Recent Presentations

Billy Needham came up to the Trail from Duluth in 1929, looking for work, and ended up staying the rest of his life. Billy lived most of his life on his property on the Gunflint Trail. He
purchased the land around 1927 for $1. After living in a tent for three years, Billy built the cabin on a narrow strip of land between
Hungry Jack Lake and West Bearskin Lake.

Billy spent his time being a fishing guide and trapper for years.
He was an avid woodsman and hunter. Well, with woodworking, Billy carved and made many of his own wood artworks. Billy’s
furniture was in high demand from the local cabin and
resort owners.

Tommy Banks and his wife, Reta, built their cabin on Hungry Jack Lake in the mid-1930s.

The property’s original buildings included the main cabin (complete with a hidden compartment under a false floor in the living room bookcase), a garage (with living quarters above for Tommy’s bodyguards), a generator building, a boathouse, a “maid’s” cabin, a root cellar, and an outhouse.
Tommy was an avid sportsman, enjoying hunting and fishing with his friend Billy Needham.

According to Billy Needham, on his first fishing trip out with Tommy Banks and several of his bodyguards, they were fishing out of a large canoe on Rose Lake. Someone at the party hooked a very large northern. After a long battle with the fish, it was finally brought up to the canoe. However, Billy, upon seeing the fish, realized it was too large to land the fish in the already crowded canoe. Billy decides to pull out his hunting knife to cut the fish loose. With that, Tommy’s bodyguards all drew their pistols and dispatched the fish in a blaze of bullets.

Erik Simula is a Finnish-American birchbark canoe builder, wilderness guide, and writer from
Duluth. He holds a Master’s of Tribal Resource and Environmental Stewardship from the
University of Minnesota. He was formerly executive director of the Schroeder Area Historical Society and led the development of the Cook County Historical Alliance. He works for the US Forest Service and lives in Finland, Minnesota.

On Earth Day, April 22, 2009, Erik and his dog Kitigan embarked from Grand Portage on a four­ month, 1,000-mile birchbark canoe voyage encircling the 1854 Ceded Territory. From Lake Superior, Savana Portage, the Mississippi River, and the Canadian Border, Erik tells his unique story of our cultural, historical, mythological, and relational transformation, which drives his forthcoming book, Arrowhead Journey.

David will discuss his new biography about the life of Helen Hoover. Helen was a best-selling nature writer from the 1960s and 1970s who lived on Gunflint Lake with her artist husband Adrian. David will explore Helen’s career in Chicago before moving to the Gunflint Lake area in 1954 and her success writing books for adults and children.

Her Place in the Woods captures both an awakening to the power and fragility of the natural world and the efforts and talents of an extraordinary woman defining herself as a writer. Though Helen Hoover would move on from the secluded North Woods, as she wrote in her final book, The Years of the Forest, “From this time on it would be both here and with me wherever I might be, as long as I should live.”

During the late 1950s through the early 1970s, Helen Hoover’s stories and essays of life in the wilderness on northern Minnesota’s Gunflint Lake, published in popular magazines and several bestselling books (including The Gift of the Deer in 1966 and A Place in the Woods in 1969), found millions of fans and earned her accolades alongside nature writers like Sigurd Olson, Rachel Carson, Sally Carrighar, and Calvin Rutstrum. Hoover’s unlikely history of leaving a corporate career in Chicago for a small cabin without electricity or running water—with no interest in hunting or fishing—is just one chapter of the remarkable life that David Hakensen describes in Her Place in the Woods. This first complete biography illuminates how Helen Hoover (1910–1984) made a place for herself and for countless readers in, as she put it, the world of her time. David’s book will be available to purchase at Chik-Wauk Museum.

The Hoovers were woefully unprepared for life off the grid and slowly learned how to convert sheds into chicken coops and fend off bears.

Social encounters presented their challenges, with Helen’s fiery personality leading to clashes with hunters and other Gunflint neighbors. Gradually, the Hoovers settled into the rhythms of their remote homestead, and Helen would craft a prolific literary livelihood from her keen observations of nature and encounters with animals in the surrounding woods.

Most people know the BWCAW as a canoeist’s paradise. But the best-kept secret is that several overnight backpacking trails can be found only on foot. Martin Kubik will share photos, maps, stories, and origins of the Kekekabic, Powwow, and Sioux Hustler trails. Hiking on these paths offers unmatched solitude, immersion in the deep forest, and potential survival experience for the unprepared. Martin will cover the gear, food, and clothing basics for a trip you will enjoy, not endure.
Time permitting, Martin will share about his winter trek in the BWCAW, a snowshoe day hike in a quest for a forgotten campsite, a what was supposed to be an easy day trip that ended up being a 20-hour nighttime ordeal, getting by at night with only a small emergency pen light.

Martin Kubik, who guided in the BWCAW out of Gunflint Trail, was a US Forest Service firefighter and survived capsizing in an open canoe on Lake Superior. A lifelong advocate for hiking trails in the BWCAW, Martin is a recipient of several outdoor volunteer awards. He is the founder of the Kekekabic Trail Club, the 3M Outdoor Club, the BW Advisory Committee, and the Boundary Waters Heritage Trails. After retiring from 3M Co. as a printing specialist in 2018, he enjoys sewing custom camping gear, exploring wilderness paths that are less traveled, and adventure storytelling. Martin can be reached at martin.kubik@bwheritagetrails.org.

Ryan has spent the last decade living on Minnesota’s North Shore of Lake Superior. As a wildlife professional working for county and federal governments for the last 8 years, he has had the privilege of being involved with wildlife monitoring efforts, exciting research, and implementing habitat improvement projects. He’s explored his wildlife and nature photography passion. Realizing the power of visual storytelling as a tool for conservation. He loves documenting the natural world and is constantly amazed by what we can learn.

The talk will explore the intersection of art and science through wildlife photography and conservation. Specifically, Ryan will share a bit about his journey as a wildlife photographer and visual storyteller. One of his favorite and most rewarding photo techniques is the use of camera capturing remotely triggered camera. He will share the history of camera capturing, how it has evolved, and what mysteries we can uncover using this technology.
You can view Ryan’s Photography at: Ryan Pennesi Photography

Mark Hansen takes attendees deep into the history and lore of the Gunflint Trail. With vivid storytelling and striking images, Mark brings to life the legendary “old timers” who shaped this rugged corner of the Northwoods.

Unforgettable characters like Benny Ambrose, the last man to live in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, will be featured, along with the hardy pioneers who carved out lives on this wild and beautiful land. Audience stories are encouraged—so bring family tales to help keep these histories alive.

Mark Hansen takes attendees deep into the history and lore of the Gunflint Trail. With vivid storytelling and striking images, Mark brings to life the legendary “old timers” who shaped this rugged corner of the Northwoods.

Unforgettable characters like Benny Ambrose, the last man to live in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, will be featured, along with the hardy pioneers who carved out lives on this wild and beautiful land. Audience stories are encouraged—so bring family tales to help keep these histories alive.

Mark will summarize his photography background and overview his loon photography technique and loon interaction etiquette. Through photos and accompanying stories, Mark will illuminate loon life during the breeding season from migratory spring return after ice-out through to fall migratory departure. The dedication of loon parents will be illustrated during nesting through to care, training, and protection of loon chicks and maturing juveniles. Primary natural and human conflict hardships in the lives of loons will be illustrated to emphasize the need for loon conservation efforts and expand appreciation for these magnificent birds.

Arleta Little is a poet, writer, and culture worker with a deep passion for the natural world that is expressed in the literary arts, gardening, hiking, and retreats. Arleta’s latest book of poetry, Black Swallowtail, pairing her poetry with paintings by visual artist Ta-coumba T. Aiken in the African tradition of call and response, was published by the Duluth Art Institute. Her recent poems and essays have appeared in multiple journals and publications, including We Are Meant to Rise: Voices for Justice from Minneapolis to the World (UMN Press); Blues Vision: African American Writing From Minnesota (MNHS Press); The Saint Paul Almanac; Black Literacy Matters; This was 2020 and more. Her essay, Life and Death in the North Star State, published in Water-Stone Review, was nominated for a Pushcart

Prize. She is a co-author, along with Josie Johnson and Carolyn Holbrook, of Hope in the Struggle: A Memoir about the life of Josie R. Johnson, published by the University of Minnesota Press. In addition to being an author, Arleta has worked for more than two decades in nonprofit organizations and in philanthropy, serving in executive leadership, program officer, and consulting roles. She is also a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer and meditation practitioner. Arleta currently serves as the Executive & Artistic Director for the Loft Literary Center.

The Tuttle Years at Bearskin Lodge (1973–2001)
Enjoy a collection of photos and stories that capture the Tuttle years of hard work and big dreams. It was with the support of family and friends and a deep love for the Gunflint Trail that made Bearskin Lodge their home.

Their journey with Bearskin Lodge began in 1973 when Dave Tuttle, once a dock boy at the lodge, took the leap into ownership—just as he was finishing school and preparing to marry Barb. Together, this young Kentucky couple embarked on an adventure that would define nearly three decades of their lives, transforming Bearskin Lodge into a thriving year-round destination.
The winter of 1975, their first, was cold and snowy but sparked an idea – could Bearskin become more than just a summer resort? The learning curve was steep, but Dave and Barb accepted the challenge. Through trial and error, they discovered the potential for winter tourism, leading them to develop one of the finest cross-country skiing trail systems in the region. Their vision extended beyond the trails as they painstakingly remodeled and expanded Bearskin’s original eight cabins, shaping the lodge into a successful year-round business and, at the same time, raising two wonderful children.
You won’t want to miss this one.

Seth Moore, PhD., has worked for the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa since 2005. He presently manages the Grand Portage Department of Biology and Environment.

Dr. Moore has worked on Great Lakes fisheries, wildlife, and environmental issues for over 29 years. He earned his Ph.D. in Water Resources Science from the University of Minnesota (2008), a master’s degree in Environmental Biology also from the University of Minnesota (1998), and a bachelor’s dual degree in Biology and Environmental Studies from Northland College in Ashland, WI (1994).

As Director of Biology and Environment, he works under limited supervision and has latitude to determine natural resource priorities and focus on projects designed to accomplish natural resources and environmental goals of the Grand Portage Band of Chippewa. Dr. Moore has been recognized as the 2018 Conservation Award winner by the North American Fur Association, the 2013 Tribal Biologist of the Year award from the Native American Fish and Wildlife Society, and was co-recipient of Time magazine’s 2006 Person of the Year. He is appointed as a citizen member for a four-year term that ends December 31, 2025.

All presentations are family-friendly and free to the public.
Donations are always appreciated. Take your time driving up the Gunflint Trail National Scenic Byway!

Chik-Wauk Museum & Nature Center is located 55 miles up the Gunflint Trail National Scenic Byway (Cook County Highway 12), 1/4 mile off of UT Cty Rd 81 on beautiful Saganaga Lake.

Lee E. Frelich is the Director of the University of Minnesota Center for Forest Ecology.
He received a Ph.D. in Forest Ecology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1986. Frelich has authored 234 publications with 360 coauthors from 26 countries, including major works for Cambridge University Press and Oxford University Press. He is listed among the top 1% of all scientists in the world in the Ecology and Environment category by the Web of Science. His research has been featured in the news media 600 times, including such venues as The New York Times, Newsweek, and Washington Post.
Current research interests include large-scale fire and wind, earthworm invasion, and climate change in temperate and boreal forests.

This presentation will include:
Mapping and dating fires show that large, high-intensity crown fires that regenerate jack pine, black spruce, birch, and aspen forests every 50-100 years have been common in the BWCAW over the last 4 centuries. Parts of the landscape have had smaller, lower-intensity surface fires every few decades that regenerate white and red pine forests. Variations in fire frequencies due to changing climate, activities of indigenous people and European settlers, and in recent decades, large-scale windstorms, have had significant impacts on the composition of forests that we see on the landscape today.