A Continuing Saga: The Beavers and the Capser Trail Bridge
/Last fall members of Madeline Island Trails noticed that a beaver(s?) had been busy building a dam on a section of wetland near the bridge on Capser Trail, just southwest of the lookout. The beaver(s?) did such a great job that the water levels were dangerously close to overtaking the bridge that the Wilderness Preserve and Town of La Pointe installed years ago. Ken Myhre, President of Madeline Island Trails, decided to try to drain some water from the beaver dam and installed some special piping through the dam that lets out water slowly enough so that the beaver(s?) remain undisturbed — and was able to drain enough water so that the bridge was not in peril — at least at that moment!
However, this spring islander John Hogan was walking the trail and found the beaver(s?) had been cutting down more trees, and two had fallen onto the bridge causing considerable damage. John shared the two pictures of the damage to the bridge.
A few days later Ken Myhre again came to the rescue and cleared some of the backup to allow water to drain, and the trees were removed and the bridge repaired. MIWP board member (and trails committee chair) Marnie Myhre shared pictures of Ken at work and the resulting tranquil scene. Many thanks to John, Marnie, Ken and Madeline Island Trails!
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