UpNorthica

Giving birth to bear cubs isn’t easy. Now, I’ve never done it, but something in me knows it must be. I just know. Tougher still, is delivering cubs in front of the whole world.
Meet Lily the Black Bear. She’s become an internet sensation as an infrared den cam has captured her days and hours leading [...]

Woo hoo! Our first day here in the Allegheny Mountains was marked by high altitudes, high thrills, and truly high-on-the-hog living.
As part of this Choose Your Own Adventure sweepstakes theme, your votes had me tracking wild boar during our day hike. (Don’t forget to make your pick on Day 2’s activities, later on.)
Read on for [...]

As winners of the Choose Your Own Adventure sweepstakes, we’re in the Allegheny Mountains with the Gear Junkie. But our trip is made even more special because you can vote on our itinerary! Your votes had me tracking wild boars today; watch for that report later tonight.
Our plan for tomorrow: Fly-fishing local trout streams, [...]

Wow! Tomorrow begins our adventure in the Allegheny Mountains, with the Gear Junkie. We’re extremely pumped — and you should be too, since you’re voting on our first day’s activities!
Since the trip is the grand prize of the Junkie’s Choose Your Own Adventure sweepstakes, we want you to be a part of it. We need [...]

Find a wolf print on the trail? Hmm, that’d make a neat photo… Meeting a whole pack of wolves, face to face in the wild? Now you’ve got a real story.
Hiker/blogger Nina Asunto and a companion were recently on Isle Royale, when they experienced a close encounter of the Canis Lupis kind; one I’m sure [...]

With snow falling already, (sheesh!) holiday shopping can’t be far behind. So why not throw in your bid for this vintage portage pack from 1882? The “buy it now” price is a mere $100,00 American dollars.
While packs like this have never been cheap, this one’s value rests upon more than just how well-preserved it is. [...]

Are people crying wolf, over the rise in cougar sightings in Minnesota?
Sure, there’ve been a few publicized cases in the last several years. Even one of our favorite paddlers, Erik Simula, blogged about facing a big cat in the Arrowhead this summer. But when a motorist killed a cougar near Bemidji in late September, [...]

SPOILER ALERT: You won’t see Voyageurs National Park in Ken Burns’ new documentary. Or the St. Croix Scenic Riverway. Or any of the other worthy NPS sites in Minnesota. You can, however, be one of the first to catch them all tonight, at a special screening of Minnesota’s National Park Legacy.
Fitting that it’s premiering [...]

I like to tell my non-outdoorsy friends that the BWCA is *always* like this commercial for Timberland’s Mountain Athletics shoes. Little do they know, you only get chased like this when you don’t seal up your beef jerky well enough. Suckas. Via The Adventure Blog.

Felt hopeless about the mysteriously dwindling moose population in Minnesota? You can now finally do something about it.
U of M Duluth researchers have created a new site enlisting the help of the public to track the region’s moose. Using simple forms, users can report sightings of healthy, or sickly/dead moose. This betters the researchers’ [...]

I’ve never been to Lake Superior’s Slate Islands; never seen caribou in the wild, either. But thanks to Layne Kennedy, I sure feel like I have now.
Backpacker just posted a slideshow of the Minnesota photographer’s work among Ontario’s largest herd. Seems fitting that creatures of such mythical, otherworldly beauty should live on islands formed by [...]

Next time you try to shoot a deer out of season you might be the one getting bagged.
Across the nation, poaching is a growing problem. It further endangers protected species and threatens the health of the overall animal population. The amount of illegally killed whitetail deer is estimated being equal to 25-30% of the annual [...]

Shmeaceful shmolitude — it’s high time for a frickin’ all-out canoe marathon in the Border Region!
The kind with like, grueling 8000-rod portages. Lots of whitewater (they’d have to fly that in.) Perilous swarms of mosquitoes. Flocks of camp-raiding, gorp-stealing whiskeyjacks. And speed — sweaty, cussing man-powered speed. Oh, and injuries; a few good paddle-to-the-face ones. [...]

This week, President Obama proclaimed June “Great Outdoors Month,” and with good reason. There’s a slew of celebrations during the month, including National Trails Day, National Fishing and Boating Week, National Get Outdoors Day, and the Great American Backyard Campout.
But before you start Googling all those, check out our list of Five Free Things offered [...]

We found this piece of silhouette art, rather to our liking. It did bring about a certain air of mirth as we recalled our many prolepses incurred whilst in the pursuit of Inspiration. Via Silhouette Masterpiece Theatre.