Eric Kodner CRS, ABR, e-PRO, CLHMS, Madeline Island Real Estate Wisconsin

"Island Thyme" gift shop in La Pointe, Wisconsin is having a Madeline Island "Spring Cleaning Sale"!

Today and tomorrow from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. both days, Island Thyme will be presenting a plant sale with Free Hand Farms of Ashland, Wisconsin. The plant sale will include potted perennials, annuals, herbs and vegetables.

Quiet Creek Farm has its own market stand, located at the corner of Le Sueur and Main Streets, from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m., with produce, flowers and fresh pork available for purchase.

The Madeline Island branch of Bremer Bank is now open Monday through Friday each week, from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m.

Madeline Island resident Michael Murphy takes his rowing very seriously.

Murphy recently rowed his diminutive seventeen-foot boat, the "Mikerowave" from the Bad River area (near Odanah, Wisconsin) to the Duluth, Minnesota lift bridge and back again, to promote public awareness of the need for cardiac health. The nearly 140-mile round trip took Murphy about nine days.

Murphy works for the National Healthy Heart Project, which is administered through the Indian Health Service and provides health assistance to over thirty Native American tribes across the United States. Murphy also works at the Ashland County Memorial Medical Center in the hospital's emergency room walk-in clinic.

Murphy is a staunch advocate of rowing as an excellent form of cardiac exercise. He counsels members of the Bad River tribe on measures aimed at preventing diabetes, stroke and heart attack.

If you're headed north on Interstate 35 from Minneapolis - Saint Paul toward Duluth and plan to cross over into Wisconsin, here's an alternate route you may want to try over the congested Fourth of July weekend.

Instead of taking the Bong Bridge (Interstate Highway 2) into Wisconsin, take the Minnesota 210 exit near Black Bear Casino and head east through Carlton, Minnesota. This route takes you past the Thomson Hydroelectric Dam site and the Willard Munger Trail, through beautiful Jay Cooke State Park.

The winding road through Jay Cooke State Park will take you past some of the most delightful unspoiled wilderness views anywhere in Minnesota. If you haven't taken this route before, I highly recommend it!

At the easternmost end of Highway 210, you'll find yourself in Fond du Lac, Minnesota (Fond du Lac is actually considered a south Duluth suburb). Take a left on Minnesota Highway 23 and head north a few miles beyond Fond du Lac, until you see the Highway 39 bridge. Drive east and you'll cross the Saint Louis River into the town of Oliver, Wisconsin.

Once you're in Oliver, the town of Superior is just five to ten minutes east of the bridge crossing. Beyond the bridge crossing, the eastbound highway becomes Wisconsin 105.

In Superior, you'll intersect with Wisconsin Highway 35. Another pleasant detour on the way east would be to head south on Wisconsin 35 until you reach Douglas County Road C. Heading east on 'C' will bring you to South Range, Wisconsin, just west of Amnicon Falls State Park and Highway 53.

Or, you could drive a little farther south and head east on Douglas County Road B, through lovely Pattison State Park. The Pattison family built and occupied historic Fairlawn Mansion, in Superior, Wisconsin. Fairlawn Mansion is another must-see destination, just across the highway from Barker's Island.

Douglas County 'B' goes east through Pattison State Park, jogs south briefly and then east again, intersecting with Wisconsin Highway 53 in Hawthorne.

You can take B further east, all the way into Lake Nebagamon, Wisconsin. And if you continue east to Wisconsin 27, you'll wind up in Brule, Wisconsin, at the intersection of 27 and U.S. Route 2.

Take the back roads next time you visit northwest Wisconsin and enjoy some fabulous scenery!

Visitors to Madeline Island this summer may notice a few more downed trees than usual on the Island.

Spring storms which included high winds and near-record waves played a role in taking down a greater than normal number of hardwoods and pines on parts of the Island.

It's not uncommon to see some downed trees on the Island. The soil in most parts of Madeline Island is red clay, with occasional rock outcroppings or boulders, particularly on the north end of the Island.

Photo above: Fallen tree on Madeline Island shows typical shallow root system found in clay soil.

The clay is impermeable to rainwater and surface nutrients, which causes tree roots to fan out close to the surface, rather than rooting deeply. Naturally-seeded hardwoods with shallow root systems are frequent casualties when storms hit the Island.

A major windstorm and snowstorm in early April snapped pine trees at mid-trunk in Washburn, Wisconsin and along the south shore.

All the market metrics in the world regarding tourism wouldn't impress me half as much as the opinion of a shopkeeper in the heart of this tourist community.

Ed and Marilyn Hartig own and operate the Island Store on Main Street in La Pointe, Wisconsin, just across the street from the Madeline Island Realty office. Ed has been selling produce, fast food, meats and cheese, at the same location for several decades.

So it's safe to say Ed has his finger on the pulse of Madeline Island's business community.

Ed tells me business is booming so far, and he anticipates a season similar to last year. He pointed out that bookings for lodging on the Island are solid through September. And there are apparently fourteen Island weddings booked for the summer so far.