January Thaw

It was above freezing again this morning when I woke up and drove in to the gym. The fog created an eerie early morning scene. We are loosing our snowpack pretty fast this week. The forecast calls for cooler temperatures later in the week though so maybe we won't loose it all. I hope not. We are planning a weekend sking get-away up the shore in a couple of weeks. Snow will make that more fun.

The big task at work right now is reviewing grant applications. We received 31 proposals to Minnesota's Lake Superior Coastal Program requesting almost $1.3 million for projects to protect, restore or enhance Minnesota's coastal area. The process involves internal DNR review, review by the Governor's Council on Minnesota's Coastal Program, and review by NOAA, our federal partner in the coastal program. It means a lot of meetings, most of which are pretty exhausting, but it is rewarding to be able to provide funding to some really great projects.

The picture for today is a view of Shovel Point at Tettegouche State Park from a 7-acre parcel that we were able to help purchase last year. It is now part of the park and the property will be restored and protected. The orange stuff all over the rocks is a lichen and its extensive coverage indicates that the rocks have not seen a lot of people trampling on them. Lichen does not hold up well to foot traffic. It is nice to see such a healthy patch at this site.