For generations, the mines of Michigan's Copper Country have been woven into the history of the Lake Superior region. While many of those mines closed decades ago, their stories — and the underground landscapes they created — continue to leave their mark on the communities above them. Today, researchers are combining archaeology, historic records, and emerging technologies to better understand the region's mining history, improve public safety, and explore how these underground landscapes may serve future generations.

In this episode of the Lake Superior Podcast, Walt Lindala and Frida Waara talk with Tim Scarlett, Associate Professor of Archaeology at Michigan Technological University. They explore the challenges of mapping abandoned mines, why understanding these underground landscapes matters, and what they can teach us about the past and perhaps the future.

Connect with us:

• Lake Superior Podcast Page: https://nplsf.org/podcast
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NationalParksOfLakeSuperiorFoundation

Sponsors:

• Cafe Imports – Minneapolis-based importers of specialty green coffees since 1993, focused on sustainability. Learn more: cafeimports.com
• National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation – Donate to protect Lake Superior’s five national parks: nplsf.org/donate

Isle Royale is one of the least visited of America’s National Parks. Located in the northwest corner of Lake Superior, it’s a tough place to get to. Access is only by seaplane, ferry or private boat. But once visitors do come, they are likely to return. Karen Bacula has been coming to this remote island since 1997. As a teacher, she also brought students to explore this unique archipelago of islands. Now, retired, she volunteers as director of Michigan Tech’s Isle Royale Institute and coordinates Moosewatch volunteers, helping people take part in fieldwork that supports the world’s longest-running predator-prey study. In this episode of the Lake Superior Podcast, Walt Lindala and Frida Waara talk with Karen about citizen science, wilderness learning and the lasting pull of Isle Royale.

Quotes:

1. “What connected me and made me want to just keep coming back was the beauty, the quiet, the simplicity, but yet incredibly complex whole area of what was there being surrounded by the lake. And many of the people I met were just absolutely wonderful.”
2. “The power of the island, the power of the lake, the serenity, but also realizing that at the drop of a hat, the weather can change. So there's predictability and uncertainty in every step that you take. And I like that feeling.”
3. “There's something special and new about it each time and getting to see the changes.”
4. “We’re looking for dead moose and looking for the condition of the skeleton to see what the moose age-wise, health-wise was like, potentially how it died.”
5. “It becomes very cross-curricular at all different grade levels. But they all come out with the big excitement being to learn how the study's done and to learn the field techniques for collecting data for this study.”
6. “Two things I tell them to pack that are not necessarily on the gear list is their patience and sense of humor.”
7. “Work to bring some of what you just felt right now with the people you met and living as close to the earth as you can live, bring some of that back with you and hold on to that.”

Helpful links:

1. Learn more about the Wolf-Moose Project:
   isleroyalewolf.org
2. Learn more about joining a Moosewatch expedition:
   isleroyalewolf.org/volunteer-moosewatch
3. Learn more about Moosewatch for Educators:
   isleroyalewolf.org/moosewatch-for-educators
4. Learn more about Isle Royale wolf-moose population dynamics:
   isleroyalewolf.org/population-dynamics
5. Learn more about supporting the research through the Wolf-Moose Foundation:
   wolfmoosefoundation.org
6. Learn more about the Northern Moose Alliance: moosealliance.org
7. Plan a visit to Isle Royale National Park:
   nps.gov/isro/planyourvisit/index.htm

Connect with us:

• Lake Superior Podcast Page: https://nplsf.org/podcast
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NationalParksOfLakeSuperiorFoundation

Sponsors:

• Cafe Imports – Minneapolis-based importers of specialty green coffees since 1993, focused on sustainability. Learn more: cafeimports.com
• National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation – Donate to protect Lake Superior’s five national parks: nplsf.org/donate

The bald eagle has been the patriotic symbol of America for 250 years. Most folks can remember the first time they saw this majestic bird soaring in the wild. There was a time when sighting them, even on Lake Superior, was rare, but today these birds of prey are making a comeback. Their return represents one of America’s most visible conservation successes. In this episode of the Lake Superior Podcast, Walt Lindala and Frida Waara talk with Ed Hahn, Director of Advancement and Marketing Communications at the National Eagle Center in Wabasha, Minnesota, about the bald eagle’s recovery, how to recognize young eagles and what visitors can learn by meeting an eagle ambassador face to face.

Quotes

1. Ed Hahn says the species has made "a complete and total recovery" and calls that "a truly incredible accomplishment for Americans to take some pride in," adding, "We accomplished that through public action."
2. “But just like everyone else, we truly do wish that they could be living their full lives as intended as wild eagles out in the wild.”
3. “We have to work with them to educate the public and we have to be sharing those birds with the public.”
4. “Bald eagles are covered in approximately 7,000 feathers.”
5. “There's always new things to learn about eagles.”

Helpful Links

Learn more about the National Eagle Center:
https://www.nationaleaglecenter.org/

Plan a visit to the National Eagle Center:
https://www.nationaleaglecenter.org/visit/

Meet the National Eagle Center’s eagle and raptor ambassadors:
https://www.nationaleaglecenter.org/the-ambassadors/

Watch the EagleWatch Cam overlooking the Mississippi River:
https://www.nationaleaglecenter.org/eaglewatch-cam/

Learn what to do if you find an injured bird:
https://www.nationaleaglecenter.org/found-an-injured-bird/

Learn about bald eagle recovery and management from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service:
https://www.fws.gov/program/eagle-management

Connect With Us:

• Lake Superior Podcast Page – https://nplsf.org/podcast
• Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/NationalParksOfLakeSuperiorFoundation

Sponsors:

• Cafe Imports – Minneapolis-based importers of specialty green coffees since 1993, focused on sustainability. Learn more: cafeimports.com
• National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation – Donate to protect Lake Superior’s five national parks: nplsf.org/donate