What's That Bridge Doing Way Up There????

I realize we didn't spend too much time describing Duluth in that last post but there are a bunch of things we wanted to show you and we didn't want to get ahead of ourselves.  So, let's back up and see about "getting here."  As we mentioned, we came across the upper part of Wisconsin on US-2 but as we approached the city of Superior the road magically changed to US-53.  Notwithstanding the fact that our GPS, Maggie, complained (and Sherwood's GPS showed us about fifty feet into the river!!) we figured we could make it without much trouble.  Past Superior we crossed a series of bridges that span Spirit Lake, a subsidiary of Lake Superior and which seemed to me to be the mouth of the St. Louis River.  Anyway, the boundary between Wisconsin and Minnesota cuts straight down the waterway so we were suddenly in "The Land of 1,000 Lakes" and cruising down I-35!!  Lake Superior had returned to view and was demonstrating its awesome power as we came into town.

Duluth's most famous feature is clearly visible as you enter the city and you really need to see it in person to get the full impact!!  The magnificent Aerial Bridge!!!  In the mid-1800s the folks in Duluth realized that the vessels coming into the city port could substantially reduce travel time and distance if

Duluth's Famous Aerial "Lift Bridge

they didn't have to come around Minnesota Point (often called Park Point) a long finger of land sticking straight out into the lake.  So, the decision was made to cut a canal through the sandy land spit and it was completed in 1871.  Problem was, the folks who lived or worked on the point had a very hard time getting to the mainland.  So, a contest was held to see who could come up with the best idea for dealing with the problem.  A fellow named John Waddel proposed a "lift bridge" and was proclaimed winner of the contest.  Unfortunately, the U. S. War Department objected and the project was cancelled.  Waddell's bridge was later built in Chicago.   A subsequent design was adopted incorporating an aerial "gondola" that could transport heavy loads and hundreds of people.  Although it worked and was put in place in the early 1900s, it was inadequate for the growing transportation needs.  So, in the late 1920s modifications were approved that incorporated the "lift-bridge" design almost exactly as Waddell proposed nearly forty years earlier.  And the company that completed the renovation is a descendant of the company he originally founded!!  The bridge spans nearly 400 feet and rises to around 180 feet when elevated. There have been only two bridges of this design ever made - the one in Chicago (since removed) and this one.  The picture above and to the right shows the bridge (just to the left of the clock tower) as it relates to the point.

The downtown area is chock full of great stuff to see with numerous art galleries, stores offering crafts and gifts of all kinds and - especially pleasing to me - lots of music stores.  Amazingly, we found the shop of a violin luthier, Christian Eggert and had a great time talking to his young assistant.  We were also impressed with the statuary that abounded in the craft village along the harbor.  It reminded us of a city we visited in Colorado a while back.  A story for another day.  

St. Scholastica College

Duluth is home to several colleges including the Univ. of Minnesota at Duluth, Lake Superior College and the College of St. Scholastica.  We took time to visit the latter mainly

Sculpture-St. Scholastica

because the history of the college's namesake was so interesting.  St. Scholastica was the twin sister of St. Benedict and she, like her famous  
brother, dedicated her life to God at an early age.  She eventually founded and led a community of nuns at Plombriola - about five miles from St. Benedict's

Stairway - St. Scholastica

monastery in Monte Cassino.  She died  in 547 AD at age 67.  Many amazing events have been related to the saintly lady.  She is considered patron saint of nuns and children with seizure disorders.  Because some of the kids we had worked with could really use her help we decided a visit to pay our respects couldn't hurt.

There is one other place we would like to take you before we close out this part of our day.  We had read about a place called "Hawk Ridge" and, since Linda considers hawks to be her private "totem" we thought it would be an interesting place to see.  Duluth lies right along the shore of Lake Superior but a steep ridge rises sharply to a peak with a spectacular view of the city and the lake.  The ridge is reached by way of the somewhat oddly named "Skyline Parkway."  Despite its name, the road is rather small and can be difficult to find if you are not paying close attention.  I'm not going to try to give directions here but be sure to get some before you head out.  The Hawk Ridge Nature Reserve is a privately funded and staffed operation but the number of people involved as volunteers was absolutely amazing.  We added several pictures here to try to give you a look at both the beauty and the busy nature of the place.  We were there right at the tail end of the peak viewing season but we still got to see quite a few birds.  The above picture of a Red-tailed Hawk was taken by Linda right after we got there.  As I understand it, birds of prey or "raptors" migrate to the southeast from as far away as the arctic and shy away from the vast lake.  That causes them to drop down to the area around Duluth before turning East again.  The number of raptors that pass this place is  astonishing, averaging more than 82,000 birds each fall!!!  And - the different types is equally impressive with hawks including - Broad-winged, Red-tailed, Red-shouldered, Swainson’s, Ferruginous, Rough-legged, Sharp-shinned, Coopers and Northern Goshawk.  At least five kinds of owls, several kinds of eagle including our famous Bald Eagle and the lesser known Golden Eagle - many vultures and numerous other birds of prey round out the visitors list.  As you can see from the pictures, the ridge is a popular place for amateur ornithologists of all ages and the volunteers from the Nature Reserve are all to happy to assist in identifications and in alerting viewers to incoming birds.  I've gotta tell ya, it might sound a little strange until you actually experience it but you can really get caught up in the excitement of a new "spotting."  If you get to Duluth - particularly between August and October - please try to get up to the ridge at least for a little while.

We visited a lot of other places we want to share with you but we don't want to wear you out too badly.  We'll stop now but we'll be back to continue our visit to Duluth shortly.  Before we go, though, let me mention something some of our younger folks might not have realized.  First - the huge ships that carry ore across Lake Superior are called "lakers."  Well, when the city of Minneapolis decided to have a professional basketball team they wanted a name that symbolized their part of the country.  What better name than that of the ships that were so powerful and so vital to this area ..."The Lakers!!"  Yep, the team is in L.A. now but they still bear that proud name.  Come back soon for a lot more!!  See ya.