Ely, Minnesota


Wolf at the International Wolf Center

The weather during our stay at Bear Head Lake was not the best. Rain off and on. We did do some hiking but didn’t get the kayak in the water. We did make a trip into Ely. This is where a lot of the boundary waters canoe trips begin so the town is full of outfitters.  It also is home to the North American Bear Center and the International Wolf Center so that is what we did on our rainy day.
We stopped at the North American Bear Center first. They have a couple black bears that you get to see either through glass or up on an outdoor viewing platform. Inside was a wealth of info on bears. What we really liked were all the video presentations to accompany the stationary exhibits. It really stressed how shy black bears are and how easy they are to scare away. Even if you get between a mother and cubs she will not be aggressive, she may be startled and bluster but then will try to get away. Now grizzlies they are more aggressive. Luckily in Minnesota they don’t have grizzlies. John and I agree we came away less afraid of black bears - though I really don’t want to test that in the field.

The wolf exhibits were equally as impressive. They monitor many of the wolves and the thing I found the most interesting was the story of one of the wolves they followed. I took a photo of the story for you. We did get to see a live wolf here too. Wonderful photos opps for me. :)
Today it was moving day. We are now parked at the Burlington Bay Campground in Two Harbors Minnesota. The campground is ok but the view is magnificent. I’ll save the details for a separate post.
Happy trails..........

Comments

  1. The Gypsy G-MasSeptember 3, 2011 at 10:04 AM

    Hey there! I'm back to the blogging world after too long of a break and am just catching up on your adventures. The museums sound very interesting with a wealth of information. I bet it's beautiful up there. We just left Portland and are now on the move, although still in Oregon. It feels good to be traveling again! Look forward to following your upcoming adventures!

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