Grand Marais,MN Trip photos! and stories about my trip.

Lake Superior, Near Grand Marais,MN July 27th.

My trip to Grand Marais,MN went very well, We left Rice Lake,WI by 9:20AM and we were in Grand Marais,MN by about 3:00PM We had to stop at more then one roadside stop too see the very pretty views that Lake Superior had to offer. I really enjoyed being up by the lake.

The Drive There
City of Duluth,MN Photo taken on the bridge in Superior,WI July 27th

The trip up there was pretty neat. weather wise, We could start to feel a bit of temperature change when we approached Lake Superior, But the change was expressly noticeable when we were on the bridge that takes you across the lake into Minnesota. The reason I say this is because when I opened the window when we were crossing the bridge, A cold shot of lake air blew in the window, Which was enough to make me shout, Whoa that's cool! The views of Duluth were amazing from the bridge, You could easily see Downtown Duluth and the huge hill on the other side of the city.

Grand Marais,MN

Grand Marais Harbor, Grand Marais,MN You can see rain in the backround up in the hills July 27th

once we passed Duluth, it was all rugged hills, cliffs and Spruce/Balsam Fir trees a few real small towns, until we reached Grand Marais. Grand Marais was a really neat small harbor town with many live active business's. Lake Superior views here were just amazing, You could not see any signs of land anywhere out there. Here is a photo from Artist Point in Grand Marais, just outside the protected Harbor.

The Landscape/Weather

White Cedar trees and White Spruce growing in bedrock along the Lake Superior shore.

You could easily watch as the landscape changed from the broad leaf forest of my hometown to Spruce Tamarack and Balsam Fir of Northern Wisconsin and Minnesota, I noticed a real change of landscape starting just north of Spooner,WI as Balsam Fir and Spruce got more numerous, then it was nothing but northern woodlands. The landscape along the north shore was amazing Many cliffs and steep ridges along the lake, with many creeks and rivers. Daisies growing along the shore of Lake Superior.

It Seemed like there was little dirt up there, it appears that the trees and plants mostly had to grow in pure bedrock with some sand! it was quite a site. One thing I really noticed was how far the plants were behind in growing season compared to my house, When I was up there, I saw many flowers in full bloom which have been long faded down here. one plant was Peonies, They bloom around June 24Th here, but up there, I could see the, still in bloom! a sign that the lake really does have effect on the plants up there. It was like stepping back in time one month in our growing season!

Photo at Wisconsin Point in Superior,WI looking directly at Downtown Duluth.

Well here is a neat story, We planned on stopping at Wisconsin Point in Superior,WI and about 5 minutes after we got there a heavy thunderstorm really started to close in. We watched as really heavy rain moved right over Duluth, across the harbor Lots of Cloud to ground lightning was see from where we were, The photo above is a photo I took, showing the heavy thunderstorm which hit Duluth. The rains were so heavy, You could not see the hills of Duluth, which you can normally easily see from here

Slight Risk Monday

Image from SPC

We have a slight risk of Severe Thunderstorms today across the entire 6 county area. Thunderstorms may develop in Eastern Minnesota and move east into Wisconsin and become severe, Large Hail, Damaging winds, and even the slight risk for tornado's are all a possibility. Also Very Heavy Rain would also be a threat.

People in the area should pay close attention to the weather this afternoon.

Hosta Flower Photo.

Hosta Flowers July 26th.

I just wanted to post a quick photo of my Hostas in full bloom, There a bit late this year. The humming birds really like these bell shaped flowers.

Rainy Weather Continues. Leaving for a Vacation Tuesday!

Weathermap for Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.

It appears that our active wet pattern will continue. Which is a good thing, because we are still below normal in Rainfall for July. Here in Clayton we are near 2 inches below normal, so continued wet is good. Sunday, It will be mainly dry, but skies will remain cloudy to partly sunny due to a low pressure up by Lake Superior. This will also keep a chance of isolated showers in the forecast for Sunday before that system moves off. Monday A different system will effect us, This one will bring a much better chances for showers an thunderstorms. But it looks like most of the action will happen late Monday, possible overnight into early Tuesday morning. and some of these storms could be strong. but should remain mainly below severe limits. Tuesday, Rain mostly clears out but it will remain cloudy to partly sunny. Detailed forecast below.

Sunday, Warmer then Saturday, partly sunny, with a chance of a shower. Highs in the upper 70s. Sunday Night, mainly cloudy, lows in the low 60s to upper 50s.

Monday, Partly sunny skies, With Showers and Thunderstorms closing in late in the day. Some could be strong. Highs in the upper 70s. Monday Night, Thunderstorms, some could be strong. lows in the upper 50s near 60.

Tuesday, Cooler. Maybe some leftover showers otherwise just Cloudy. Skies clearing a bit late in the day, highs in the low 70s. possible staying in the upper 60s.

Looking ahead Wednesday, will be a bit sunnier then Thursday, It will be Dry Wednesday. Highs in the 70s. After Wednesday, Things go active and wet again with off and on Thunderstorm chances. I am unsure at this time if any of these will be severe.

Here is another look of my entire rosebush, Which is now in full bloom!

I also wanted to mention to everyone that I am going to be going on a vacation with my dad all the way up to Grand Marais,MN! Where leaving on Tuesday. We plan to see Lake Superiors north shore which I've heard that it is very pretty in that area. We also plan to go to the Canadian Boarder. I will take plenty pictures and post some when I get back on Thursday.

There will be no forecasts, or short term updated during this time.

Heavy Rain and Hail across much of the area briefly severe in Clayton.

Photo of a storm front, This photo was taken between Turtle Lake and Clayton in Barron County.

Scattered Strong storms produced hail and Extremely heavy torrential rains across some parts of the area today. One storm became Briefly severe over Clayton, Some areas picked up over an inch of rain in today's storms. The first Thunderstorm of the day formed just to the northwest of Turtle Lake then drifted south, This storm produce Nickel Size hail with some larger hailstones which covered the ground white just to the south of Turtle Lake. Shortly after a new storm formed along the southern edge of this storm. This storm Impacted the Clayton area, and briefly became Severe producing Large Hail to the sized of quarters at my house. Then later in the evening another strong storm had formed in Northern St Croix County and pulsed just south of Deer Park.

Southern Turtle Lake area storm

Hail covering the road about 1 mile south of Turtle Lake

Me and a buddy of mine were watching this storm get real strong just to the northwest of Turtle Lake, so me and my dad decided to do and chase it, We drove to Turtle Lake and parked in Becker's Super value parking lot to watch. After while we did see some Extremely heavy rain and dime sized hail, but I thought it would have been better. Shortly after the dime sized hail, I got a text message from my friend telling me storms were drifting towards Clayton, So we turned around and started heading towards Clayton.
About 1 mile south of Turtle Lake, I was amazed to see that we had ran into an area where hail was covering the ground, I mean the ground was completely White with hail! Most of this hail was dime to nickel sized, but Some hailstones definitely could have been a larger sized before we got there. as we were driving, I also seen many small branches and leaves covering lawns and driveways in this area. So Minor damage in this area, I snapped the two photos above as we drove passed were trying to get home. What turned out happening was the hail core has drifted just south of Turtle Lake away from where we were.

Clayton area brief Severe storm, and the storm which impacted my house.


Here is a video I took of the hail falling at our back porch, Most were nickel sized and smaller but one hailstone I measured was quarter sized.

Well we drove though a lot very heavy rain but we had finally made it home, Hail started to hit our car less then a block north of my house. We made up our driveway just in time! I ran inside with my camera and no more then about 5 seconds later I saw a quarter sized hailstone fall in our yard right next to the door, I picked it up and then more hail and Extremely Heavy rain started falling. I was surprised because I was not expecting rain at my house, much less Hail! Apparently A new storm had formed right along the one south of Turtle Lake and it and pulsed breifly severe limits right over Clayton. and produced nickel to dime sized hail at my house on the Southeast side of Clayton, I did measure one hailstone of 1.00 inch which is why it was considered Severe.
A lily in my garden battered up by Hail.

Some flowers in my garden did get damaged by the dime to quarter sized hail, and I did see leaves and seeds getting ripped from the trees. but nothing too major, This storm was not nearly as damaging as the storm south of Turtle Lake. Then got much more hail in that area. We did end up getting some Extremely heavy rainfall here we got 0.80" of rain in about 20 minutes!

I would also like to mention the amazing Temperature drop this storm caused, It was 80.F before the storm hit and after the storm passed the temp had dropped to 60.F so we had a 20 degree drop! you could see lots of fog coming out of the woods and on roads because of the fast drop in temp. So all in all a Wacky day of weather, and chasing for me.

Reports

Polk County Clayton 1 inch hail "hail stripping some leaves off trees"

Photos of Stormclouds, Some spots saw Good rains.

This is a photo of some storm tops to my east, I think this is a neat photo with the darker clouds. A sign that some areas got some good rainfall!

A widespread area in Polk, St Croix and Burnett counties saw at least a half inch of rain today. But East of Amery These amounts fell off quickly. Here in Clayton we picked up 0.30" Which is helpful but we could definitely use more. amounts were really far in range across the area Some spots saw very little noting at all, places mainly southeast of a line from Woodville to Glenwood City to Haugen saw little to no rain today. While at the same time some areas that got Thunderstorms got nearly 1 inch, one spot even reported nearly 2 inches! Hudson came in with a report of 1.96" Where a strong storm pulled though, There was some pea sized hail reported in this area. So very heavy rain fell for some people in isolated areas.

Here is a picture of some wildflowers which grow near our yard every year. I'm not sure what there actual name is but we always called them Bell flowers.

Severe Drought Really starting to impact the area.

Image from U.S Drought Monitor

I have been holding off on making this post, but the drought conditions have really started to impact my area, and I feel it is time to talk about the Lack of rainfall which has really started to impact many area crops and yards. The U.S Drought monitor has put nearly all of the 6 county area under the Severe Drought category, Only southeast St Croix and Southern Dunn counties are not in this category, but even that area is under Moderate Drought. Corn starting to curl near my house in Clayton,WI

Some areas are as much as 5 inches below normal for the months of June and July, So parts of the area are desperately needing rain. We here in the Clayton area have been lucky, I did the math and found out We are 1.98 inches below normal rainfall for these past 2 months. Which is lucky compared to some areas, but if we don't get rain soon we will quickly get into a desperate situation. Right now some corn crops are starting to curl here in my area, but most of the corn is this area is fairing pretty well, This corn is not nearly as bad as I've in some, Corn near Rice Lake is looking very bad. and most yards that were mowed were completely brown.

In our yard I noticed some spots starting to turn brown, Especially sunny spots dried out from the sun. I have also noticed that our Weeping Willow is started to become stressed and some leaves are yellowing and dropping off. These drought conditions has really effected area flower gardens, people who did not water there gardens likely wont see any more blooming plants this year. watering has become necessary too keep blooming plants alive. The good news is We will be looking at some rain chances starting Tuesday, My forecast Here, Keep fingers crossed that we will see some good rains.

A few flowers that are blooming across our yard.

Red Rose July 18th.

I'm really happy how this rose turned out. This is a "Winnipeg Parks" rose, I got it from Walmart this spring on sale for just $2 It is one of the hardest roses there is. when I got this rose it was all bloomed was all bloomed out, But I read that your supposed to pinch back the dead flower heads after they bloom, and they form new flowers. I would like to mention, This will help produce more flowers, but this practice should not be done after August 1st. otherwise you risk messing up the natural process of the plants way of preparing for winter.

Here is a flower I picked up from a Walmart sale This flowers common name is "balloon Flower" I will see how this plant takes the winter. It's supposed to be a perennial

Here is another picture of the lilies, I did not get a chance to show a photo of the Yellow lilies because they were not blooming yet, so I added a photo of them now. I like the yellow and orange together

Thankfully,Getting Warmer!

Weathermap for Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.

After Record low temps for some areas on Friday and what felt more like a Fall day then a Summer day, We should finally be breaking into some sunshine, and warmer temperatures. Sunday may start off cloudy in some areas, but it should clear out. A high pressure system will move in, and bring sunny dry and warmer weather for the next 2 days. Sunday highs should make into the mid 70s. Monday, will be Sunny we will still be effected by that high pressure. temps warming up near 80. lows near 60 if clouds moving in from a weather system hold the temps higher, other wise upper 50s would be more like it. Tuesday, It looks like a weather system moving in from the west will bring some scattered showers and Thunderstorms. No severe weather expected from these storms. But it might bring some good rains to the area. Detailed forecast below.

Sunday, Sunny to Partly Cloudy, Warmer highs in the mid 70s Sunday Night, Clear and cool, lows in the upper 50s

Monday, Sunny, Even Warmer highs in the upper 70s, with some spots low 80s. Monday Night, A chance of a shower of storm late at night. lows near 60.

Tuesday, A chance of showers and Thunderstorms otherwise, sunny at first then turning cloudy to partly cloudy highs near 80. Tuesday Night, a chance of a shower or storm early Then clearing lows in the upper 50s.

Looking ahead for the next 3 days it appears like we will go into a dry sunny pattern again, with a bit warmer for temps. then a chance of rain towards the end of the week.

A few photos of around Clayton.

Lake Magnor

I took some photos of some of spots around Clayton today while I was out. This first photo is of Lake Magnor which is 1 mile south of Clayton, This lake is known as a good fishing spot, and a good spot for swimming and summer sports. It is one of the best lakes around Clayton. This photo was taken from the Northeast shore.

Here is one of my more better photos of the Clayton road population sign. The population number needs to be updated. I think will be updated soon. I enjoy living in a small town. I've always said, Every person counts!
This is a photo of the Clayton Welcome sign, on the South side of town. With the Spruce tree plantings on the sides, Planted 1 or 2 years ago I believe

Burnett County Storm- Polk County strong storm- Report

Video of the very beneficial much needed rain that we got. If you think the sound of soft thunder and heavy rain is relaxing then you will love this video!

I will start off by talking about the Severe Thunderstorm that parts of Burnett County saw. The storm formed in Central Minnesota and continued move east. and strengthened a bit as it moving into Burnett County, This caused a thunderstorm warning to be issued for northern Burnett County, This storm did have a bowing shape, this storm brought damaging winds to parts of Western Burnett County, Several large trees were reported down to the west of Yellow Lake and Danbury. This storm continue east and causing a Thunderstorm Warning to be issued for Washburn County, There was no reported of damage in Washburn County, This storm weakened as it crossed the Washburn County line.

Polk County strong storm. The storms last night were along a cold front, so this sent 2 storms though the area, The one in Burnett County and, The storm that effected Polk County, also started out in Minnesota, and It was looking quite strong on radar as it started to approach southern Polk County. The reason I'm talking about this storm is because this storm looked pretty strong as it started to move towards the Osceola area. This storm tracked across southern Polk County and parts of Barron County. Very Frequent lightning, and Very Heavy rain fell from these storms. There was No severe weather reported and there was No damage reported from this storm. just a nice strong thunderstorm.

Corn July- 15Th

Parts of the area saw some Very beneficial rains, Which is Very much needed across the area, Parts of Polk and Burnett counties reported over 1 inch of rain, Thunderstorms producing very heavy rain brought this much needed moisture. Reported rainfall totals are Osceola 1.04" Amery 0.79" Clayton ( my gauge ) 0.60" and Turtle Lake reported 0.80"

Up north Yellow Lake and Danbury saw near 1 inch, and Minong area, This will help the Severe Drought that most of the area is in Hopefully more rain to come.

Come on lets start talking!

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Severe Storm threat increasing for Tuesday.

Image from SPC

The Severe storm threat for Tuesday is increasing. the SPC has put most of the 6 county area under 30% Risk. Right now it will all depend on what happens with morning cloud cover. Right not it appears that thing will clear out some, and if they do and we get some heating We could be seeing a good chance of Severe Storms. Right now it appears a line of strong to Severe storms will approach the 6 county area in the evening. The main threats with this would be Damaging winds and large hail. The areas with the greatest risks for severe weather is South of a line from Frederic to Almena to south of Chetek.

People in the area should definitely pay close attention to the weather for Tuesday. If things set up right, Severe weather would be likely. Especially in Polk, Barron, Dunn and St Croix counties.

A good chance of Rain, Severe Storms possible.

Weathermap for Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday.

Well I have another Rain chance to talk about. A low pressure system/Front is what will bring this weather. This system will bring in more, humid conditions, There will be a chance for storms ahead of the front, and Along the front, Any of these storms will have the chance to become strong to severe. Heavy rain will also also possible. Temps on Tuesday will be in the upper 70s. I know we have not had much severe weather this summer, but just remember, and one of these systems can bring severe storms so keep a watch on Tuesdays weather. Wednesday will start of cloudy, but it will start to clear out during the day, It will be windy behind this system for Wednesday, Thursday, it will be sunny, with highs in the 70s. lows in the 50s. Detailed forecast below.

Tuesday, A good chance of thunderstorms. Some thunderstorms could be strong to severe. Highs in the upper 70s. Tuesday Night, a good chance of Thunderstorms especially early, Heavy rain possible. Some storms could be severe. Lows in the upper 50s.

Wednesday, Windy, Cooler, Mostly Cloudy at first then clearing, highs in the mid 70s. Wednesday Night. Partly Cloudy, lows in them mid 50s.

Thursday, Sunny, Highs in the mid 70s, Thursday Night, Clear lows in the mid 50s.

Looking Ahead, I see warming conditions starting for the weekend, It will be a inactive it appears, It will get more active again around the start of next week.

Western Wisconsin Lilies

Here is a photo of a nice collection of lilies in my garden July 10th, My favorite one, is the lily with the red in it


Lilies are definitely on my list of Recommend garden flowers if you live in Western Wisconsin. Lilies come in many colors from yellow, to orange and red, some even come in a combination of colors. Lilies always seem to come into bloom right around the 4Th of July, Which is perfect for midsummer color. Lilies are planted as bulbs any time of the year, but the best time is spring. And another great thing about these is they spread somewhat and make more! So if your planning on having a garden, why not add lilies.

Orange Oriental lilies July 10Th
These liles are Yellow and pink. They don't look the best. My yellow colored lilies are not yet in bloom so come back later if you would like to see some photos of that color.

Don't foreget to stop in a the Turtle Lake Fair this weekend!

Severe chances continue into Friday

Image from SPC

We will continue you have the chance of Severe Thunderstorms today, The cold front is still west of the area, and the air muggy, and humid. Severe thunderstorms could form along thing cold from in the afternoon, The best chances for severe weather would be in Polk,Barron ,St Croix and Dunn counties. The main threats would be Very heavy rain, Large hail and damaging winds. Keep a close watch to the weather this afternoon.

Severe Chances Thursday.

Image from SPC

The storm Prediction center has issued a slight and a 30% risk area covers much of the 6 county area. A cold front will push closer on Thursday, Storms could develop on this front, and if they do, We could be dealing with widespread severe weather across the 6 county area. These storms will be capable of producing Large Hail and Severe damaging winds.

People in the area should pay close attention to the weather for Thursday. This one of the higher risks of severe weather so far this season.

We need Rain, Rain chances this week.

weather map for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

We really need some rain around here, Things are really drying up. and it's to the point where I'm watering pots everyday to keep flowers alive.

The good news is We will at least have chances for rain the next few days, as the weather pattern gets more active. Wednesday I added the chance for shower or thunderstorms, but at this point I think the chances of rain are on the very low end. If storms to develop Wednesday some may be strong. Thursday is the best chance of rain, as a cold front pulls close, with this front parts of the area could be dealing with Very heavy rain and possible severe thunderstorms. Temps will be in the 70s Tuesday and Wednesday but will jump up into the mid 80s Thursday. So we Will have to keep a eye on the weather Thursday, because it could be strong to severe. Detailed forecast below.

Tuesday, Maybe some light showers, otherwise partly sunny to partly cloudy, highs in the upper 70s Tuesday Night chance of showers continue, lows near 60.

Wednesday, partly sunny, a small chance for showers and thunderstorms, if thunderstorms develop some may be strong. highs in the upper 70s. Wednesday Night, the chance of showers and thunderstorms continue, lows in the 60s.

Thursday, Warm, Partly Cloudy with a Chance of Thunderstorms in the afternoon, storms may be strong severe, and some storms may produce heavy very rain. Highs in the mid 80s. Thursday Night, showers and thunderstorms. lows in the 60s. This day needs to be watched closely for Severe Weather.

Friday The chances for Severe weather on this day has moved to Thursday, For Friday expect sunny skies with highs in the 80s.
Looking ahead, It appears we dry out a little after Friday. Temps falling down a bit.

Firework Photos

Fireworks at the Lutz Resident in Turtle Lake Township.

Yesterday Evening, after lighting out last fireworks, I headed over the the Lutz Famliy residents to enjoy fireworks they were having, They always have one of the biggest displays in the area. They had some really good ones this year.
During the evening, all you could hear as see was distance fireworks going off all around the area. It was a perfect night for fireworks also! No clouds with the moon shining bright!
One last photo of the fireworks.