IN THE EXTREME HEAT and humidity of Monday afternoon, my husband and I and our eldest daughter and her family escaped to Copper Cat Escape Games in Brainerd to sleuth for Granny’s hidden secret recipe. It was great fun finding and solving clues, unlocking boxes and finally solving the mystery with five minutes to spare.
On Wednesday afternoon, we escaped, too, but this time from intense wildfire smoke which blew in from the north, enveloping the Brainerd Lakes area cabin where we were vacationing. We’ve experienced smoke on previous visits. This time, though, the smoke was especially thick, intense and oppressive.
The smoke rolled in as Randy and I were hiking at Mission Park only a short drive from the Horseshoe Lake cabin south of Crosslake. We emerged from the woods to see dense smoke. Initially, we thought someone was burning, but soon realized the source—wildfires to the north in Canada and northern Minnesota.
Wildfires are raging in areas in and around the Boundary Waters Canoe Area with campers there evacuated earlier in the week and the BWCA closed. Evacuation orders have been issued in parts of St. Louis, Cook and Lake counties in the northeastern part of Minnesota. Camps are closing, kids sent home. And on and on. Resorts, outfitters and other businesses that rely on seasonal income are suffering.
And across nearly all of Minnesota, we are breathing in smoke at levels classified as hazardous, very unhealthy, unhealthy and more by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. That includes right here in my county of Rice in the southern part of the state far from the wildfires.
But the level here in Faribault is nothing compared to what we saw and breathed in yesterday in the Brainerd Lakes area. That smoke smelled of infinite campfires, stung our eyes, made it hard to breathe, reduced visibility.
Our plans to spend the day exploring and enjoying the small towns near the cabin quickly pivoted to packing and heading home a day earlier than intended. Our daughter and her family left a day prior, as scheduled.
It was the right decision to leave on Wednesday. Already visibility across Horseshoe Lake was so limited that the opposite shore appeared only an outline of trees. Smoke and the stench of smoke hung in the air. The toxic air felt suffocating.
Once on Crow Wing County Road 3, Randy and I could see the scope of the smoke spreading far and wide, blanketing the landscape.
Onward we drove, turning onto county road 11, passing stands of charred trees and cleared land from a mid-May wildfire in Mission Township. The irony was not lost on me.
Mile after mile, we traveled in smoky conditions. In Crosby, life appeared business as usual with a packed downtown, despite the smoke. Shoppers walking in and out of shops. Bikers biking.
In Deerwood, a roadside deer statue appeared to leap through the smoke in an attempt to escape.
In Garrison, visitors at the Mille Lacs Lake overlook could see the roadside statue, but not much of the lake.
Down the road a bit, a guy jogged alongside U.S. Highway 169. Smoke still hung thick. I wondered how his body could tolerate the polluted air. Mine can’t.
We thought we would soon drive out of the wildfire smoke. But we drove past endless towns along highway 169—Onamia, Milaca, Princeton, Zimmerman… Not until we reached Elk River in the northwest metro two hours later did the smoke dissipate and open to blue skies. Then and only then did I feel like I could breathe easier.
I hope Minnesotans living near the 17 uncontrolled wildfires, and firefighters, plus our Canadian neighbors, can soon breathe easier, too. Rain is needed.
Yet, I know these fires can burn for weeks, ravaging the landscape, polluting the air, impacting businesses and sometimes changing vacation plans. But leaving the lake cabin a day early to escape the smoke is nothing, truly nothing, in the story of wildfires.
TELL ME: Are you being affected by wildfires? If yes, I’d like to hear your story.
© Copyright 2026 Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Minnesota Prairie Roots 
Commentary: Floods, alligators & an email July 7, 2025
Tags: "Alligator Alcatraz", "Testify: Americana Slavery to Today, African Americans, America, commentary, communication, natural disaster, opinion, Texas flooding
I HAVE SEVERAL THINGS on my mind today which are roiling my emotions. Not on a personal level. But on a broader, national scale.
First, I feel heartbroken over the loss of lives in Texas following flash flooding. The latest death count I’ve read is eighty-five, 27 of those children. Dozens remain missing. Most heart-rending are the deaths of the young campers at a summer camp. I think many parents, myself included, can relate to dropping a child off at camp with the full expectation that they will be there when we come to pick them up at camp’s end. For too many, a parent’s absolute worst nightmare—that of losing a child—is now reality. I feel for anyone who has lost a loved one in these floods, no matter their age. I am thankful for the 850 rescued thus far.
ALLIGATORS
Secondly, I’m deeply-troubled by the gloating and hype about “Alligator Alcatraz,” a deportation detention facility in Florida. Those in power have been flaunting the name, stating quite clearly what will happen to anyone who tries to escape. There’s nothing remotely “funny” about alligators attacking and devouring human beings. There’s nothing “funny” either about placing people in cages. But neither seems to bother those who are vocally promoting this facility in such a vile way.
As soon as I heard the words “Alligator Alcatraz,” I was reminded of a traveling exhibit, “Testify—Americana Slavery to Today,” that I saw at my local library in April. Within that exhibit was a studio portrait of nine unclothed Black babies and toddlers sitting or standing in one long line. The circa 1897 image by a photography studio was simply titled “ALLIGATOR BAIT.” I remember standing there, my jaw dropping in disbelief. The photo was right above another image, that one of the African-American 9th Calvary Regiment, ca. 1939.
Then I read the text below the two photos: The juxtaposition of photos heightens the irony of being hawked as unwanted, or “alligator bait,” while at the same time being drafted into a calvary regiment to serve in the name of the United States’ highest ideals. Historians have actually investigated to determine if African-American children were indeed used by hunters to lure alligators. The results were somewhat inconclusive, but the fact that research was needed is telling.
I wondered when I saw the “ALLIGATOR BAIT” photo how humans can be so cruel? I wonder the same today.
A TROUBLING EMAIL
Lastly, a few days ago I received an email from the Social Security Administration, which I initially thought to be phishing given the title, “Social Security Applauds Passage of Legislation Providing Historic Tax Relief for Seniors.” Turns out this was legit. I’m sure many of you got the same email.
As I read on, I couldn’t quite believe what I was reading—a clearly partisan piece of propaganda from an agency I thought was non-partisan. Not only that, the content was not complete or accurate.
Whoever crafted this email and thought it was OK to mass-send, it is not OK.
LET’S DO BETTER
There you go. This is what’s on my mind today, just days after celebrating the Fourth of July in a country I love, even with all its faults, atrocities, injustices and troubles. But we can, and must, do better. I believe we can.
© Copyright 2025 Audrey Kletscher Helbling