'What's Up, Ely?': Two podcasts spotlight the northern Minnesota community
The Kawishiwi River (right) flows on June 12, 2019 near Ely, a northern Minnesota town on the edge of the Boundary Waters that's unique in a lot of ways.
Derek Montgomery for MPR News
If you live in Ely, you already know. But for the rest of us, Ely is that northern Minnesota town on the edge of the Boundary Waters that's unique in a lot of ways. There's always something happening, whether it’s a fishing derby, snowmobile ride across open water or a wool-felting workshop.
MPR News host Cathy Wurzer spoke to two podcast hosts who offer the inside scoop on the town. Brett Ross hosts “My Ely Story” and Lacey Squier hosts “What’s Up, Ely?”
Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.
Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here.
Create a More Connected Minnesota
MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.
Audio transcript
CATHY WURZER: If you live in Ely, you already know this. But for the rest of us, Ely is that unique northern Minnesota town on the edge of the Boundary Waters that's unique in a lot of ways. There's always something happening, whether it's a fishing derby, snowmobile ride across open water, or a wolf felting workshop. Our next guests offer the inside scoop with their podcasts. Brett Ross hosts My Ely Story. Lacey Squier What's Up, Ely? Brett and Lacey are with us. Hey, welcome to Minnesota Now.
LACEY SQUIER: Thank you for having us.
BRETT ROSS: Thanks, Cathy. Great to be here.
CATHY WURZER: Hi, Lacey. Hi, Brett. Nice to have you both with us here. Well, of course both you live in Ely, and you both have podcasts about Ely. I mean, Ely's not a very big town. It has that many stories to tell to have two podcasts, Brett?
BRETT ROSS: There's so many stories to tell. When I first moved to Ely about 25 years--
CATHY WURZER: Well, Brett just dropped off. I'm going to go to-- sorry about this. Lacey, a lot of stories to tell in Ely?
LACEY SQUIER: No problem. I'm a narrative-oriented person. I've always been a reader and a writer. I love television series and movies and all that. And Ely is such a thrilling place because there's this very well recorded, very well celebrated web of connections. And so moving here, you get to know people and you know the founders of things. There's an abundance of stories to be told, and so two podcasts isn't even enough, actually, even with all the self-published books and the different publications and art forms that are out there to tell that Ely story.
CATHY WURZER: For goodness sakes. Give me a description as to how you managed to hit on the idea here about your Ely podcast. What was the push?
LACEY SQUIER: Well, it's a fascinating thing, actually. The What's Up, Ely? podcast is a companion to a Facebook group. So there is a Facebook group called What's Up, Ely, MN? And it has-- I just checked this morning-- nearly 18,200 members--
CATHY WURZER: What?
LACEY SQUIER: And those are not all Ely residents, right? We don't even have that many residents. We're like 3,400 some odd residents in the city of Ely proper. But that is a group of Ely enthusiasts-- people who are tourists, people who have a connection to the town or the wilderness or what have you. And so it was actually the Tourism Bureau-- who did not start the Facebook group, but who eventually took over the management of the Facebook group-- who approached me, and they had the idea of doing a podcast.
There's just such an abundance of interesting things happening in the area. Our go to resources are very helpful, but they're not always as nimble as the Facebook group can be. And so the podcast is a way to pull some interesting things from the Facebook group and amplify that even more. And we know that not everyone is on Facebook, and we know that not everyone listen to podcasts. So the two things function in unison.
CATHY WURZER: Right. OK, Brett is back, by the way. Brett, I'm really sorry about our technology. I apologize. You're on the phone right now.
BRETT ROSS: No problem.
CATHY WURZER: You were winding up with a really good answer there to my question. A lot of stories in Ely. We've been, of course, hearing from Lacey that yeah, there's a ton of them. Am I incorrect? Was your former father-in-law Jim Brandenburg? Because Brandenburg would always say that there are tons of stories in Ely.
BRETT ROSS: That's correct. So when we were first planning on moving up to Ely, first discussing the idea, he mentioned that there are more stories per square inch than any place he'd ever been. And if you know Jim, he's traveled the world with National Geographic, so that said a lot.
And it certainly holds true. There are so many characters from all different walks of life, from all around the globe that pass through Ely, that choose to call Ely their home. And the podcast and just living here and being part of the community has allowed me to really tap into a lot of those great stories.
CATHY WURZER: Now, we heard the idea behind Lacey's podcast. What was the idea for your podcast, My Ely Story?
BRETT ROSS: So for most of the last 25 years, I was a part of WELY radio here in Ely until it closed down last December. And a good friend of mine, Sarah Guy Levar, hosted a show that I produced called End of The Road Ventures. And she started just connecting with a lot of old timers, a lot of retired folks, a lot of people who had resorts in what's now the Boundary Waters before the Wilderness Act, and just would record their stories because there's so much value in these stories.
And to be able to capture them and to share them with the next generation-- she saw the value in that. And after she stopped doing that show, we started discussing with the Tourism Bureau about doing a podcast. My initial idea was to do something along those lines to just capture the story of some of the amazing personalities that call Ely home.
CATHY WURZER: I want a question to both of you here, but first to Brett because people always hear about Ely being at the end of the road. Can you explain that please for us, please?
BRETT ROSS: So Highway 169, which starts at the bottom of the state of Minnesota, ends about 18 miles outside of Ely. If you go northwest of Ely on 169, you will run into the Lake One Boundary Waters entry point, and it's literally the end of Highway 169. So you either get in a canoe or on your skis in the wintertime or a dog sled or you turn around and go back to Ely.
CATHY WURZER: Isn't that the same, Lacey, with Highway 1?
LACEY SQUIER: Yes.
CATHY WURZER: Yeah. So literally--
LACEY SQUIER: It is the road the end of the road.
CATHY WURZER: I love that. So Lacey-- and Brett, you can join in, too. But Lacey, why is Ely easily populated with all these very interesting people who certainly have fascinating stories? Is it something about just that area, something that draws people there? What is it?
LACEY SQUIER: I think one huge factor is the wilderness, the Boundary Water canoe area wilderness. It's the most visited wilderness in the country. And especially for people who are based out of Minnesota or the Midwest, it becomes sort of a go to destination for staycations or semi-regional travel. But of course, the wilderness hasn't always been here before. There's a history of mining. There's a history of logging. There's, of course, the vast Indigenous history and culture here.
And I think the fact that it is not only a small town with a ton of charm and a very independent spirit, there's also that tourism factor. And so I can live in this small town and have that experience of knowing people at the grocery store and having this very intimate community, but I can also run into people I studied abroad with and run into friends from college because there's this thoroughfare of traffic. So I would say the wilderness is a huge aspect, but Ely does stand on its own as a community of great intrigue.
CATHY WURZER: And Brett, what do you think?
BRETT ROSS: Well, obviously, like Lacey said, the wilderness is an incredible draw to people. The Boundary Waters were one of two main entry points-- Grand Marais being the other one-- into the Boundary Waters and Quetico Wilderness, so that's a huge draw. We've also had some really great ambassadors over the years. Jim Brandenburg one of them, Will Steger and Paul Shirkey, the polar explorers, both called Ely their homes.
They've been incredible ambassadors for Ely. They've obviously done some amazing things over the course of their lives. And as a result of Paul and Will's trip to the Arctic, the Steger Mukluks business and the Wintergreen Northern Wear businesses-- both were born out of necessity, Sue Shirkey and Patti Steger designing the gear that they wore on this trip to the Arctic or to the North Pole.
Now, they're still manufactured here in Ely, and it's some of the best outdoor gear that you can buy, the outdoor clothing that really makes it crucial for wintertime here in Ely, but also is a big draw for people that have an interest in Ely. They want to wear the mukluk. They want to wear the Wintergreen. It's very recognizable and really extends far beyond Ely and far beyond Minnesota as well.
CATHY WURZER: I love my mukluks. OK. Now before you both go, Lacey, what's on the next podcast, the next episode of your podcast?
LACEY SQUIER: For the next episode, we actually interviewed both volunteers involved with the upcoming Hidden Valley Hammer Mountain Bike Race Series. So throughout May and June-- part of May and all of June-- there will be, every Friday night, a bike race in our Hidden Valley recreation area, which has a new series of singletrack trails.
And I talked to a friend who's also a new resident about our upcoming new resident social event. So they happen semi-regularly, and we know that Ely is attracting kind of a ton of new folks. And we're really excited about that. We're trying to create infrastructure through which they can feel supported and become acquainted and become a part of this really exciting website of connections.
CATHY WURZER: Excellent. And Brett, what's on your next podcast episode?
BRETT ROSS: So the next episode is Johnnie Hyde who produces the Ely Summer and Winter Times. She owns a business called Raven Words Press that produces the Boundary Waters Quetico calendar every year. She has been a wilderness first responder and EMT.
She worked for the EPA back in the '70s. She started our major arts organization, Northern Lakes Arts Association. She's had so many roles in Ely and is one of the most recognizable individuals in Ely and just a very strong, independent woman who's run her own businesses and has created some long lasting legacies in Ely.
CATHY WURZER: Good stories both of you. Brett and Lacey, thank you so much.
BRETT ROSS: Thanks, Cathy.
LACEY SQUIER: Thank you, Cathy.
CATHY WURZER: Brett Ross is the host of the podcast My Ely Story. Lacey Squier's podcast is What's Up, Ely? You can find both at ely.org.
LACEY SQUIER: Thank you for having us.
BRETT ROSS: Thanks, Cathy. Great to be here.
CATHY WURZER: Hi, Lacey. Hi, Brett. Nice to have you both with us here. Well, of course both you live in Ely, and you both have podcasts about Ely. I mean, Ely's not a very big town. It has that many stories to tell to have two podcasts, Brett?
BRETT ROSS: There's so many stories to tell. When I first moved to Ely about 25 years--
CATHY WURZER: Well, Brett just dropped off. I'm going to go to-- sorry about this. Lacey, a lot of stories to tell in Ely?
LACEY SQUIER: No problem. I'm a narrative-oriented person. I've always been a reader and a writer. I love television series and movies and all that. And Ely is such a thrilling place because there's this very well recorded, very well celebrated web of connections. And so moving here, you get to know people and you know the founders of things. There's an abundance of stories to be told, and so two podcasts isn't even enough, actually, even with all the self-published books and the different publications and art forms that are out there to tell that Ely story.
CATHY WURZER: For goodness sakes. Give me a description as to how you managed to hit on the idea here about your Ely podcast. What was the push?
LACEY SQUIER: Well, it's a fascinating thing, actually. The What's Up, Ely? podcast is a companion to a Facebook group. So there is a Facebook group called What's Up, Ely, MN? And it has-- I just checked this morning-- nearly 18,200 members--
CATHY WURZER: What?
LACEY SQUIER: And those are not all Ely residents, right? We don't even have that many residents. We're like 3,400 some odd residents in the city of Ely proper. But that is a group of Ely enthusiasts-- people who are tourists, people who have a connection to the town or the wilderness or what have you. And so it was actually the Tourism Bureau-- who did not start the Facebook group, but who eventually took over the management of the Facebook group-- who approached me, and they had the idea of doing a podcast.
There's just such an abundance of interesting things happening in the area. Our go to resources are very helpful, but they're not always as nimble as the Facebook group can be. And so the podcast is a way to pull some interesting things from the Facebook group and amplify that even more. And we know that not everyone is on Facebook, and we know that not everyone listen to podcasts. So the two things function in unison.
CATHY WURZER: Right. OK, Brett is back, by the way. Brett, I'm really sorry about our technology. I apologize. You're on the phone right now.
BRETT ROSS: No problem.
CATHY WURZER: You were winding up with a really good answer there to my question. A lot of stories in Ely. We've been, of course, hearing from Lacey that yeah, there's a ton of them. Am I incorrect? Was your former father-in-law Jim Brandenburg? Because Brandenburg would always say that there are tons of stories in Ely.
BRETT ROSS: That's correct. So when we were first planning on moving up to Ely, first discussing the idea, he mentioned that there are more stories per square inch than any place he'd ever been. And if you know Jim, he's traveled the world with National Geographic, so that said a lot.
And it certainly holds true. There are so many characters from all different walks of life, from all around the globe that pass through Ely, that choose to call Ely their home. And the podcast and just living here and being part of the community has allowed me to really tap into a lot of those great stories.
CATHY WURZER: Now, we heard the idea behind Lacey's podcast. What was the idea for your podcast, My Ely Story?
BRETT ROSS: So for most of the last 25 years, I was a part of WELY radio here in Ely until it closed down last December. And a good friend of mine, Sarah Guy Levar, hosted a show that I produced called End of The Road Ventures. And she started just connecting with a lot of old timers, a lot of retired folks, a lot of people who had resorts in what's now the Boundary Waters before the Wilderness Act, and just would record their stories because there's so much value in these stories.
And to be able to capture them and to share them with the next generation-- she saw the value in that. And after she stopped doing that show, we started discussing with the Tourism Bureau about doing a podcast. My initial idea was to do something along those lines to just capture the story of some of the amazing personalities that call Ely home.
CATHY WURZER: I want a question to both of you here, but first to Brett because people always hear about Ely being at the end of the road. Can you explain that please for us, please?
BRETT ROSS: So Highway 169, which starts at the bottom of the state of Minnesota, ends about 18 miles outside of Ely. If you go northwest of Ely on 169, you will run into the Lake One Boundary Waters entry point, and it's literally the end of Highway 169. So you either get in a canoe or on your skis in the wintertime or a dog sled or you turn around and go back to Ely.
CATHY WURZER: Isn't that the same, Lacey, with Highway 1?
LACEY SQUIER: Yes.
CATHY WURZER: Yeah. So literally--
LACEY SQUIER: It is the road the end of the road.
CATHY WURZER: I love that. So Lacey-- and Brett, you can join in, too. But Lacey, why is Ely easily populated with all these very interesting people who certainly have fascinating stories? Is it something about just that area, something that draws people there? What is it?
LACEY SQUIER: I think one huge factor is the wilderness, the Boundary Water canoe area wilderness. It's the most visited wilderness in the country. And especially for people who are based out of Minnesota or the Midwest, it becomes sort of a go to destination for staycations or semi-regional travel. But of course, the wilderness hasn't always been here before. There's a history of mining. There's a history of logging. There's, of course, the vast Indigenous history and culture here.
And I think the fact that it is not only a small town with a ton of charm and a very independent spirit, there's also that tourism factor. And so I can live in this small town and have that experience of knowing people at the grocery store and having this very intimate community, but I can also run into people I studied abroad with and run into friends from college because there's this thoroughfare of traffic. So I would say the wilderness is a huge aspect, but Ely does stand on its own as a community of great intrigue.
CATHY WURZER: And Brett, what do you think?
BRETT ROSS: Well, obviously, like Lacey said, the wilderness is an incredible draw to people. The Boundary Waters were one of two main entry points-- Grand Marais being the other one-- into the Boundary Waters and Quetico Wilderness, so that's a huge draw. We've also had some really great ambassadors over the years. Jim Brandenburg one of them, Will Steger and Paul Shirkey, the polar explorers, both called Ely their homes.
They've been incredible ambassadors for Ely. They've obviously done some amazing things over the course of their lives. And as a result of Paul and Will's trip to the Arctic, the Steger Mukluks business and the Wintergreen Northern Wear businesses-- both were born out of necessity, Sue Shirkey and Patti Steger designing the gear that they wore on this trip to the Arctic or to the North Pole.
Now, they're still manufactured here in Ely, and it's some of the best outdoor gear that you can buy, the outdoor clothing that really makes it crucial for wintertime here in Ely, but also is a big draw for people that have an interest in Ely. They want to wear the mukluk. They want to wear the Wintergreen. It's very recognizable and really extends far beyond Ely and far beyond Minnesota as well.
CATHY WURZER: I love my mukluks. OK. Now before you both go, Lacey, what's on the next podcast, the next episode of your podcast?
LACEY SQUIER: For the next episode, we actually interviewed both volunteers involved with the upcoming Hidden Valley Hammer Mountain Bike Race Series. So throughout May and June-- part of May and all of June-- there will be, every Friday night, a bike race in our Hidden Valley recreation area, which has a new series of singletrack trails.
And I talked to a friend who's also a new resident about our upcoming new resident social event. So they happen semi-regularly, and we know that Ely is attracting kind of a ton of new folks. And we're really excited about that. We're trying to create infrastructure through which they can feel supported and become acquainted and become a part of this really exciting website of connections.
CATHY WURZER: Excellent. And Brett, what's on your next podcast episode?
BRETT ROSS: So the next episode is Johnnie Hyde who produces the Ely Summer and Winter Times. She owns a business called Raven Words Press that produces the Boundary Waters Quetico calendar every year. She has been a wilderness first responder and EMT.
She worked for the EPA back in the '70s. She started our major arts organization, Northern Lakes Arts Association. She's had so many roles in Ely and is one of the most recognizable individuals in Ely and just a very strong, independent woman who's run her own businesses and has created some long lasting legacies in Ely.
CATHY WURZER: Good stories both of you. Brett and Lacey, thank you so much.
BRETT ROSS: Thanks, Cathy.
LACEY SQUIER: Thank you, Cathy.
CATHY WURZER: Brett Ross is the host of the podcast My Ely Story. Lacey Squier's podcast is What's Up, Ely? You can find both at ely.org.
Download transcript (PDF)
Transcription services provided by 3Play Media.