Fall Color and Bridge Building

Both the autumn leaves and the sky would be blazing over the last week in the Keweenaw! With the continuation of mild and sunny weather, Julie and I would venture down to Canyon Falls this past Tuesday. The initial part of this hike passes through a stand of sugar maple. Many of these trees were reaching peak color.

The initial trail from the parking area meets up with the North Country Trail which follows along the Sturgeon River to Canyon Falls.

The dry conditions had the river at an extraordinarily low level which gave the falls a very different look and feel.

It turned out to be a beautiful afternoon to be on the trail!

You can see a short video of our hike on the Remote Workforce Keweenaw YouTube channel at this link:

Wednesday would start off with a 2,500 yard swim at MTU and then I would head over to Maasto Hiihto for a couple of hours to help out with the Trail 17 bridge construction over Swedetown Creek. Our focus was on assembling the cribbing on the north side of the creek.

On Wednesday afternoon Industrial Graphics would install the Sturgeon River Launch sign along US 41. A big thank you to Visit Keweenaw for the Destination Development Grant that covered half of the cost of the sign matched by a donation from Julie and me to honor my Dad who was a 1944 graduate of Chassell High School. As I have noted before, my Dad ran trap lines along the Sturgeon when he was young and it is a place where we spent valuable hours fishing both on and along the river.

Wednesday evening I would speak to the Chassell Women’s Club about all things Chassell. There was a lot of ground to cover, but this was a great opportunity to inform an important group of local citizens about all the great things we have going on in Chassell! With a plate of snacks in hand I then headed over to the Chassell Fire Hall for the Township Board meeting. Jeff Ratcliffe from the Keweenaw Economic Development Alliance was there to bring the board up to speed on the Housing TIF that will be coming to them for their approval at their next meeting related to the Chassell Mercantile redevelopment project. I briefed the board on the supplemental submission Lynn Gierke and I had provided to the DNR on the Natural Resources Trust Fund and Recreation Passport Grant proposals, the MDOT progress with the Chassell to Arnheim rail corridor, the installation of the Sturgeon River Launch sign, and the transition work taking place on the Chassell Ski Trails.

Thursday I would go in for an MRI on my foot. It had felt good on Wednesday for both my swim and work on the bridge, but I definitely took a step back on Thursday morning. The imaging would show that I had made improvement since the CT scan I had a month back, but the infection was still there on the fifth metatarsal. It was not clear whether or not I had osteomyelitis or not. There continued to be no evidence of a break or abscess. As a result of this outcome, I was switched to my fourth round of antibiotics.

I would get some really good news later in the day when I would learn from Chris Holmes with U.P. Engineers and Architects that we received very competitive bids on the waterfront boardwalk project which will help us stay on budget with the DNR Spark Grant. More about that next time.

The prediction for a significant geomagnetic storm would have us anxiously awaiting sunset. We were not to be disappointed! Even as light was fading to dark, we could see the northern lights appearing.

The show on this night would be spectacular, but more about that next time!

Do you embrace winter and have the ability to work remotely? Consider locating in the Keweenaw where you will find ubiquitous natural beauty, no congestion, and lower crime! Not sure? Come UP for a workcation to check it out! Learn how at Visit Keweenaw at https://www.visitkeweenaw.com/plan/trip-ideas-itineraries/workcations/ Visit Remote Workforce Keweenaw at https://remoteworkforcekeweenaw.com. Learn about those making the decision to locate here by following the Remote Workforce Keweenaw Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/RemoteWorkforceKeweenaw