Today I got the WOW factor. Now I get it why so many people are here in the North Woods area. We drove to Ely (EEE-LEE) about 75 miles north east of Grand Rapids and had an incredible day. The drive up was more pleasant than the day we drove to Voyageurs, more little towns, more traffic, more things to see, same distance. One lane road each way but 55 to 65 miles an hour while not in the small towns. Was a quick trip. The number of cars and SUVs pulling a trailer with canoes as well as cars and SUVs with canoes and kayaks strapped on top should have been an indication of what we were going to find. Our first stop was going to be the International Wolf Center which we had to drive through Ely first to get to. Ely is a really cute t
own. Every other place of business is an outfitting center for the BWCAW, which is the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The BWCAW is the most visited wilderness area of the United States. And, the 1000 lakes just in this area were formed over 2 million years ago from receding glaciers. Very very scenic, peaceful, much solitude in the North Woods. In Ely there are so many restaurants, shops, clothing, coffee shops, canoe and kayak rentals, and in the winter time it flips from warm weather outfitting to cold - snow shoes, snowmobile rentals, ice fishing, etc. Impressive. The city is trying (can't compete with Chicago) for the 2016 Summer Olympics - they have so much to do if it was given to them. Did you know that Ely is considered the most wilderness canoe outfitting town or city in the world? Ely lies on the Vermilion Iron Range which iron ore was discovered in the late 1800s and mined above ground and below. At one time there were 11 mines operating and today there are none. Logging is one of the main businesses after tourism. We noted that the Mukluks store was right on the main drag and I wanted to go back and shop look when done with the Wolf Center. The International Wolf Center staff have a gold mine on their hands. Very educational, very informative, the center laid out very easy to interpret, just a great place. Did see two wolves that they have in captivity and
was truly amazed at how big those dogs are. I'd say about the size of a St. Bernard dog. Big. Recommend anyone to come to the Center if you are in the North Woods of Minnesota. We moved from the Center into town and walked around, of course going to the Mukluk store - a tidge out of our price range - but this picture you should recognize (seems the teenagers really likes these). Looked into a couple of outfitting stores. Amazing! Got a recommendation to go to the Grand Ely Lodge for a nice view while having lunch, and this lodge overlooks Lake Shagawa. The view and the food (I had walleye) was great. From the Lodge went to the North American Bear Center. We had such a warm fuzzy feeling with the Wolf Center and our expectations were high. Not to say that this Bear Center wasn't any good. It seemed the fascination of the bears felt commercialized and to make money for the bear owners (and there were some) and photos taken and videos, whereas the wolf center was of deep respectfulness and centered on trying to get the wolf population re-established and off the endangered list and to educate the public. To give an example of how people reacted in each center: in the Wolf Center people whispered and didn't talk out loud, people moved from one display to another almost in stunned silence. When the wolves came out of their dens to eat, no one talked, people stared and were in awe. At the Bear center, people were talking over each other, kids were running around, people were asking to purchase photos and videos (lots on display to sell) of bears, and when the bears came out, the people (me included) ran to the viewing area and said - oh, how cute! I really felt sad for the three bears we saw and of the wolves - silent wonder. We did discover that the howling we heard last summer while in the UP of Michigan was more than likely wolves, not coyotes. One final note: we passed through Lake Vermilion (yes, one L) and of course I had to get a sweatshirt with Lake Vermilion, MN on it!
own. Every other place of business is an outfitting center for the BWCAW, which is the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The BWCAW is the most visited wilderness area of the United States. And, the 1000 lakes just in this area were formed over 2 million years ago from receding glaciers. Very very scenic, peaceful, much solitude in the North Woods. In Ely there are so many restaurants, shops, clothing, coffee shops, canoe and kayak rentals, and in the winter time it flips from warm weather outfitting to cold - snow shoes, snowmobile rentals, ice fishing, etc. Impressive. The city is trying (can't compete with Chicago) for the 2016 Summer Olympics - they have so much to do if it was given to them. Did you know that Ely is considered the most wilderness canoe outfitting town or city in the world? Ely lies on the Vermilion Iron Range which iron ore was discovered in the late 1800s and mined above ground and below. At one time there were 11 mines operating and today there are none. Logging is one of the main businesses after tourism. We noted that the Mukluks store was right on the main drag and I wanted to go back and shop look when done with the Wolf Center. The International Wolf Center staff have a gold mine on their hands. Very educational, very informative, the center laid out very easy to interpret, just a great place. Did see two wolves that they have in captivity and
was truly amazed at how big those dogs are. I'd say about the size of a St. Bernard dog. Big. Recommend anyone to come to the Center if you are in the North Woods of Minnesota. We moved from the Center into town and walked around, of course going to the Mukluk store - a tidge out of our price range - but this picture you should recognize (seems the teenagers really likes these). Looked into a couple of outfitting stores. Amazing! Got a recommendation to go to the Grand Ely Lodge for a nice view while having lunch, and this lodge overlooks Lake Shagawa. The view and the food (I had walleye) was great. From the Lodge went to the North American Bear Center. We had such a warm fuzzy feeling with the Wolf Center and our expectations were high. Not to say that this Bear Center wasn't any good. It seemed the fascination of the bears felt commercialized and to make money for the bear owners (and there were some) and photos taken and videos, whereas the wolf center was of deep respectfulness and centered on trying to get the wolf population re-established and off the endangered list and to educate the public. To give an example of how people reacted in each center: in the Wolf Center people whispered and didn't talk out loud, people moved from one display to another almost in stunned silence. When the wolves came out of their dens to eat, no one talked, people stared and were in awe. At the Bear center, people were talking over each other, kids were running around, people were asking to purchase photos and videos (lots on display to sell) of bears, and when the bears came out, the people (me included) ran to the viewing area and said - oh, how cute! I really felt sad for the three bears we saw and of the wolves - silent wonder. We did discover that the howling we heard last summer while in the UP of Michigan was more than likely wolves, not coyotes. One final note: we passed through Lake Vermilion (yes, one L) and of course I had to get a sweatshirt with Lake Vermilion, MN on it!
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