Artist Sign-up anytime-

From: Tuesday June 15, 2010

Until: Friday, October 15, 2010

The Gunflint Trail’s Plein Air Summer  is open to all artist (painters) who want to participate.- Sign in at anytime during the event at Trail Center Lodge 8am-9pm Mon-Sun. Artist participants will be given a small packet with an ID card, list of incentives from businesses along the trail and information about the event and show.

Catagories- landscape, wildlife, buildings, people.  Artist may enter one work in each catagory

A show/sale of your work will be held on the Gunflint in October 2010. Participating artist will receive complementary wine and food during the October Show/Sale
More info soon, place of show will depend on number of paintings entered.

There are no fees involved for the Artists. Any sales that take place will go directly through the artist and buyer.
You will be welcome to showcase your work at several different Lodges during the summer. For sale or not.

Casual Artist meet up – every Friday and Sunday morning. 8 am -10 am at Trail Center Lodge. Catch up with old friends and make new!

This is a very casual event. Please come paint the beautiful Gunflint Trail and enjoy a free show of your work at the end of the summer season.

INCENTIVES FOR PARTICIPATING ARISTS ONLY!-Contact each resort for details

• Trail Center 1-218-388-2214
  free restaurant beverages,display and or sell work
• Bearskin Lodge 1-218-388-2292
  discounted lodging,display and or sell work, discounted boat rentals and free beverages for painters
• Cross River/Moosehorn Lodge 1-218-388-2233
  35% discount on Lodging,snacks and drinks available for Artists at no charge
• Clearwater Lodge
  welcome to paint on property, free coffee and hot chocolate
• Golden Eagle Lodge 1-800-346-2203
  free coffee and a homemade cookie
• Windigo Lodge 1-218-388-2222
  15% discount for lodging, 10% discount on food in restaurant/bar
• Poplar Creek Guesthouse Bed and Breakfast
  is offering to artist participating in the Gunflint Trail’s Plein Air- 20% off lodging with scrumptious breakfasts, at our Bed and Breakfast. Two nights minimum stay.
• Old Northwoods Lodge 1-218-388-9464
  Stop in for a friendly hello and a free cup of coffee

For Additional Information Contact- Sarah Hamilton, Trail Center Lodge, Gunflint Trail-218-388-2214

The Gunflint’s  Banadad Trail Association, friends and neighbors this spring are planting six hundred red Tree Planting along the Banadad and white pines and 100 white spruce trees in previously logged and “blow-down” areas along the eastern end of the Banadad Ski Trail and around Little Ollie Lake. Some 350 trees went into the ground over this past weekend. The remaining trees are planned to be planted during this week by local members of the Association, guests and staff at Poplar Creek Guesthouse B&B. As in previous years, the tree planting is a way for the Banadad Trail Association to insure that the maintenance and grooming of the trail remains carbon neutral. Similarly Poplar Creek Guesthosue B&B, in joining with the Association in this project, is seeking to sequester the carbon produced by the use of its vehicles in these new tree

This weekend project was injunction with the Gunflint annual Green-Up.. The year’s event attracted some two hundred participants who in addition to the tree planting along the Banadad began clearing the underbrush, called –releasing’” around trees previously planted during the event in past years. ]]> http://www.minnesotabedandbreakfasts.org/blog/2010/05/tree-planting-on-the-gunflint/feed/ 0 http://www.minnesotabedandbreakfasts.org/blog/2010/05/national-website-announces-bbs-new-green-progarm/ http://www.minnesotabedandbreakfasts.org/blog/2010/05/national-website-announces-bbs-new-green-progarm/#comments Wed, 05 May 2010 17:38:55 +0000 bct http://www.minnesotabedandbreakfasts.org/blog/?p=1409

According to Young, “The overall message of the gathering was that occupancy is improving and will continue to improve for the B & B industry and methods of social marketing (twitter, Face book, blogs etc.) are necessary to keep ahead of the curve.  The trend is that in a sluggish economy vacationing close to home is popular, practical and safe. This certainly points to B & B opportunities.”

The conference featured workshops promoting packaging with trails and birding; methods of adding value to inn’s offerings and diversification of small business. Additional workshop leaders included a pastry chef; a photography business owner; a health department expert; an energy resource consultant; a marketing guru and a bird guide.

Green Journey the Association’s new green self-certification program was  “kicked-off” at the conference. This unique program – the first Green Lodging certification program in Minnesota -  awards from one up to five green leaves for varying degrees of sustainability for member owners of B&Bs. Innkeepers will be encouraged to keep making green improvements to their property in practical ways to improve their rating.

The venue Crowne Plaza in Brooklyn Center was in fact chosen partially based on its green initiatives. According to Pam Thorsen, the Association’s director, “We were impressed with their recycling, their energy savings and their willingness to work with us in not serving bottled water for example.”

Many of the vendors at the event also were offering practical “green” solutions to innkeeper’s needs.”

According to Young, “This was of one of our finest conferences.  Through our workshops and vendors, we gained even more knowledge on improving and promoting  our businesses and how we as innkeepers can better work together to improve all our businesses. In addition, I think I can speak for all who attended this year’s conference, we certainly had a great time.”

The Minnesota Bed and Breakfast Association is a non-profit organization whose aim is promoting the state’s Quality Assured member inns as well as offering support, networking and education for innkeepers. Organized in 1985 with 12 members, the Association now has 115 members The Association sponsors a conference annually, webinars at least monthly and is planning regional workshops promoting Green Journey, other Association programs and to discuss members needs.  A guidebook is available online to download or by mail from www.minnesotabb.org.

Cook County, between the Gunflint Trail’s three Ski systems, the North Shore and Pincushion Trails, has over four hundred kilometers of groomed trails. To highlight these trails, on Saturday January 23 the county is conducting the Volk Ski 400. Each of the county’s’ ski areas are being asked to have skiers ski their entire system. As part of the event contributions will be accepted to support Pancreatic Cancer Research.

We think this is a great event and it should be lots of fun. You can join in the fun by becoming part of the Banadad’s Volk Ski relay by joining- Team Banadad. Skiers on Team Banadad will each ski a portion of the Banadad’s 39 kilometers. . You choose the portion of the Banadad you wish to ski and hopefully together the team will be able to cover the entire trail system.

Lodging along the Banadad Ski Trail at Poplar Creek Guesthouse B&B and Cabins available at 30% off  and Boundary Country Trekking will pay the $10 registration fee for all Team Banadad participants. All participants will each receive a colorful T-shirt. While this is not a race, skiers will be asked to time their treks. Times will then be posted that day at Poplar Creek Guesthouse and on www.volksskifest.com website.

Also Donations will be accepted for Pancreatic Cancer Research at trail check-in areas and a Volks Ski 400 pin is your gift for your donation. Skiers are encouraged to dress in purple to show your support!

Volk Ski- Jan 23

“I know my guests start reconnecting with the woods as they drive up the Gunflint Trail,” states Nancy Seaton, Hungry Jack Outfitters.  “It’s an invitation to be part of our neighborhood; a natural neighborhood that flows through the boreal forest of Northeastern Minnesota; a neighborhood that’s home to moose, wolves and loons; a neighborhood that encourages the visitor to enter a calmer time away from the hectic modern demands; a place to reconnect with the natural environment and recharge.”

F or visitors who enjoy vacations centered on scenic byways, designation of the Gunflint Trail as a National Scenic Byway provides a natural route transition from the adjoining North Shore Drive, which has the National Scenic Byway designation of All American Road.

Pursuit of National Scenic Byway designation of the Gunflint Trail was primarily motivated by the dedication of local business owners and residents to forever preserve this historic and scenic roadway for current and future generations, while allowing a glimpse into the past of the forests, lakes, and geological formations which grace northeastern Minnesota.

“The National Scenic Byways Program is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration. The program is a grass-roots collaborative effort established to help recognize, preserve and enhance selected roads throughout the United States. Since 1992, the National Scenic Byways Program has funded 2,672 projects for state and nationally designated byway routes in 50 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. The U.S. Secretary of Transportation recognizes certain roads as All-American Roads or National Scenic Byways based on one or more archeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational and scenic qualities.” (Source: http://www.byways.org/learn/)

For more information about the Gunflint Trail National Scenic Byway, please visit GunflintTrailScenicByway.com .

Businesses along the Gunflint Trail provided delicious free treats from the Taste of the Gunflint Trail cookbook to all those that showed-up. This year Poplar Creek Guesthouse B&B served-up their famous firepot dinner to some sixty-two people – many of whom to hear them tell it,” had already eaten way to much at all the other lodges they had stopped at.”

Great news along the Mesabi Bike Trai! The troublesome one and one-half mile gap between  in Morning Glory Bed and Breakfast in Grand Rapid and Mitchell-Tappen House B&B in Hibbing is finally paved. Riders are able now to travel the 39.3 miles stretch between the two B&Bs along a non-stop asphalt biking path.

From Hibbing the trail continues on another 43.7 miles to Giants Ridge Resort passing mine-pit lakes, through rock cuts and the many historic town of Minnesota’s famous Iron Range. In addition to the B&Bs overnight accommodations are available in hotels and quaint Inns all along the trail. For more, see Lodge to Lodge Biking.