Best of MinnPics - December 2014

from flickr user Aaron Groen
Wow. I don't even know where to begin to describe the stunning quality and skill that comes from the photographer behind the Best of MinPics for December 2014. Aaron Groen (the photographer) seemingly spends many nights each month stalking the perfect location (mostly rural) and matching that with the perfect celestial sky which makes for art (which he rightly sells). This photo of a rural church in Jackson County, Minnesota is that rare match of perfect skies and location. A signature of rural life -- the country church under a sky filled with a galaxy of stars.

Here we are, the last entry to the Best of MinnPics 2014. It's been a long journey through 2014. A year full of firsts and lasts. June brought historic floods to the Minnesota River Valley while January saw the deflation of the Metrodome. I showcased 192 photos here in 2014 and while that was less than in previous years, it was the best year yet as I brought in some fun with the Minnesota State Fair Bingo Cards in August and played around with a rural twist back in April.

Be sure to keep checking back through the end of the year and maybe even into 2015...

Thanks for being a reader of MinnPics!

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Best of MinnPics - November 2014

from flickr user Dan Anderson
November usually brings images of a stark, gray landscape which may or may not be blanketed in snow. Instead, the Best of MinnPics for November 2014 takes us northward to a very cold Duluth, MN on an abnormally cold evening for a look at the gorgeous John A. Blatnik Bridge as it stretches across St. Louis Bay at the beginning of Lake Superior. Whether the stunning stars from the bridge's lights come from post-processing or not, the vibrant blue in the sky and in the structure's steel make for not just a fine photo but a true work of art. I am envious of this capture and it truly deserves the title of the Best of MinnPics for November 2014.

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Best of MinnPics - October 2014

from flickr user Emmanuel Canaan
Pilot Ryan Mohr cruises low over the colorful fall foliage of northern Minnesota in a beautifully restored WWII-era Boeing Stearman Model 75 N2S-3 biplane.

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Best of MinnPics - September 2014

from flickr user Nick Benson
The Arcola High Bridge, or Soo Line High Bridge, was completed in 1911; the rail's nearly 200 feet above the water, and has total length of roughly 2,700 feet. Despite being an amazing structure, it isn't photographed too often by railfans on account of low train frequency (one train per day in each direction) and its isolated location.

 As the photographer mentioned in his more in-depth explanation of this photo, the 39 degree temperature in September made for a more hurried shoot than anticipated and with weather like that and an explanation of the location and circumstances surrounding the photograph, the moonlit photo of the Arcola High Bridge over the St. Croix River made September's choice one of the easier ones for 2014.

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Best of MinnPics - August 2014

from flickr user Bob Israel
A long exposure taken up close as one of the many midway rides at the Minnesota State Fair spins rapidly while the ride operator leans in a casual manner. I love the action captured in this photo when contrasted with the nonchalant attitude of the ride operator. This is probably one of the most peaceful times captured at the Minnesota State Fair.

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Best of MinnPics - July 2014

from flickr user Jason Carpenter
The calm waters of one of Minnesota's 10,000-plus lakes after the sun has set make for a serene setting draped in black as a well-kept dock juts into the smooth water on a lake along northern Minnesota's Gunflint Trail.

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Best of MinnPics - June 2014

from flickr user Ernie Vater
A field of wild Lupine on a warm spring night in Minnesota set aglow by the setting sun. A sure sign that summer is upon us. I took far too much time making the difficult decision of the best of MinnPics for June 2014 but a field full of lavender flowers illuminated by the perfect sunset makes the time spent much more worth it.

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Best of MinnPics - May 2014

from flickr user Elizabeth Nemmers
There is truly nothing like the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum in Chanhassen to capture the essence of spring. This photo of a boardwalk through one of the wetland areas shows off the saturated green of leaf-covered trees against a blue sky. With the extended winters we've had for the past two years, it's scenery like this that makes the long wait well worth it.

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Best of MinnPics - April 2014

from flick user Shawn Christie
While April is typically the dawn of spring in Minnesota, 2014 brought more snow as our extended winter dragged on. This photo, as the photographer explained, shows a CP as well as a DM&E locomotive pulling their load at restricted speeds through the heavy falling snow toward Loretto, MN. Normally I would be drawn to beautiful scenery but sometime the weather itself, no matter how depressing it is to some, makes for a truly striking photo.

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Best of MinnPics - March 2014

from flickr user David Clark
A classic view of Split Rock Lighthouse along Minnesota's North Shore -- with a little twist. On this beautiful March day, the ice on Lake Superior was melting and clearing out, but just enough was left to be beautiful and blue in this shot. (As it turns out, a month later, the ice in Superior harbor still hadn't cleared out!) While most people use this particular vantage point along Lake Superior to capture the majestic Split Rock Lighthouse, the photographer instead used the lighthouse as a distant background and focused on the action in the waters of Lake Superior. Well done and quite the gem for the Best of MinnPics 2014 - March!

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Best of MinnPics - January 2014

from flickr user Doug Wallick
Taken an a bitterly cold January evening in Duluth, a full moon hangs low over the famous lift bridge as thin sheets of ice line the foreground of this spectacular nighttime photo of deeply frozen northern Minnesota. The bravery of trudging out into the frigid temperatures of a January evening in Duluth to get "the shot" make this photo stand above the rest and make it the Best of MinnPics for January 2014.

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June 19, 2014 flood aftermath - Henderson, MN

Now that the television news teams have retreated back to their Twin Cities offices and Twin Cities area commuters have their choice of Minnesota River crossings to drive on, all that's left to deal with regarding the 2014 June/July Minnesota River flood is the aftermath. Unfortunately, the aftermath never gets the same level of attention, if any at all, that the actual flood gets. Everyone remember reporters standing in knee-deep water but few care to get out after the waters recede and show the true damage that the rush of flood waters caused.

The first photo, shown above, is immediately north of the small town of Henderson, MN which lies on the west bank of the Minnesota River. This smaller farm field is at least half covered by sang and mud from the bluff to the west. While the water has receded (this was taken about a week ago) the mud, sand and trees remain on this farm field. The corn crop, for the most part, is a loss and I can't fathom how this can be cleaned up and returned to valuable farm land in time for the 2015 growing season.


This house, owned by rural Henderson residents Curt and Cindy Boelter, is uninhabitable after being surrounded by mudslides from the bluff behind the family's home. While nobody was injured, insurance doesn't cover the damage as it is considered a flood. The couple was graciously put up in a vacant home within Henderson but it will be a long road to recovery as the Boelters are faced with the task of rebuilding and replacing belongings lost in the mudslide.


Mud and sand from a usually dry creek covered this now-abandoned property across the Minnesota River from the devastated village of Blakeley. The family who had lived here abandoned their property after numerous floods, the last straw though was the fall 2010 flood which set a record high water mark on the Minnesota River. From my vantage point, the sand deposited looked to be about two feet deep across the entirety of the property.


This farm field, immediately south of High Island Creek (north of Henderson, Minnesota), is covered by multiple inches of mud and sand deposited by the flood waters of the Minnesota River which encroached the property from across the adjacent Sibley County 6 roadway. With the land drying out as of this morning, it is too late now to attempt to plant anything of value in the mud-crusted soil. This farmer faces a year without income from this crop land.


This road ditch on Sibley County road 6 immediately north of Henderson, MN is filled with mud deposited from both the adjacent Minnesota River and the mudslides from the bluffs to the west of this property. Cash- and personnel-strapped Sibley County has struggled to repair damaged roadways and it appears that this particular farmer had been using his own excavator to remove mud from the completely filled road ditches on his property.


Minnesota State Highway 93, the southern entrance and exit to the Minnesota River valley community of Henderson, MN, remains closed today and in a state of disrepair. The state highway closed on Thursday June 19th as water from the Minnesota River encroached on the roadway and water from the Rush River streamed across the highway. After the water receded, the damage was apparent as a hundreds foot-long section of the highway had been washed away by flood waters. No timetable has been given for the extensive repairs but rumors (as not even officials from MnDOT are communicating directly with area residents) peg the repairs as taking anywhere form one to three weeks or longer.


This is the view from the still-closed Minnesota Highway 19 east of Henderson, MN. Pavement repairs need to be made on the lower portion of the highway between the Minnesota River and the Union Pacific railroad overpass to the east but the real damage, apparently, is on the highway's ascent from the river valley to the higher ground to the east. Damaged by mudslides and apparently with the road bed weakened by the heavy rains, repair estimates range from 60-90 days or longer for a fairly heavily traveled piece of the state's highway network as this roadway connects farms as far west as South Dakota to Red Wing in the east. This is also a vital link to the rest of the state for the small community of Henderson and with MnDOT again being less than forthcoming regarding details about needed repairs and the damage that led to them, all that remains are rumors and second- or third-hand reports of unknown origin.

So, in a nutshell, this is the aftermath of the June 19th flood. Three weeks later and the story had been forgotten by larger media outlets and residents and communities are left to go it alone as they struggle to recover from one of the most damaging floods to hit the Minnesota River valley since 1965. Residents face detours for weeks more, if not months. Main Street businesses are struggling and paring down employee hours in the face of a heavy decline in tourism in the area. Farmers face tremendous levels of losses. This particular area of the Minnesota River valley will be changed forever.