Outpost Motel

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Lodging on Lake Superior's North Shore near Grand Marais, MN Your ideal destination for adventure on Lake Superior's beautiful North Shore!

Choose from a cozy motel room, a fully equipped kitchenette suite, or our bright loft apartment. Out your front door is an amazing view of the lake and a great rock filled beach on Lake Superior. Out your back door you will find hiking trails into the Superior National Forest. Hike, fish, canoe, bike, dog-sled, rock-hunt, kayak, XC ski, snowshoe, shop, dine and browse the art galleries in Grand Marais ... All just a few minutes from the Outpost!

10/23/2026

Remembering Dr. Barnett Slepian.

10/22/2026

In celebration of Jeff Goldblum's birthday (October 22, 1952), please let us know which Jeff Goldblum you are today.

10/21/2026

Make a plan to vote.

10/20/2026

Week #42

"Whistler's Mother" by James McNeill Whistler

10/18/2026

The Clean Water Act became law on October 18, 1972. After centuries of reckless treatment of American rivers, streams, lakes, and bays, the landmark act instituted strict regulations on pollution and quality controls for the nation’s waters for the first time in its history.

The '60s had been marked by some truly horrific revelations regarding water pollution. A 1968 survey revealed that pollution in the Chesapeake Bay resulted in millions of dollars of lost revenue for fisherman, while a 1969 study found that bacteria levels in the Hudson River to be at 170 times the legal limit. The same year, pollution from local food processing plants killed 26 million fish in one lake in Florida, the largest fish kill on record, and an oil slick resulted in an infamous fire on the Cuyahoga River near Cleveland. When President Richard Nixon established the Environmental Protection Agency in 1970, it was clear that water pollution would be one of its top priorities.
Though Nixon was generally very proactive on environmental issues, he vetoed the Clean Water Act, even after it sailed through both houses of Congress, on the grounds that its price tag was too high. The legislature overruled his veto the following morning, and the bill became law on October 18, 1972.

The CWA mandated the protection of any waters in the country with a “significant nexus” to navigable waters. It established a framework for identifying, licensing, and enforcing standards on originators of “point source pollution,” contamination stemming from a single point like a factory or sewage treatment plant. It also contained many other provisions for finding, regulating and cleaning up water pollution, giving most of these responsibilities to the recently-created EPA.

Since the CWA took effect, levels of pollution have greatly decreased, although many environmentalists believe it did not do enough to control non-point source pollution, the kind of contamination that cannot be traced back to a single origin. Though the CWA clearly had a positive impact, a high percentage of American waterways still do not meet the water quality standards it set forth.

Now, would you like some devastating news? In 2023 the Supreme Court ruled in Sackett v. EPA that the definition of some waters be changed. This led, of course, to more questions, narrowing of definitions, and rulemaking. If you are interested in this (which you should be if you love Lake Superior and the BWCAW) please check out the many sources of information related to this online. One place you may wish to check is this link:

https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/epa-and-corps-advance-toward-a-new-1499752/

10/17/2026

On October 17, 1989, a magnitude 6.9 earthquake rocked northern California during Game 3 of the World Series between the San Francisco Giants and Oakland Athletics at Candlestick Park, forcing postponement of the matchup. The series resumed 10 days after the earthquake, which killed 67 people, injured more than 3,700 people, and causes an estimated $5 billion in property damage.

Less than a half-hour before the game was to start, the quake hit, shaking Candlestick Park. "Well, folks," ABC's Al Michaels said during the pre-game television broadcast, "that's the greatest open in the history of television. Bar none."

When the shaking stopped, there was a brief lightheartedness at the ballpark—the Giants even blared Queen's "We Will Rock You" over the public-address system. Soon enough, however, reality set in and they postponed the game.

The A's ultimately won the Series in four.

10/16/2026

On October 16, 1987, in an event that had viewers around the world glued to their televisions, 18-month-old Jessica McClure is rescued after being trapped for 58 hours in an abandoned water well in Midland, Texas.

The drama unfolded on the morning of October 14, 1987, when McClure fell through the 8-inch-wide opening of an abandoned well while playing with other children in the backyard of her aunt’s home day-care center. After dropping about 22 feet into the well, the little girl became stuck. Over the next two-and-a-half days, crews of rescue workers, mining experts and local volunteers labored around the clock to drill a shaft parallel to the one in which McClure was trapped. They then tunneled horizontally through dense rock to connect the two shafts. A microphone was lowered into the well to keep tabs on the toddler, who could be heard crying, humming and singing throughout the ordeal.

On the night of October 16, a bandaged and dirt-covered but alert Baby Jessica, as she became widely known, was safely pulled out of the well by paramedics. By that time, scores of journalists had descended on Midland, a West Texas oil city, and the rescue was carried out on live television before a massive audience.

After her rescue, McClure was hospitalized for more than a month and lost a toe to gangrene. She and her family were flooded with gifts and cards from well-wishers, and received a visit from Vice President George H.W. Bush and a phone call from President Ronald Reagan.

Once out of the hospital, McClure went on to lead a normal life, spent largely out of the public spotlight. She graduated from high school in 2004, married two years later and became a mother.

10/15/2026

Despite the passage of the 1960’s civil rights legislation that followed the landmark ruling Brown v. Board of Education, African Americans living in cities throughout the US continued to suffer economic and social inequality. Poverty and reduced public services characterized these urban centers where residents were subject to poor living conditions, joblessness, chronic health problems, violence and limited means by which to change their circumstances. These conditions contributed to uprisings (Watts, for one) and an increased use of police violence.

It was this, and the assassination of Malcom X that prompted Merritt Junior College students Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale to found the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense on October 15, 1966.

Shortening its name to the Black Panther Party, the organization immediately sought to set itself apart from African American cultural nationalist organizations, such as the Universal Negro Improvement Association and the Nation of Islam, to which it was commonly compared. Although the groups shared certain philosophical positions and tactical features, the Black Panther Party and cultural nationalists differed on a number of basic points. For instance, whereas African American cultural nationalists generally regarded all white people as oppressors, the Black Panther Party distinguished between racists and nonracist whites and allied themselves with progressive members of the latter group. Also, whereas cultural nationalists generally viewed all African Americans as oppressed, the Black Panther Party believed that African American capitalists and elites could, and typically did, exploit and oppress others, particularly the African American working class. Perhaps most importantly, whereas cultural nationalists placed considerable emphasis on symbolic systems, such as language and imagery, as the means to liberate African Americans, the Black Panther Party believed that such systems, though important, were ineffective in bringing about liberation.

10/14/2026

We are taking a short break! We will be back open and running on Monday. October 26th. During this time, we will not be checking emails or returning phone messages. We need some time to recharge after the super busy (and super awesome!) spring, summer, and fall seasons, and to gear up for winter. Our fantastic (they are, right??) posts will continue during our closure due to the ability to schedule in advance. I wouldn't let a frivolous holiday or silly fact go by without letting you know. I've got your back!

See you soon!!

10/13/2026

Week #41

"Impression Sunrise" by Claude Monet

Address

2935 E Highway 61
Grand Marais, MN
55604

Telephone

+18883801833

Website

http://www.outpostmotel.com/

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