The opening of a new Nordic Center and lighted ski trails at the Lake Elmo Park Reserve was formally celebrated last week by County Board members and other officials.
The Nordic Center serves as a trail head for the ski trails on which LED lights were installed in the fall of 2011. The newly lighted ski area is laid out with several interconnected "loop" trails, offering skiers multiple unique distances, difficulties and scenic trail options. The LED lights are mounted to poles four to five feet above the ground, and the hooded fixtures are focused and aimed down the trail corridors to minimize light escaping into the night sky.
The Nordic Center was built near the park's primitive campground parking lot and opened for use last fall. The building has amenities for skiers, such as restroom and changing rooms, a warming area and vending machines. Skiers are able to use the Nordic Center to change before or after skiing and warm up between traversing trails.
The $1.3 million project was funded through a Park and Trail Fund grant, which is part of the Clean Water Land and Legacy Amendment, and Metropolitan grants. No county property tax levy funds were used.
LAKE ELMO
Dust Bowl author to visit library Norma Welty, 87, a Maplewood author who chronicled her experience of living through the Dust Bowl of the 1930s in a novel, will talk about her life and how she came to write the book at Lake Elmo Public Library at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
"The Dirty Days" is a story based on her experiences growing up in the Dust Bowl in Oklahoma during the Depression. The story is about one of the most challenging times in the history of the United States as seen through the eyes of a girl. Welty fictionalized her experience, but she lived through it and in this historical tale, based on true events, a girl embarks on a coming-of-age journey where she and her loved ones must fight to survive the Great Depression and the Oklahoma Dust Bowl.
She says her story is not just about the pain and suffering. "There are moments of humor and tenderness that reveal our human capacity to find hope, even happiness amid all the tragedy. My story celebrates and acknowledges the strength and endurance of a generation of adults and children who battled the elements at a desperate time and prevailed through pure grit, hope and determination."
Welty came to her craft later in life and, she says, "In some ways, I have a history of being a late bloomer." She did not attend college until she was 40, but then earned bachelor's and master's degrees and taught English for 21 years. She received her first computer at age 80.
