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MONDAY, APRIL 1, 2002

"The last time I was in Thief River Falls, I interviewed a bear hunter. This time the community was a stopover on my way to the Big Bog, north of the Red Lakes.

The following day, I had an appointment with Jerry Stensing, forester and vice chairman of the citzens group for the new Big Bog State Recreation Area. I met him in Kelliher, Minn. Then, we drove some 50 miles into the Big Bog.

What a place!

Stensing will be a Sunday Herald "Prairie Voices" interview in a few weeks. In that interview, he'll talk about "ecotourism" and how the towns near the Big Bog are changing their dying economies into thriving communities. But there are other aspects of my five-hour visit there that I want to share.

The Big Bog, the largest area of unbroken peatland in the state, is a marsh where sphagnum moss is king. This moss is the driving force behind this ecosystem, Stensing told me. . ."

Get the Story:
Big dreams take shape over Minnesota's Big Bog (The Grand Forks Herald 3/30)