Happy Dancing Blog

You’ve been riding your trusty rusty two-wheeler for a month or so now, and you’re looking at your garage thinking, “maybe it’s time to bring out the ‘good’ bike”. But, how do you make sure your good bike is ready for summer riding? Here’s a few quick tasks that’ll make sure your jewel is trail-worthy. Clean Up Your Bike: A clean bike extends the life of all the other components, just like a clean car lasts longer. Use a basic biodegradable cleaner like “Simple Green” and tak

Summer is here, and we are dedicated to squeezing every last drop of sunshine out of these warm months as we can. In the spirit of summer, we are giving you a look at a few of the fun things you can do in the area. Starting off, let’s hear from Jim C, who is writes about how mountain biking has invigorated the small community of Crosby-Ironton. I’m a Crosby – Ironton Ranger, class of ’82.  Growing up in Deerwood, we kind of looked down on Crosby as a washed up mining town. Bu

With only two (2!) weeks of summer vacation left before school starts there are only so many days left to pack any last-second activities. Let’s go over your checklist: Did you ride the trail like you said you would? With long paved trails and world class well-groomed hill trails in the area, there is no excuse. Did you eat a tomato fresh from the vine like you said you would? It’s the perfect time to grab one from your neighbor’s garden. Or if you want to be more neighborly,

At 120 miles, the Paul Bunyan State Trail is the longest recreational trail in Minnesota. The Minnesota Department of Natural Recourses Parks and Trails Division recently (three years ago) added over six miles to the southern tip of the trail. For just $1.2 million, this connected the Lake Bemidji State Park in Bemidji to the Crow Wing State Park just south of Baxter. I wanted to show that this little jaunt is a worthwhile use of your time. So, last Sunday I took my Gary Fish

This month, we’re focusing on helping you get outside more. I took this as a chance to see what my town had to offer in terms of outdoor activities. I also wanted to make this as inexpensive as possible, so I limited my exposure to the long list of parks in the Brainerd area. We started in Baxter and moved east. After 14 different parks, we decided what we liked best about them and what most people would get a kick out of. Brained/Baxter has a pretty robust parks system, so

For anyone who lives in Minnesota, you know that summer is when everyone is eager to enjoy what our great state has to offer. Home of thousands of lakes, hundreds of miles of trails, and thousands of acres of forest, there is no shortage of “stuff” to do this summer. Do you have your plan on how will you get to it all? Is it even possible? Yes. It is. All it takes is one simple trick. But first, let’s look at the concept of “time.” In the “Nick of Time” What is “time”? Can we