Western Great Lakes Projects

January 4th, 2022; Cass Lake Minnesota – Timber harvesting is underway on RGS/AWS’s first National Forest Shared Stewardship project. This is the same project we highlighted in our Winter 2021 issue of Covers Magazine. In that article, we highlighted how Shared Stewardship projects are an integral part of RGS/AWS’s Model of Working Forests as timber revenue from this sale is being reinvested into additional work on the forest and impacts are being compounded. To date, 97 miles of hunter walking trails have been improved and 10 new gates have been installed on 10 different hunter walking trails, impacting multiple ranger districts...

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Deer River Minnesota- On July 5, 2022 RGS/AWS signed a Shared Stewardship project agreement with the Deer River Ranger District of the Chippewa National Forest.  Under this agreement, RGS/AWS will implement an aspen timber sale, install hunter walking trail gates, maintain a waterfowl impoundment dike and maintain and enhance wildlife openings. Much of this Stewardship Agreement work will be completed at the Johnson Lake Hunter Walking trail area south of Deer River.  On September 1, 2022 RGS/AWS awarded the 78 acre “Johnson Lake” Timber Sale to SAPPI North America for use in their Cloquet MN pulp and paper mill.  This timber sale is an aspen regeneration and habitat treatment...

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In 2020, RGS/AWS joined the MN Moose Habitat Collaborative and together with a wide range of partners, put together a landscape level habitat project on the north shore that aims to restore over 30,000 acres of critical forest habitats.  This includes habitat for ruffed grouse, American Woodcock, and moose, among other species.   In October of 2021, RGS & AWS President Ben Jones officially signed the grant that was funded at $1,809,000 in Outdoor Heritage Funding (OHF) by the LSOHC, and approved through MN legislative action and Governor’s signature in June 2021. This grant ends in June 2024. Though work...

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On December 6th, 2021, RGS & AWS President Ben Jones signed a $300,000 Hunter Walking Trail grant that was recommended by the LCCMR for Environment and Natural Resources Trust fund (ENRTF) funding, approved through MN legislative action and Governor’s signature in June 2021. Funded through June 2024, this LCCMR grant proposes to: (1) restore/enhance 200 trail heads and 80 miles of existing trails, (2) add about 20 miles of new trails, and (3) update trail maps for land managers and users. A resource assessment of all public land hunter walking trails (~1,000 miles) is also being undertaking to more fully...

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Grand Rapids, MN (Oct. 2020) – Thanks to a $5,000 investment from the MN State Drummer Fund to seed the project, the Snaptail Hunter Walking Trail Area is now open to non-motorized use thanks to a partnership between the Ruffed Grouse Society and UPM Blandin. In addition to the hunter walking trail area, which is 30 minutes north of Grand Rapids, Blandin has committed to creating more ruffed grouse habitat by managing a mature aspen stand surrounding the trails. In addition to furnishing time, labor, and materials on the project, Blandin will be sponsoring the local chapter with a $1000 gift...

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