Some folks from the Charles L. Sommers Alumni Association have lost their bearings and ended up down at Sea Base for a few days. While I’m sure all of us with snow on the ground would love to be in sunny Florida, we have the next best thing – videos!

Thats right, the folks from Northern Tier have posted a Sea Base video on their Facebook fan page. Not just any video, but the newest Sea Base Promotional Video (at this time I can’t find it anywhere else online!)

So head over to the Charles L. Sommers Alumni Association Facebook Fan Page and check out the Sea Base Promotional Video!

The Charles L. Sommers Alumni Association has posted a blog entry about a storm that hit the Boundary Waters Canoe area ten years ago. The storm which damaged over 350,000 acres of trees changed the land forever…

On July 4th, 1999, Northern Tier staff was aware of an oncoming storm and while finishing lunch in the dining hall the storm hit. The wind and rain was immense to the point you could not see out the windows. When the storm cleared staff looking out the glass pane window towards the dining bell finally realizing the extent of the damage: “Wasn’t there a large tree there before?”. The Sommers base was left strewn with fallen trees and without power or phones. Likewise the eastern part of the Boundary Waters was also devastated with fallen trees. While equipment, portages, and campsites were left covered with trees amazingly injuries were minimal.

Check out the Charles L. Sommers Alumni Association Blog for more information, links to the original 1999 articles about the storm, and additional pictures.
Ten Years Later: The 4th July Incident (Boundary Waters Blowdown)

The Charles L. Sommers Alumni Association (SAA) Photo Contest Committee is proud to announce the winners of this year’s Northern Tier staff photo competition. We all noticed a marked increase in the quality of the submissions this year and the selection process was difficult. There were a wide variety of entries on a large number of subjects, great to look at but hard to make decisions! The winning images will be used by the SAA for promotion of the Northern Tier program and staff scholarship fund.

After due deliberations and consultations here are the selections:

Award of Excellence and winner ($200): Marshall J. Betterton for “Entry Point 25, Moose Lake”

Award of Merit and winner ($100): Charles Evan Valdyke for “Stream in the woods”

Award of Merit and winner ($100): Travis McCormick for “Paddling at Sunrise on Duncan Lake”

On behalf of the Committee and the Board of the SAA we would like to thank everyone who participated in the contest this year for their excellent work. Thanks for sharing your creative visions on the lake country we all know and love.

You can view all the entries at: http://photocontest.holry.org/