When you think of northeastern Minnesota, you think of lakes…and trees. The Nature Conservancy has planted over 400,000 trees in northeastern Minnesota this summer alone, and a total of over 4 million trees over the past 12 years. Dave learns more about the tree-planting effort and much more.

While we’re having fun at the lake this summer, it’s also good to be aware of ticks and how to avoid getting bitten by one and maybe getting sick from a bite. Professor Jon Oliver, a public health entomologist at the University of Minnesota, joins The Roadhouse to fill us in.

Jim McGowan joins Dave and Brian on The Roadhouse to play a few songs and chat about Fourth of July traditions.

Plastic Free July is a global movement that helps millions of people be part of the solution to plastic pollution by reducing single-use plastic waste. A group in Cook County is participating as well as offering a number of events and workshops here in Grand Marais. 

At one of the upcoming events this Saturday, Cynthia Hagley of MN Sea Grant will speak at North House about plastics in Lake Superior. She joins Brian on The Roadhouse to give us an idea of what her upcoming presentation will cover.

More information on Plastic Free July can be found here.
 

Industrial design students at Iowa State University just spent two weeks off-grid in the American Southwest, with the goal of learning firsthand what kind of products would be useful in remote locations.  Mark Kargol is the teacher of the class and he, as well as one of the students in the class, spoke with Dave about the experience.  

Noted Minnesota author, speaker, and trans activist Nate Cannon was recently in Grand Marais.  He spoke at the library as part of the community Gay Pride celebration. While in town, he also joined The Roadhouse and chatted with Julie about his story, and now his work as an activist.

You can learn more about Nate here.

Jared Munch is currently on the trip of a lifetime, stand-up paddleboarding from Duluth to the Arctic Ocean.  His trip took him through Grand Marais and he took a short break to stop by the WTIP studios and talk to Dave about his trip.

You can follow along with Jared's journey here.

Project Bike is a Minnesota-wide bicycle tour with visual artists and their studios setting the destinations. For the past four years,
creative leader Dana Sikkila has set out on an art/bike tour, advocating for the idea that every artist has skills and creative ideas to help grow and sustain our communities. This year, her destination is Grand Marais, and she’ll be here in mid-July. Dana joined The Roadhouse by phone and chatted with Dave about the project.   

You can learn more about Project Bike here.

It’s a Roadhouse tradition to find out about all the new foods the Minnesota State Fair offers each summer.  Julie chats with Nikki Hines from the Fair to find out what we can expect this year.  A full list of the new foods is available here.

Colleen Myhre returns for a live music session on The Roadhouse.  She also chats with Dave about her upcoming summer plans.