my vehicle not far from Split Rock State Park. It was dark as I poked my head out from my den of sleeping bags and blankets. There were two valid reasons for such a great darkness. One, was the fact that it was still predawn and all ambient light was low. The second, was that my car was covered with a thick layer of snow.
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Jay Cooke State Park – Winter
I’m going to go ahead on record and just say that any adventure that begins…
A: Outdoors
B: On snowshoes
C: Under the first Wolf Moon of a new decade
…is going to be a good one.
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2019 – A Year In Review
What just happened? The story is the same, year after year. “I felt like the year had just begun and…now it’s over?” “Where did the time go?” “It goes faster the older you get. Trust me I know.” Thanks Dad.…
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“Oh! You Got The Lutefisk?!?”
Just like before, just like it had always been. I looked down at my ticket and read the words, “Norwegian Lutefisk and Meatball Buffet”. Stepping out of the vehicle and moving towards the church door felt very familiar.
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One Simple Way To Slow Down During Adventure
I do not think I’m wrong when I say I know some of the busiest people on the planet. If you were to listen to the list of engagements they have going on during the week, your head would spin. …
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Gift Ideas For Adventurers
What is a ‘Great Gift’?
It’s complicated. But here is a good rule for you. It’s a great gift if you…
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A Speedlight Recommendation
Truth in advertising, this post contains affiliate links. If you would like to support this blog and future posts/photography, you can do so by making your purchase though one of the following links. You have met enough people and read…
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SHT ‘Part Three’ – Hiking A Fall Section
Alternate Titles The Secret Loves Of Color She had just left me, parting ways to make our miles and heading in opposite directions. Instead of making an early, timely start, we conspired with sunrise for a photoshoot. Stepping out of…
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Finding Friends Along The Superior Hiking Trail
What is the nicotine of travel that no one ever talks about?
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How To: Get A Date On Valentine’s Day
If It’s This Easy, Why Wouldn’t You? This article is intended for all those who are hyper-adventurous, a little crazy, and have no idea where they might be on any particular holiday. So much so that you may even forget…
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Ten Ways To Improve Your Wildlife Photography
Trust Me On This…It Can Get Better What it boils down to here is knowing what you hope to achieve and what your intention is. If you simply want to prove that you saw a certain type of wildlife and…
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9 Days of SHT ‘Part Two’
‘Part Two’ (We’re picking up where we left off, our adventurer trekking not only through the northern wilderness but also his troubled past. Ok not that troubled but it sounds dramatic right?) Four years ago the first .2 miles tuckered…
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9 Days of SHT ‘Part One’
A Harrowing Tale of Walking “So this is how it’s gonna be?!?” I thought to myself. I was no more than a few blocks from my starting point and had picked up what I thought was an auspicious find. That…
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2018 – A Year In Review
Blowing By Quickly As always, the start of the next year leaves me scratching my head as to what happened to the previous one. Well here’s a post that will outline some (I know, just some) of what happened and…
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Beginner’s Bike Tour – Part One
Before I wow you with bike tour tales, I’m gonna hit you with some backstory. Kapish? Back, that, story for me, back that story for me… In 2009 I got my first job out of college. I was a janitor…
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Mid West Music Fest – You Need To Go!
The great thing is, you just missed it. AND you can still go! I am going to be real honest with you here. Rarely do I go see live music. After last weekend in La Crosse, Wisconsin at the Mid…
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99 Spur Trail Solutions For Everything
There can be many, varied roadblocks when you start to think about yourself and traveling in the same context. Some walls are put up by others. Some you’ve put up yourself without realizing it. At the end of the…
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So You Want A Woman AND A Man?
If I’ve learned one thing while traveling; it’s that even though as humans we’re all very different…we’re all very much the same. We all like to eat, we all want to be happy, and we all want to feel good. …
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Bike Tour – Part 4 “Wet Washington”
Remember that awesome mushroom book I bought on Day Two of the trip?
Yeah, after the night of infinite terror…
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Bike Tour – Part 3 “Washington In”
Alternate Titles “Washington is a Waste of Time” The two days that best described our time in Washington were the first day in, and the last day out. Advice given to us by a former Highway 101 bike rider suggested,…
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Bike Tour – Part Two
A Canadian Start Talking about big ideas is easy. I do that a lot. Getting started is the tough part. I began this bike tour slowly, attending an evening workshop on bike touring, researched gear, took a couple of longer…
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Bike Tour – Part One
How To Start An Adventure So I ticked the box next to something on my bucket list recently. An 1100 mile bike tour down the coast of the Pacific Ocean. Now, far too long after completing it, I shall tell…
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How To See Minnesota In 30 Hours
Why would anyone even want to do that? Minnesota is huge, it is the 12th largest state. It is approximately 360 miles wide and 407 miles tall. In order to see it all in just over a day…
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Things You Can Do With Free Time
How do you afford to travel, how do you get there, and how do you pick where to go? My secret has ultimately been to…
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Mille Lacs Kathio
Sometimes I will have a free day sneak up on me and I just won’t know what to do with it. They are rare and usually a surprise via cancellation or change-of-plans. However, a few weeks ago, I found myself with a…
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Minnesota County Fairs
Every summer in Minnesota, for an all too short amount of time, fairgrounds churn out an interesting mix of shaved ice, dust, and frivolity. Long conversations are had about the weather, how it is currently and how it was in years past. Bulls are ridden…
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My Little Garden
You hear that sound of hard, dry dirt on a steel shovel. Try to imagine the feeling of black soil working its way under your fingertips. Your hand gently spreads the earth over the precious seeds. It will harbor them…
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A Day At The Diamond
Yesterday I was fortunate to find myself with a little free time after work. It was a nice day, with the sun out and shining. Though forecasted, no rain had dared to show it’s face, so I wondered to myself…
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Brotherly Love
I’ve been to tons of weddings. Quite literally. If I were to weigh all the people at all the weddings I’ve been to, there would be tons of people trying to stand on that scale. I’m sure someone would get…
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If You’re Not Sweating, You’re Doing It Wrong
Whether that’s the official mantra or not, when participating in Zumba, those are the words I live by. And believe me, the sweat comes easy enough. With beats that would move the hips of even the most uncoordinated and shy,…
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Ten Days In
I’m only ten days in to my project dubbed “The Leap Year Chronicles” and it’s already managed to put me through a whirlwind of excessively creative bouts and depressingly unimaginative fits. If you have no idea what I’m talking about,…
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Eat Mo’ Piggy!
Eat Mo’ Piggy If you haven’t heard of Piggy Blues Bar-B-Que, you will soon. They are going forward on a project to put their name out there in a very big way. Just keep your eyes peeled to the sky…
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Ya Got CATS?
Yeah, I do. It almost sounds like a disease doesn’t it? Or some sort of infection. Perhaps an infestation. Comparable to bed bugs, crabs, or rabies? Don’t get me wrong, I like cats well enough. I just like dogs better. …
Read More2012 – The Biggest Thing Since The Wheel
It’s ok; I can tell you’re a little bit skeptical about this claim. Alas, I have a feeling that it’s true. Just give me a second; I’ll do my best to prove this outrageous claim to you. It’s coming, in…
Read MoreThe Top 5 Most Important Travel Tools
What do I bring? Will I ever use this? What couldn’t I live without once I get away from the comforts of home? All these questions will be answered, in this must have list of items to take with you…
Read MoreWe Thought We Were Ready
“Sorry sir, we don’t have” “We just ran out. Maybe tomorrow.” A simple nod that said it all. “No.” Everywhere we went, the response was the same. Then they would point in another direction and tell me the store up…
Read MoreDoctor’s, Pills and Pushups
“Can you please roll up your sleeves? We’ll do two in each arm. These could hurt a little. Wow, no blood. You might feel those tomorrow or later on…when I last got my flu shot all the sudden a couple…
Read MoreEarly Preparations
I could probably write you a mini-novel describing all the things that go into organizing a trip like this. Every aspect has to be looked at, from what shoes you’re going to wear to what shots will be needed to…
Read MoreThe Last Supper
Years had passed since we’d last seen each other. I find that strange to say, as I’m only twenty five. In the interim we had finished school and pursued varied careers and adventures. As many people now do, I would…
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The Beginning
(I’m too nostalgic to let all things old go, and this post is a great example of that. The interest in starting ‘The Spur Trail’ started way back in 2009, with a little website and a couple of blogs…
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