Dry weather, wildfires, and poor air quality cause frustration for the start of summer
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Tuesday the 1st wildfire in the Boundary Waters scorched around 30 acres of land near Spike Lake.
That caused a lot of tension for avid campers who visit the waters yearly, and back in the summer of 2021 wildfires canceled trips. And with Minnesota’s dry conditions many fear that’ll happen again.
Tim Engrav from the Superior National Forest says, “We’ve not been receiving the regular amount of precipitation these last couple of months this past April and May and that’s continuing through June.”
Leaving campers like Duluth’s Rick Rice to not be optimistic saying, “we really need some rain and without that I can only imagine that it’s going to get worse.”
The campfire restrictions in the Boundary Waters are also putting a damper on the experience. Rice says, “Just sitting around the campfire and chatting and talking, and sharing and laughing and singing. Thant’s a big part of the experience.”
With dry conditions fueling fires, campfire restrictions, and poor air quality, many are feeling frustrated with the start of summer.
The wildfires in Canada also interrupting a picturesque summer. With the haze from the smoke covering areas of the Northland.
At Va Bene, one of their biggest draw is to eat out on the deck, but with the smoke they’ve had to keep everyone in side. Manager Frank DeLuca says, “It is a bit difficult it is unfortunate and it is a bit of a loss to the restaurant when it happens but it’s not something that we don’t account for or can’t handle.”
He says that their customers are flexible with the conditions just as much as they are, but are bumped that the air quality is preventing them from going all out.