WORLD CONTINUES TO FIND URSINE TALES BEARABLE
Here's more proof that the world just can't get enough of a good bear story.
Remember the tale of John Steitz? We reported last month about how Steitz, a hiker from Minneapolis, was napping along the Superior Hiking Trail near Beaver Bay when he dreamed about a playful puppy licking his face. Then Steitz awoke to find a black bear standing over him.
The bear ran away, Steitz was OK, and his story continues to have legs. Thursday night, it garnered a short segment on the Canadian radio news show "As it Happens," which airs on the CBC and Minnesota Public Radio News.
In recounting the tale, host Jeff Douglas noted that it was kind of like "that old joke about the guy who dreamed he was eating a giant marshmallow, and he woke up and his pillow was gone."
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Steitz told us Friday that after the article appeared in the News Tribune and on duluthnewstribune.com, he was interviewed by radio shows in Seattle and in Iowa. An item appeared online on Huffington Post, and apparently even on a news site in the Netherlands; Steitz doesn't speak Dutch, so he wasn't sure what that story said.
He said it's been fun, and also -- as he's watched the story spread -- "a wake-up call to how the Internet works."
SPEAKING OF BEARS ...
We're going to put on our Smokey Bear hat one more time and remind you that wildfire danger remains elevated across much of the Northland this holiday weekend.
This week's warm, dry weather has pushed fire danger to "high" for much of Northeastern Minnesota, and "very high" for areas north of the Iron Range.
Duluth finished August with a monthly rainfall more than two inches below normal. The forecast calls for continued warm, dry conditions today, with a chance for some rain Sunday.
If you're planning to have a campfire, officials ask that you keep it small; clear vegetation from around the fire; keep water nearby and keep an eye on the fire at all times; and make sure the fire is cold to the touch before leaving.
AND SPEAKING OF SMOKEY BEAR ...
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In the lingo of CB radio, you're going to see lots of smokeys and bears out on the road next Wednesday as the Minnesota State Patrol observes its annual statewide Maroon Day.
That's when all sworn officers will put aside other duties and head out on road patrols. The date was picked to coincide with the start of the school year.
"Traffic crashes remain the number one killer of our youth," State Patrol Sgt. Curt Mowers said in a news release. "Impaired driving, speed, lack of seat belt use and aggressive driving remain the top contributing factors of traffic crashes. ... Our agency focus on Maroon Day will be to visibly target those violations and pay particular attention to traffic going to and from school and school-related events."
Whether a state trooper is watching or not, with kids and buses heading to and from schools again this month, let's all be careful out there.
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