After the swing in temperatures from –35 last  Thursday to +32 on Tuesday, residents of Ely Minnesota are out dancing in the streets. Grab your mukluks and head up on Saturday night February 2nd and you can join in on the fun while dancing at the Polar Bear Dance in celebration of the annual Ely Winter Festival. Tickets are on Sale now.
 
Snow carving is one of the highlighted activities for this ten day festival and it draws sculptors from all walks of life. Nancy Scheibe and Bill Defenbaugh are two local sculptors from Ely that have been enjoying the tradition for years. Other sculptors will arrive from out of town Friday night and take the weekend to create incredible scenes at Ely’s Whiteside Park. Admission for viewing? Free! Get off the couch and catch some fun this weekend while you watch these artisans ply their trade.
 
There is a spaghetti feed, radar run, ice fishing contest, artwalk and more that are all centered around a cold day in Ely! 
For full information on this Festival that was started in 1984 by the local cross country skiing groups go to their website and pick out some of the events that matter to you.  
 
  • ON LINE INFORMATION    www.elywinterfestival.com  ...... Still not off the couch?  Twin Metals is having their open house located at their newly built office in Ely on Saturday.
Blend in a day of ice fishing. Good ice conditions and good Lake Trout fishing have both  been reported out of Burntside Lake and also Snowbank Lake at the end of the Fernberg. Bring your own gear for Burntside but check out http://smittys-on-snowbank.com/ if you want the luxury of a heated ice shack and rental gear. Ely is one of the best destinations to catch natural spawned Lake Trout in Minnesota. The trout bite is all day time so coordinate that with the festival and a full weekend is in store for you and the family.
 
Want a guide for all of this? Go to http://www.stevefossimages.com/fossguide.html  Local guide and professional photographer Steve Foss can put you onto the Lake Trout for the day like no other. He has been guiding on Burntside for several years and has all the gear to make your trip a success.
 
So, Dads fishing and Moms in Ely touring all the festivities, what could be better?   Spending the night and making it a weekend!
 
For lodging information go to www.ely.org
 
 
 
Bring the family or bring the friends, Ely is Heating up for the Next 10 days starting February 1st.
 
Canadian Border Vacations during the winter are all but the best! Check us out at www. MinnesotaNorth.com and go the big lodge on Burntside lake with your group today.
 
See You On The Dock!
Dan Houle
 
LIVELY WINTER FUN AT THE EDGE OF THE BWCA!
Each year, dog sled rides are available at Northern Lights LodgeVoyageur Encampment - Ely Winter Festival