How would you rate your 2022? So-so, satisfactory, spectacular, staggeringly stupendous? One would hope for better than 2021 or 2020, but to be fair, that bar was pretty low.
I’m happy to report my 2022 has been sensational (and then some), and I have lots to share.
Continue reading “NAGC News: Turkeys, Trips, and Good Times”Most Minnesota foragers—whether berry seekers or not—are familiar with blueberries. Our native blueberries are both abundant and widespread, popping up in varied habitats. While not every year is a good year, pickers of all ages can usually enjoy decent harvests of these flavorful, nutrient-packed treasures more often than not.
Continue reading “Foraging in Minnesota: Blueberries”Sometimes it’s best to stare down the unknowns and bad weather and roll the dice. I did recently and was reminded that a little fish slime on your fingers can cure whatever ails you.
Continue reading “Three Magical Days: Part I- Trout Fishing”Round the corner on the snowy path through the woods. Scrappy little dogs of varied sizes and colors spring to life, fully aware of what is about to take place.
Continue reading “Whoosh”It’s been a little more than 25 years since I took a college course on ice age geology. It would be easy to say I haven’t forgotten a thing. Proving it, of course, might be a different matter.
Continue reading “Do Something New: Walk Into a Glacier”Today is Friday, supposedly. It’s normally my favorite day of the week, but this one feels too….ordinary. I’m having trouble embracing it.
Continue reading “The Best Ordinary Day”Happy New Year.
Yes, period. Sorry, but exclamation points don’t seem in order. This turning of the year is a bit too much like déjà vu to celebrate. I think you know what I’m talking about.
Continue reading “Hope Springs…Somewhere”Well, the foraging season is behind us now and it’s safe to say this one was far from overwhelming. Each is different, of course, and not every fruit, nut, or fungus is going to give generous harvests in any one year, but this one seemed more universally disappointing. Most folks would be quick to blame the drought that defined the summer, myself included.
Continue reading “Making the most of the foraging harvest”It was Sunday, the second day of deer camp. My daughter and I sat quietly in the stand for the second morning in a row, eyes and ears straining for signs of life.
Continue reading “Moments to Remember”When it comes to foraging, nothing says “end of summer” like wild plums. During that late August/early September time with cool mornings and moderately warm afternoons, I know without looking that American and Canada plums are coming ripe.
Continue reading “Foraging in Minnesota: Wild Plums”Another year, another 365 chances to get outside and do important things. 2021 so far has developed its own flavor, heavy on “couldn’t wait to do this again.” It’s been mostly good, sometimes hectic, and almost always rewarding. Where to start…where to start…
Continue reading “NAGC News: Newspapers, Awards, and More”Just the other day I was driving down a forest road in central Minnesota. As I glanced into the woods on my left, a flash of orange caught my attention.
Chicken!
I slammed on the brakes and backed up so I could take it home with me.
Continue reading “Foraging in Minnesota: Chicken of the Woods”A couple days ago, my daughter found a single cherry. I could not have been more elated.
It was our first Sand cherry. We’d been searching hard for two whole days, covering almost 10 miles on foot, in three distinct parts of Minnesota. The triumph was not so much the harvest (ultimately a couple dozen cherries) as it was the successful conclusion to our foraging quest.
Continue reading “Foraging in Minnesota: Sand Cherry”I recently took a day trip on the Mississippi to do some fishing. It’s something I hadn’t done before, but had considered trying on the many fishable rivers in the area. It’s good I did, because it will probably stand as one of the highlights of the entire summer. To tell the truth, the plan was so simple it couldn’t fail: just me, the river, and any smallmouth bass that were in the mood for a tussle.
Continue reading “Do Something New: River Smallmouth Float Trip”The growing season has begun, and with it, the foraging season. While many have a laser-like focus on morels, others recognize this as the time when many useful and tasty greens will appear. This includes one plant which is easily overlooked, if not considered a downright nuisance: the stinging nettle.
Continue reading “Foraging in Minnesota: Stinging Nettles”
