Beyond the Canoe: Outdoor Recreation on the North Shore

Paddle the waves of Lake Superior along with Andy Keith, who has logged many miles in a sea kayak, his favorite way to tour the rivers and lakes of the North Shore. The original series Beyond the Canoe is produced by Matthew Baxley and funded by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.

In this segment of WTIP’s Beyond the Canoe, you’ll discover the icy, cold waters of Lake Superior from the perspective of three swimming enthusiasts from Grand Marais, Minnesota who regularly swim in the chilly and healing waters along the North Shore.

“Make sure they don’t fall in. . .” Follow a group of river skiers along the beautiful and rugged route of the Devil Track River. Produced by Matthew Baxley, this segment honors the adventurous spirit of back-country river skiing on the North Shore, complete with frozen waterfalls and early spring meltwater.

WTIP catches up with Adam and Micah Harju, trail-building specialists and avid mountain bikers–a sport that continues to grow in popularity, here on the North Shore.

Get a close and personal look into the sport of Fat Biking on the North Shore as we hear from local riders. Special guest, Tim Kennedy, who has been instrumental in creating and maintaining the trail systems we know and love, speaks on his own experience of riding in winter. This project was produced for WTIP using a grant from the arts and cultural heritage fund. The “Beyond the Canoe” project seeks to highlight outdoor recreation on the North Shore of Lake Superior beyond the traditional canoe culture of the wilderness.

Minnesota’s North Shore and the many rivers and streams that flow into Lake Superior are often labeled as the premiere locations for ice climbing in the Upper Midwest. In this installment of Beyond the Canoe, producer Matthew Baxley speaks with Grand Marais residents Shane Steele and Emma Spoon about their love for ice climbing and what they enjoy most about the winter activity.

Support for this series comes from the Minnesota Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund.  

The opportunities for outdoor recreation that don’t involve canoeing in Cook County and the Lake Superior region are ample. With that in mind, WTIP is launching a new series to explore some of these forms to enjoy the outdoors that extend past the gunnels.

Today, host Matthew Baxley does just that in this conversation with Lutsen resident John Oberholtzer as they discuss ice skating in the North Woods.

Support for this series comes from the Minnesota Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund.

Video produced by Matthew Baxley.