Preserving a piece of paradise in the St. Croix Valley

Paul Goodwin and his family have established a 49-acre conservation easement on land abutting Silver Creek near Stillwater, MN and are working to convert 14-acres of fallow farmland to prairie and oak savanna.

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Find wilderness close to home

Like any good wilderness adventure, our day featured a stimulating mix of peaceful solitude, surprising discoveries, playful rest time, and harrowing travel.

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Volunteers work to restore Fairy Falls with help from the Stillwater Area Community Foundation

Nestled deep in the woods on the north side of Stillwater, Fairy Falls is a well-loved and well-guarded local secret. Unless someone tells you where to go, you’d never think to park on the side of the road and hike through the brambles on an unmarked trail in search of a cascading waterfall, steep gorge…

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St. Croix River impairment underscores need for continued work

Three weeks ago, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) announced its intention to declare a stretch of the St. Croix River from Taylor’s Falls to Stillwater impaired due to excess phosphorus. In the wake of this news, many local residents have asked who is to blame and what can be done to restore our treasured…

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Teachers set sail with free workshops on the Mississippi and St. Croix Rivers

“Backswimmer, scud, dragonfly nymph, water boatman, another water boatman…” My son had just woken up from a nap and stumbled bleary-eyed to a clearing near the Mississippi River where our group was peering intently at a bucket-full of river water. Within seconds, he was rattling off the names of aquatic invertebrates we’d found, proud to…

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Celebrating 50 years of Wild and Scenic River protections

Planned events include Spring Gathering, May 11; Namekagon Paddle, June 9-15; Wild and Scenic Film Festival, Aug. 25 The year was 1965, early in the environmental movement, and murmurs of concern from citizen groups around the country were just beginning to translate into protective legislation. An early version of the Clean Air Act had just…

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Saving Bayport’s Perro Creek + “Bike and Boat to Bayport” – May 12 at Lakeside Park

Tiny Perro Creek begins in Valley View Park, a hidden gem tucked between Phil and Tara’s Hideaway, the two Minnesota Correctional Facilities, and the Bayport Fire Department. From Perro Pond, the stream runs downhill 1.8 miles through the neighborhoods of Bayport until it eventually reaches the St. Croix River just north of Bayport Marina. Though…

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Milfoil Morning

Eurasian watermilfoil’s tangled stems grow into thick mats of vegetation that make boating and swimming a pain.  These milfoil mats can also crowd out native plant species that support fish and other wildlife.

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Clean the Croix – July 8

Volunteers can choose between three activities: 1) Picking up litter from the shoreline at the Boom Site wayside; 2) Picking up litter from islands between the Boom Site landing and high Bridge (bring your own boat); or 3) Removing invasive species from the Aiple property just north of the Stillwater Depot.

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St. Croix River: Changing Climate, Changing Times

The 2015 St. Croix Summit, scheduled for Wednesday, April 29 at the Water Street Inn in Stillwater, will be an opportunity for citizens, scientists, policy makers and local implementers from throughout the basin to engage in a full day of learning and collaboration.

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