Lake Superior Podcast

Out of the 63 National Parks—or even all of the 423 National Park properties--Isle Royale ranks one of the toughest to get to. It takes some planning because you can only arrive by float plane or boat. Since 1958, the 165 foot Ranger III, has been making the 73 mile journey from Houghton, Michigan, to Isle Royale’s Rock Harbor. In this episode of the Lake Superior Podcast, Walt Lindala and Frida W...

Interested in an Apostle Islands boat tour? Learn more about the types of cruises and what to expect with Vanessa Pierce, Assistant Manager of the Apostle Islands Cruises. Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is a National Park in Wisconsin. It covers 21 islands and a 12 mile stretch of mainland near Bayfield, Wisconsin. It’s a lot of territory to cover, but thanks to the Apostle Island Cruise ship,...

Grand Portage National Monument has a new Superintendent, Heather Boyd.  In 2008, Heather started with the National Park Service at Isle Royale.  As a tribal member with the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, she is the first Anishinaabe to head Grand Portage. In this episode of the Lake Superior Podcast, Heather shares with Walt Lindala and Frida Waara how her heart and heritage have lead...

Nothing tells a story like film and coming up October 13-16, 2022,  is the 6th annual Fresh Coast Film Festival in Marquette Michigan.  The 4-day gathering celebrates the outdoor lifestyle, water-rich environment and resilient spirit of the Great Lakes with over 80 films from around the region, as well as the world. In this episode of the Lake Superior Podcast, co-hosts Walt Lindala and Frida Waar...

Lake Trout are a prized sport fish, but they are also considered a keystone species to the health of Lake Superior—now the only Great Lake where you can still find this critically important fish. Without Lake Trout, the ecological balance of Lake Superior would suffer, and that’s why Fisheries Biologist Shawn Sitar with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources has such a passion for the study...

Making vacation plans? No matter what the season, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore , spanning 43 miles of some of the Lake’s most dramatic shoreline, has plenty to satisfy every adventure appetite, from a boat cruise out of Munising along the cliffs, to a rugged multi-day hike beginning at the Sand Dunes in Grand Marais. In this episode of the Lake Superior Podcast, Chief of Interpretation and Ed...

From Native Americans to modern day travelers, Lake Superior has welcomed summer visitors with cool, clear water and wooded escapes. Dave Lorenz, Vice President for Travel Michigan understands the lure of the Lake, especially since Michigan, as a state, has the most Superior shoreline at an estimated 917 miles, and three of the five National Parks on the Big Blue. In this episode of Lake Superior...

Planning on kayaking in Lake Superior? Learn how to prepare for a safe and successful trip with kayaker Carl Hanson. A Pictured Rocks kayak trip can include wild and rugged shoreline, forested islands and endless stretches of remote sandy beaches, luring newcomers as well as veteran paddlers to adventure. It ranks as one of the planet’s most magical places to sea kayak. Carl Hansen, the man who br...

Since opening the Soo Locks in 1855, lighthouses have been a part of Lake Superior’s most dramatic landscape signaling rocky shoals, cliffs and dangerous passages. Many of those towers are still visible today.  In fact, on the Lake Superior circle tour--which covers 3 states and the province of Ontario Canada--you can see 56 lighthouses or towers; some you can actually tour. The greatest concentra...

At 31,700 square miles, Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in North America. When measuring surface area, it ranks as the largest freshwater lake on the entire planet. How has climate change affected that much water? Filmmaker Ian Planchon of Minneapolis, Minnesota, started out making a film about surfing on Lake Superior, but what he found out has become a much bigger story. In this epi...

The Quincy Mine operated in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula for nearly a century. Today, visitors can learn more about the copper boom and tour the mine in Hancock as one of the 22 Heritage Sites of Keweenaw National Historical Park. In this episode of Lake Superior Podcast, Walt Lindala and Frida Waara talk with Tom Wright, Quincy Mine Hoist Facilities Manager, about the fascinating industrial geohist...

People have lived along Lake Superior since the glaciers retreated 10,000 years ago. For the last 500 years, the Anishinaabe have called the region home. Their history is rich with stories of hunting, gathering, fishing, and trading. Tim Cochrane knows many of those stories. He has spent his career with the National Park Service, beginning as a backcountry ranger, adding historian, anthropologist,...

George Morrison grew up a member of the Grand Portage Band of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe in a rural fishing village on Lake Superior. The first highway opened from Duluth to the Canadian border at about the same time. As one of 12 children, life was a struggle, but George showed remarkable talent as an artist at an early age. George graduated from Grand Marais High School at the height of the de...

On March 20, 1900, life in Michigan’s Copper Country forever changed with the opening of the Calumet Opera House. As one of the first municipal theaters in the country, it attracted some of America’s finest actors and performers including Sarah Bernhardt, Harry Houdini, and John Philip Sousa. Now, as one of the 21 Heritage Sites of the Keweenaw National Historical Park, work is underway to celebra...

When it comes to storytelling, few writers in the Great Lakes have logged in as many words about the outdoors as Stephanie Pearson of Duluth, Minnesota. Her career began at Outside Magazine , where she was on the editorial staff for more than 13 years. Her assignments circled the globe, and her work has earned four Lowell Thomas Awards from the Society of American Travel Writers. Her book, "1...

Lake Superior ranks as one of the planet's best snowmakers, and communities around the Lake celebrate winter with gusto.  Snow and terrain make the region the perfect playground for a variety of marathons and festivals, including some of the nation's premier sled dog races: John Beargrease in Duluth, Minnesota; Apostle Islands in Bayfield, Wisconsin; Copper Dog in Calumet, Michigan; Tahq...

Some of Lake Superior's five National Parks are closed for the winter. But Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore has become one of the most visited winter recreation areas in the Great Lakes. Headquartered in Munising, Michigan,  Pictured Rocks is home to trails for snowshoeing, skiing, and snowmobiling. The park also ranks as one of the nation's premier ice climbing venues. Coming up Februa...

We spend much of our daily lives indoors, and for a professional musician yearning for inspiration, the chatter and distraction of life can dull the creative process. For mid-west based Folk Musician David Huckfelt, his Artist-In-Residence stay at Isle Royale National Park made a difference in his songwriting. He shares his experience with Walt Lindala and Frida Waara, underlining the power of lan...

Lighthouses have long been key to development and safety around the Great Lakes, guiding ships along nearly 11,000 miles of coastline. From the original 267 lighthouses constructed, more than 200 are still active. According to Lake Superior Magazine Circle Tour, 56 of those lighthouses are still operating on the Big Blue, each rich in history. Rock of Ages Lighthouse, located 22 miles from Minneso...

Learn about Michigan’s Isle Royale, the most remote national park in the Midwest, with Park Superintendent Denice Swanke. Isle Royale's isolation and primitive wilderness have challenged humans for centuries. Ironically, today they have become Isle Royale’s main attractions. Accessible only by boat or seaplane, there’s a whole new wild world to explore when you do arrive. Snow is falling at I...

Lake Superior is a magnet for some, and it's not just the rich iron ore that draws so many to the shores. As Podcast Hosts Walt Lindala and Frida Waara explain, "it's more complicated than that." Walt, a veteran Upper Peninsula broadcaster, grew up in Chassell, MI. This "Copper Country" boy's roots run deep in the mining and Finnish heritage of the Keweenaw. Frid...

Our National Parks tell so many stories. Some of those stories are about wild places and the natural landscapes. Other parks reveal stories from the cultural landscape, the people and professions that built communities. John Arnold is the new Historical Architect at Keweenaw Historical Park, headquartered in Calumet, Michigan, the heart of Copper Country. In this episode of the Lake Superior Podca...

Everything gets better when you get outside. But how do you make that bridge to the woods and waters for kids in metro areas or folks with mobility challenges? Wilderness Inquiry has been on a mission since 1978 to do just that: make sure everyone, regardless of their abilities, has access to the outdoors. Whether those experiences are day hikes with elementary-aged children or month-long expediti...

If you follow Artifact Uprising founder Katie Thurmes, you may know her quote, “We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone.”  For anyone who has left home in search of a story, an experience, a memory, those words have resonance. David Guttenfelder is such a spirit. He is not only an award-winning National Geographic Photographer, but with an estimated 100 countries on his passpo...

When it comes to remote “camera traps” for capturing wildlife images, Drew Rush is world renowned. His patience and perseverance to find the perfect plant for his lens make him a true stand out in the field of nature photography. Earlier this season, we learned about this National Geographic award-winner’s travels to Isle Royale in the fall of 2020, to stage cameras through the winter. In May 2021...