A couple of guest Pasty Cam shots - - Hey, wait a minute. All of the shots have been from 'guests' for quite a while. Jonathan, Charlie and Daryl used to be the regular Pasty Camsters back when this daily feature started, five years ago next week. But when was the last time the original crew had any shots? Jonathan's out installing wireless Internet receivers for bears in the Keweenaw woods, Charlie's on some sunny beach down south, and Daryl - - well, she did have a good polar bear shot last month. But for the most part, the regulars appear to be irregular.

That didn't come out quite right.

What I mean is, everybody is a guest Pasty Cambudier these days, and we never know who will send the next shot our way. Yesterday's Ice Harvest shoebox memory was a real classic, and today's scenes give a good feel for current conditions in the Great Lakes area. I'd like to know the stories behind both shots, and hope the respective Cammies will clue us in.

Have a good week!

It's another manic Monday, but the beautiful snow photos start the week off right! Since I'm a flatlander I really enjoy this web site.

Are those Bigfoot's foot prints in the first shot? Or is he only found in CA?

Hi:
Is the first picture by Lake Superior? It looks like a spot at McClain's Park.

Toivo, buddy, thanks for doing the Cam before you went to bed. It's kind of nice to see 'back home' bright and early.

Correction: we're not on a sunny beach anywhere. This morning in Alabama it's below freezing and they expect snow in parts of the south. But we're having a nice visit with my Mom. We are staying in touch on the new nationwide Pasty.net dial-in network, and it's just a local call here in Cullman.

I appreciate your efforts while we're away. And, no, we're not irregular. (But you probably didn't want to know that :o)

Beautiful pics........

These pics could have been taken anywhere in the mid-Atlantic states today. I'm taking a break from shoveling out of this ongoing blizzard. Just a taste of the good ole U.P.

What is on the other side of the hill?
Probably more snow!!

For all those who are irregular... Try EXLAX!

You could've gotten shots like this down around Pittsburgh this morning Got about 18" of fresh white through the day yesterday and overnight. Some areas in the Laurel Mountains and south of here got 3'.

Just heard on the news a bit ago where I believe it was in West Virginia got 49 inchs of snow. Sounds like they are trying to keep up with you folks up north.

Sorry people out east but you don't have any sympathy from me today. We're finally seeing some sunshine for a change after many weeks of below zero and gray skies along with all the snow that has come our way. This is our life for 5 months of the year, every year. Keep shovelin'!

So, Charlie & Edie, have the Alabamans tried to run you out of state for bringing the UP weather down with you? Or did they just want to make you feel at home? Nice of them, eh.
Nice of you to check back with us while on vacation. Have a great trip!

If I had a Cam I could match anything you've got today. This is the first time I'm not homesick for a good U.P. blizzard. Must be 2' coming up to my door, which is two steps up from the sidewalk. But I am wondering where it will all go when the temp turns "normal" this week, into the 40's...

It's too bad you aren't matching what we've got today! It's BEAUTIFUL!!! It's like shorts and tee-shirt weather... Almost like Hawaii! ;o)

hello all
i have some questions for Toivo.
he has been kind of enough to fill in while
the main guy went south.
many months ago Toivo showed us a pic of himself
and then one of Mel Gibson. i am wondering is this was really you. if not can you put one of yourself so we can all see you. it is nice to see a face when you are on the computer.

1. where in the upper p. do you live?
2. were you born in the u.p.?
3. do you work for Pasty?
4. if so what is your job there. if no where
are you employed?
4. is your real name Toivo?
5. if no, then what is your real name?
6. when mentioning Eino the other day I am
now curious if the well known pasty sauce
by Toivo & Eino was made by you.
7. marital status?
8. hobbies?
9. favorite foods?
10. age?
11. do you have any children?
12. brief description of yourself.
13. favorite place to travel.
14. favorite season in the kewee?
think that will do'er for now. hope you can answer these questions so we all can get to know you better. thanks a bunch, toivo.

1. my house
2. ya
3. ya
4. answering questions
4. you already asked 4.
5. n/a
6. another Toivo
7. ok
8. Pasty Cam, maps, make wood
9. pasty, gorpu, pannukakku
10. not much
11. n/a
12. me
13. woods
14. now

WHY DOESN'T CONGRESS DECLARE WAR ANYMORE? WOULD ABE LINCOLN SEND TROOPS WITHOUT DECLARATION OF WAR?

Yesterdays messages all about bringing in the ice from the lakes was neet & brought back memories of when we used to cut ice from Indian Lake over by Manistique in the U.P. many years ago. We had a saw very similar to the one in the picture on a sled and cut a grove about 14 inches deep. We would cut a huge grid both ways of about 180 blocks. The ice was crystal clear and about 30 inches thick. Then we would use a large peice of sharpened buggy axle to break all the blocks free. We would use big ice tongs behind a team of horses to load a dray and haul it up to the ice house on shore. We would have a layer of dry sawdust on the bottom and sides. The ice blocks were stacked on layers of fluffy snow & between the blocks too. It came apart easier and not so much sawdust to wash off of each block of ice. Then we would put about 8 inches of snow on the top layer & cover it with 2 feet of sawdust.
It was hard work but I thought it was great fun.
We always had ice left over that we thru out to start refilling the ice house the next winter. And boy did that clear ice freeze ice cream fast in the summer. It let us have some good snowball fights in the hot summer, too.

Way to go Toivo. Good answers.

For a minute dere it sounded like I got on a date website! Had to check to see if I was still on the pasty channel! Whew Toivo...maybe someone needs a date!

What do ya think I saw goin over dat snowbank in my snowshoes??? Was a wonderful sight in deed.

Doug Smith congratulations on a fine photograph. Toivo should consider joining the cast of "The Red Green Show". He would be a shooting star. I roared reading his answers.
Regards,
Donn

Thanks Don. I appreciate your comments. For a look at some more photos of my last visit in October, check out www.pbase.com/doug2018 and select the Keweenaw Gallery. I loved Toivo's answers as well. Good one!

Thanks for the beautiful snow photos. We have had so many bright and sunny days here in mid-Michigan this winter that sunglasses are required gear. We would gladly accept some of the snow being dumped on the East Coast. Farmers here are going to have a rough year of drought. Much of the winter wheat crops are frozen out due to lack of snow cover. We need a big blizzard!!!

GEORGE WASHINGTON CROSSED THE DELAWARE

Charlie and Edie, you are right it is not very warm in the sunny South.I hope you didn't get as much rain as we got here in N.Ga. and Tn. On Interstate 24 near Monteagle Mt,Tn outside of Chatt.a huge boulder was loosend and rolled onto the road. Hope it warms up some before you have to leave.

Another messager from the the Mid-Atlantic. It looks like we in Maryland are coming around to the UP way. We have 24 inches of snow and I just saw that a restaurant in Frederick is serving pasties -- of all things!! If there wasn't so much snow I would go out and try one. But we are no real threat to the UP -- our snow will be mostly gone after a rain storm at the end of the week and who could match the pasties from pasty.com?

holy wuh! I sure am glad it isn't snowing like that here in Thailand. its too hot here to shovel snow.

As they say on the game shows, "Good answer, Toivo!" Temp. here in Cornell hit 33 deg. this aft. Was so nice I even washed the salt off the Mazda. Carrying buckets, even. :o) Many buckets. The trees were SO full of frost this am they were beautimous! Before noon when it started falling down, it was like diamonds falling. So sparkly and pretty!

Toivo, you are so cool!!....With SISU!!! ..I love your choice of food..what about Sauna Makeraw (sp) & Herring.....you impressed the locals anyhow!!!

As Toivo says, "holy wah", Doug your pictures are really very nice. I especially liked the one, Superior Sand and others (P1010075, P1010095, P1010034, P21010085, P1010168). I hope others will give Doug Smith's photographs a looksey too at www.pbase.com/doug2018 .
Regards,
Donn

Fred-Lower Mi,
I enjoyed your article on how ice was stored down in Manistique. We packed our ice tight in the ice house. There was no time to pack snow around it when you have a thousand blocks to a tier. Then in April we hoisted the sawdust from the bin and dumped it in holes in the roof that had "caps" on. The men inside distributed the sawdust. In the summertime I had to make a daily check all around that building and fill any holes that the wind created.
We shoveled off a section of sawdust and had to saw each block on 2 sides and then bar the block loose from the bottom. That way you got a square block of ice. When no more ice was needed it was covered with sawdust again. We had about a foot and a half of sawdust to start off but as you went down tier for tier there was a lot of the stuff and it had to be hauled by wheelbarrow out to the bin. It was a lot of hard work. I was only 19 and my Mother packed me a bucket with 5 sandwiches.a qt. of milk,a fruit,and cake or cookie.

Good for you Toivo, a little mystery is good for everyone else's imagination. You'll always look like Mel Gibson to me!

Great Job Doug, I'd like to think your house was on the other side of the hill.

OH, my gosh. . . what an idea for a web site.

Love it....

Hope this is not to late to be in touch with Fred-in lower MI.
At the Mason, MI, historical museum we have 2 horse drawn ice cutting tools that were used to cut ice from local ponds for the Raynor Ice Co.
years ago. We would like to talk with you about your experiences.

Lorraine, Co-director

I was just at mclains park it was beautiful and
sunny hard to imagine it with all that snow