Scott and his wife Rachel West Kramer have performed for many years. Now the group has grown to include his daughter and son-in-law. But the real star of the show is his 2-year-old granddaughter. All of the Kramers are very talented and she is going to follow in their footsteps.
Captain Kenny also gave a great history lesson of Lake Okeechobee and the area. He was also shared much knowledge about the flora and fauna of the area. We also saw dozens of species of birds identified by the captain and 25 to 30 very large alligators.
Marks boat was all set up with rod holders and a generator that ran lights all around the boat. The lights attract bugs, which attract baitfish which attract crappie.
Before we harvested sugar beets, we had no idea that 70-80% of sugar in the USA comes from sugar beets, not sugar cane. Sugar beets are grown in cooler climates with about 5 months of growing season. States that grow sugar beets are Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Nebraska, Washington, and Oregon.
Itasca State Park, the Headwaters of the Mississippi River. We spent a day there hiking amongst the beautiful red pine forest and WALKING ACROSS THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER! They have a visitor center with all kinds of information and a scale model of the whole Mississippi River System.
Next Teresa took us to visit Carol, a homesteader. While she did have a log splitter and a generator she used occasionally, she mostly lives off the land. Carol and her husband left the hustle and bustle of Chicago many years where Carol was a nurse. Her husband passed away a few years ago, but Carol loves the homestead lifestyle so much she will never go back to city life.
When we first pulled up, Carol was pumping a couple buckets of water out of her well, so we helped her carry them into the house. We spent a couple of hours visiting with Carol and seeing her homestead.
The International Wolf Center is run by the MN DNR. It is a great experience and you can learn a lot about the reestablishment of wolves in North America. They have four “Ambassador” wolves in their Exhibit Pack and one retired wolf at this time; Boltz, Denali, Grayson, and Axel.
The Bear Center currently has 4 bears at the center; Ted, Holly, Tasha, and Lucky. There is a large wall of windows where you can watch the bears interact in their natural environment. We got to go on a behind the scenes tour and see an ambassador bear up close and personal.
We had a great week with friends in Ely, MN.
Canoeing, pictographs, bears, wolves, sightseeing, hiking, waterfalls, and visiting a homestead, are just some of the things the Eberts shared with us during the week.
