North Shore – Valerie's Voice

Lake Superior Splendor

We have hiked many trails on the north shore over the past forty years…some trails we hike every time we are up there, but we are still discovering new trails to hike and explore.

This year it was Illgen Falls, a part of Tettegouche State Park.

It’s a short trail to Illgen Falls, but a rugged one.

The trail to Illgen Falls is one of the shortest walks to a North Shore waterfall, and it leads to a beautiful 40’ drop of tumbling water in the Baptism River.

The mouth of the Baptism River, where the river flows into Lake Superior.

After the delight of seeing scenic Illgen waterfall, we hiked to High Falls on the Baptism River. It’s a longer hike, with a steep set of stairs (and currently the bottom of the stairs are washed out). High Falls is a 63’ falls. It’s very majestic, yet dangerous. A man tried jumping from High Falls in August 2025 and died.

We hiked up Oberg Mountain which is a trail we walk up annually.

An awesome view of Lake Superior from Oberg Mountain.

Although it was past fall-color peak (the red and orange leaves were mostly blown off the trees already), the yellows and greens were lovely.

Oberg Lake. Most of the leaves have fallen off the trees.

There are no waterfalls on this hike, but there is a beautiful view of Oberg Lake from one of numerous panoramic overlooks, and also a few of Lake Superior and the inland forest on this loop trial.

Hiking the loop trail on top of Oberg Mountain.

We saw waterfalls at both Temperance River and Cascade River State Parks,

all intermixed with spending time sitting on shores of the Lake Superior;

either reading, eating our picnic lunches,

beach combing or just contemplating…it’s always refreshing, rejuvenating and relaxing.

A stop at Grand Marais is always a treat. This year we discovered Superior Creamery. A small business that daily makes their own ice cream. It was delicious. The best vanilla I’ve tasted!

A perky sunflower outside Superior Creamery.

The harbor in Grand Marias…the water is percolating…and pretty.

The wall and rocky ledge to the Grand Marais lighthouse.

There were splashes of orange color still lingering on a few trees.

A Poem: One Wave at a Time

One wave at a time…
Faithfully rolling unto the shore
Hitting the rocky bedrock
Bringing healing as I sit and watch.
For hours.
Each time a little piece of hope
Delivered in the rhythm of the waves
Reminds me God is faithful.
Such needed blessing
During these times of uncertainty.
I am grateful to be on the shore of Lake Superior,
Doing nothing,
Watching the waves roll in.
One blessing at a time.

by Valerie Bollinger 03/25

A Friendly Ghost

Our writing prompt was to write about a ghost. It took a couple of months for me to come up with an idea for a story…and then I encountered Toro, the Friendly Ghost.

On the shores of Lake Superior, October 1, 2024.

On our annual trip to the north shore this year, we brought some kindling from our shed. We enjoy having a campfire on the rocks outside the cabin. This is a fun activity we do when we go up to the north shore…build a campfire on the rocks near the water. On this night the sky was clear and we saw thousands of stars. A sight to behold.

I sometimes take photos of our campfires…they are so mesmerizing…and we love to sit and watch the flames dance as we poke a stick into the fire to rearrange the logs. I take photos for documentation, although most do not turn out. But I try, and so, I did this night.

It was interesting…a green blob appeared when I was framing the photo. I moved the camera slightly to get the green blob out of the photo, but it was still there. Then I tried many different angles, but the green blob was in every frame, just above the flames. I have proof!

So, we wondered… where did this “ghost” come from?

We decided it came from our shed in our backyard in Northfield. When Gary grabbed the old, blue, plastic container filled with kindling from the shed, to pack in our car, we decided this ghost hitched a ride in the plastic tub, to the north shore.

We believe that night our friendly ghost, who we named Toro (since he shared the shed with a Toro lawn mower) was set free. For the past thirty years he was confined to our shed, watching over the kindling and unlocked doors, keeping watch over our belongings. Now that we were moving away from this address, Toro felt free to ride along with the kindling.

That night, when we set the tub down by the fire ring on the rocks, he began testing his “wings” by hanging around the fire…hesitant, I believe, to let us go after all these years. Then, he remembered the reason he had tagged along in the box. He remembered we were moving away from the house, and the shed, on Aldrich Drive. He was now free and able to go find a new shed to protect.

He was hanging out at the fire saying his last good-byes. The next time I tried to take a photo…he had vanished… in the wind, or waves, or however a friendly ghost travels…

Best wishes, Toro!

Auntie Ag

We called her Auntie Ag. She was my dad’s older sister, Agnes. She was a special aunt…she never married so her nieces and nephews were very important to her, and she treated us well. She pass away in 2004.

Last summer I inherited a couple of her photo albums from the 1930-40’s. I was amazed at what I could glean from perusing the old photos, where few photos had captions, and very few were dated!

I have many good memories of Auntie Ag. I knew her well, particularly in her older years…But when I looked through her photos, I felt I learned a lot more about her as a young woman. I found it interesting that I felt I could capture her essence from the photos. I decided we had a lot of similar traits.

When I found this photo of Auntie Ag, I remembered a dress I wore to a high school winter dance that was similar. I don’t know the date of Ag’s photo. The photo of me was taken in 1969.

I resonated with the photo of my aunt overlooking Lake Superior when she was a young woman. The photo immediately caught my attention when looking through several of her old photo albums.

Auntie Ag on the north shore. Date unknown.

One similarity is our love for Lake Superior and the north shore. It is my happy place. It was fun to see how often the north shore showed up in her photos, and to learn she went there often. I also know that my grandmother, my dad and Agnes’ mother, had a love for the north shore.

Another trait I share with Auntie Ag is she liked to travel. She liked to travel a lot; across the country, and to cozy cabins, and to Norway in later years. I like to travel too.

She was an adventurer…There were photos of her on hikes, on bikes, on horseback, on the water, on a toboggan, and fishing…what fun! I, too, am fond of adventure and new experiences.

You could see from the different photos she liked being with friends, and she had a lot of them. She loved hosting them for breakfasts and dinner parties, as do I.

Agnes’ mother, my grandma, was always well-dressed. I think there are stories of grandma having more than one trunk of clothes when she traveled to Norway. I noticed Aggie was always well-dressed in the photos. I know when she was older, her outfits “matched” and she always wore “matching” jewelry. I am not a fashion bug by any means, but do like to dress nice.

Auntie Ag’s nieces and nephews, photo taken in 1971. I am in the front row, in the red dress.

There were hundreds of photos of our families. I know Aggie loved her extended family. She was a believer and prayed for me (and for her nieces and nephews) all her life…and for that, I am grateful. I too, am a believer, and deeply love and pray for my family.

My Grandfather Torkel and Grandmother Elizabeth in the front row. Again, I’m not sure of the year this photo was taken. Elizabeth died in 1962. The siblings in the back row L to R: Herbert (my father), Agnes, Earl, Bob.

Fall Color Haiku

Fall color tour...
Fluorescent orange, yellow, reds,
A beautiful gift!

I did not enhance these photos, before or after taking theses pictures.

The leaves were that brilliant.

Psalm 23, Valerie’s Version

As we plan our annual trek to the north shore, I always reread my own version of Psalm 23.

The Lord is my Shepherd
I shall thank him.
He allows me to be on the shores of Lake Superior
And hear the calming waves.
He restores my soul.
He guides me on trails of the Superior National Forest, 
And leads me along the rocky shores of the big lake.
Even when the waves are rough – even when the lake is calm,
I am content to be near the water. 
And the Lord is with me.
His creation and His majesty, they comfort me.
He anoints me with many blessings
My cup overflows and I am grateful
Surely, I will praise him and follow him
All the days of my life,
I am grateful to dwell in His presence
On the shores of Lake Superior.

Below are just a few favorite photos (from hundreds!) I’ve taken over the years, of Lake Superior.

Lake Superior in March

I always thought it would be fun to be at safely tucked into a cabin on Lake Superior during a November gale. At a previous cabin we rented years ago, the owners had recorded, on VHS, a November storm that we could watch while staying at the cabin. It was always intriguing to see how incredibly high those waves came slamming into the cliffs at that resort.

Snow falling on our rented cabin on Lake Superior.

We just came back from a couple days on the north shore, safely tucked into a cabin on Lake Superior during a March snowstorm. The waves came slamming into the rocky shore sending up sprays of water into the air.

The lake was full of white caps and the waves coming to shore were huge. Not like a November gale, but still a memorable snowstorm for us.

We managed to get in a hike that morning before the predicted storm. It was fun to walk along the lake, through trees, and we were delighted to find little gnomes along the trail. Three times we came upon these little trolls, cheering us on.

Once back in our cabin we settled in for the rest of the day, and the storm. It was cozy. The snow started falling and the wind was whipping and churning up the lake as we sat indoors, by a nice crackling fire and watched it unfold through the large patio doors overlooking the lake. The amount of snow that fell was not what was predicted, but the wind was wicked, and the lake turbulent.

Last year when were we up at this same resort on the north shore in March, the temperatures were in the 50’s and 60’s. This year the temps were in the 30’s with wind chill temps even lower. But no matter what, Lake Superior is my happy place and it was great to be on the shore once again.

Snow falling on an old, picturesque, fishing hut along the shore of Lake Superior.

Fall on the North Shore

We often go up to the cabin we rent on Lake Superior in the fall. One never knows what kind of color autumn will have painted on the trees and foliage when we arrive.

The leaves usually change up there in late September/early October. The last couple of years we have seen some good color up on the north shore, even though our dates staying up at the cabin have varied – a lot.

This year, the day we went for our annual hike up Oberg Mountain, was one of those perfect fall days…bright sunshine, a vibrant, bold, blue, autumn sky, great temperature…it was stunning.

And the vistas from the seven lookouts on top were very colorful.

A lot of people were on the trail, and a lot of people were up north in general…more so than usual… evident with traffic and full parking lots. However, back at the cabin all was peaceful.

On another hike, in Tettegouche State Park, we spotted an unusual mushroom. It was golden…it looked like it was spray painted but it was far enough off the trail to know that was unlikely.

I tried to identify this mushroom with a quick internet search, but was unsuccessful. We saw other fun fungi on that same trail.

As wonderful as our hiking and biking and fall color drives were, the time spent with our son and daughter-in-love, and our two grandchildren, up north, at the cabin on Lake Superior, was the best!

Sunrise Over Lake Superior

One of my favorite things to do on our annual trek to the north shore is to watch the sunrise over Lake Superior. I set my alarm – just in case – so I don’t miss it.

I love sitting silently, waiting for the sun to come up. It is such a tranquil and quiet time…a beautiful time of enjoying God’s magnificent creation, a wonderful gift. There is a unique sunrise for each unique day…and it can change within minutes.

Then Friday’s early morning light filling the sky. (6:53)

We don’t see sunsets from the location of our cabin, although sometimes we can see some color in the western skies at sunset, creating silhouettes of the trees and rocky shoreline near-by.

Towards the western sky Wednesday evening…sunset silhouettes.

In a previous post I showed photos of the moonrise we sometimes see over the lake. We are grateful for those spectacular views too.

The sun on Sunday rising through the clouds…

“The heavens declare the glory of the Lord!”

Words cannot describe the feelings evoked witnessing the wonders of the sky.

I’m grateful for the sun that rises faithfully every morning, and to see it rise over Lake Superior is a special treat!

A Fishing Hut

Our recent trip to the north shore was short but sweet. We rented a cabin for two nights and made the most of it. Arriving early afternoon, we unpacked, made some hot chocolate and enjoyed settling in. Next, we went for a walk on a scenic drive near the cabin. This area of the north shore is fairly new to us…we haven’t explored much of the Two Harbors area until recently, so there is a lot to discover. The first, for this trip, being a small fishing hut on the shores of Lake Superior. Our host told us to look for it when I mentioned we were going to go for a walk.

As we walked along the curvy, Stony Point Road we crested a hill and there it was. The all- encompassing, exquisite scene of a fishing hut between pine trees and along the water’s edge – immediately reminding us both of Norway! It was picturesque, charming and old-world. Our host told us this old fishing house, built extremely well and tight, was used by fishermen to store their fishing nets and supplies.

I loved this little hut on the shores of Lake Superior.

Many Scandinavian immigrants made a living by fishing Lake Superior in those early years. There is a North Shore Fishing Museum in Tofte, MN that shares stories and the history of commerical fishing on the north shore. I will plan to revisit that museum next fall.

A picture taken the next day, on a crystal-clear winter day.

We were delighted to see this lone hut sitting on the shores of the great Gichi-Gami (Ojibwe for great sea). From now on, this may become a short jaunt off our usual route when we drive up Highway 61 along the north shore.

Exploring new areas is fun, especially when one has a warm and cozy cabin to return to!