Simply Superior

With the massive December storms making for a white Christmas throughout the region and the new year starting off with another, we’re resigned to a winter of heavy snowfall. But don’t forget about the ice. A January thaw and other weather fluctuations can be misleading, especially when it comes to trekking out on the big lake.

That’s what 26 ice anglers on Lake Superior found in 2021 when they had to be rescued from an ice floe heading out on open water. In a rebroadcast from then, University of Minnesota Duluth Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences John Swenson and Joseph J. Moore of the regional National Weather Service office explain to “Simply Superior” host Robin Washington just how ice floes are formed, the hazards they pose and how to avoid them.

Also, Brainerd, Minnesota-bred singer-songwriter Kelley Smith performs frequently in the Twin Ports music scene. As a small child, she sang to animals in the woods. Three decades later, she embarked on a singer-songwriter career and is sharing the stage with Twin Ports musical storytellers including Charlie Parr and Breanne Marie.