FastPlans/North Shore fun

On Minnesota's North Shore, spectacular scenery and superbly groomed trails make it a perfect place to ski and snowshoe.

Where to ski: For alpine skiing, Lutsen Mountains. For cross-country skiing, the Sugarbush system between Tofte and Lutsen, Cascade River-Deer Yard Lake between Lutsen and Grand Marais and Pincushion near Grand Marais.

Where to snowshoe: Anywhere in the eight state parks and on the Superior Hiking Trail (pictured).

Events to catch: Feb. 3-12, Winter Tracks Festival.

Lodgings: See Where to stay on Minnesota's North Shore.

Details: See Skiing the North Shore and North Shore by snowshoe.

Past fast plans: Snowy in Eagle River, Itasca in winter, Skiing Thunder Bay, Swans in Monticello, Merry in Minneapolis

This weekend

Race a bed or watch hot-air balloons.

Winter Festival in Cedarburg, Wis. In its 38th year, this festival just north of Milwaukee (pictured) features bed and barrel races, an ice-carving contest, a dog weight pull and a parade at 1 p.m. Saturday. Feb. 4–5.

Hot Air Affair in Hudson, Wis. There will be a smoosh-board contest, craft fair, Friday night parade and fireworks plus morning balloon launches and evening moon glows. Feb. 3–5.

Winter Tracks Festival on Minnesota's North Shore and Gunflint Trail. Join guided snowshoe hikes and cross-country ski tours, sleigh rides and a Family Fun Fest at Lutsen Mountains. Feb. 3–12.

For more, see our Events Calendar.

Ski out the door

From cozy north-woods lodges, guests glide into a world of white.

In a blizzard, nothing is better than holing up with an expert cook, a bottomless cookie jar, a steam room, a big hot tub and one of the best ski-trail groomers in the Midwest.

One January, the stars aligned in the heavens and I found myself in the best possible place to be during a blizzard: Maplelag.

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Cheap winter getaways

Here are 15 places where a fun weekend costs $100 or less.

In the Upper Midwest, we tend not to brag — except when we find a great bargain.

My, do we love our bargains. We love them even when times are good. But now that they're bad, we need them, especially when cabin fever strikes in winter.

One of our favorite winter getaways is the Sports Dorm at Giants Ridge alpine ski resort on Minnesota's Iron Range. It costs less than $20 per person to stay there, but it's only yards from a chairlift.

In 2012, that's among 15 weekend trips you can take for $100 or less per person, based on at least two people.

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A German Mardi Gras

At New Ulm's Bock Fest, the good times roll in on a tide of beer.

Oh, the joy of being German.

There's no question that Germans know how to have a good time. After all, they've given the world Oktoberfest, half-gallon steins and "The Little Chicken Dance.''

And what else? Beer, of course, the enjoyment of which is a God-given right to Germans; their adage "Hopfen und Malz, Gott erhalts'' roughly translates as "Malt and hops, to God, are tops.''

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Charismatic Grand Marais

In the theater of seasons, this Lake Superior village always is ready for its close-up.

At the far tip of northern Minnesota, Grand Marais is a place that people love even more when the weather turns.

When Lake Superior storms send giant waves crashing against the pier light, photographers rush to the harbor. Blizzards bring in skiers, and tourists flock to see ice floes and formations.

This photogenic village at the foot of the Sawtooth range is a drama queen, a magnet for those who bask in the big lake's chill and revel in its unpredictability.

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When the Midwest is best

Looking for the perfect time to take a summer vacation? Here's what to know.

People in other states and countries usually have no clue what the Upper Midwest is really like, though they've heard about our 20-foot snowfalls and two-ton mosquitoes.

Believe it or not, many of them still want to vacation here in summer. But they have a few questions about those mosquitoes and about humidity and crowds. Mostly they want to know, "When's the best time to visit?''

Here's what we tell them.

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Gliding in the pines

In the hills above Minnesota's North Shore, skiers flock to an old-time lodge.

When snow is sparse on Minnesota's North Shore – and even when it isn't – skiers head for the hills.

Over the Sawtooth Mountains and deep into Superior National Forest, the Flathorn-Gegoka trails gather up the snow, arrange it prettily atop boughs and wait for cross-country skiers to come ooh and aah.

The perpetually snow-flocked pines never fail to amaze people who come to stay and ski at the National Forest Lodge.

“Wow, I've been here three times, and it's always been like that,'' said my friend Debra on a January weekend. “This is my favorite place to ski – the pine trees practically touch you.''

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Time to eat

During Restaurant Weeks, you can be a glutton with a good conscience.

There's only one good way to respond to cold: Take a cue from bears and pile on some fat.

Oh, you could buy long underwear. But doesn't it really make more sense to gobble some blueberry cobbler with freshly whipped cream?

The Restaurant Week season is starting, giving you another good —no, irresistible — excuse to eat: It's a deal!

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Where eagles land

Winter is anything but slow at the big birds' favorite gathering spots.

Benjamin Franklin was a wise man, but he was way off base when he proposed the turkey as a national symbol instead of the eagle.

Why? Because bald eagles are the perfect Americans. They're large, brash, opportunistic and easy to identify. And wherever they go, money follows.

Not long after the pesticide DDT was banned in 1972, bald eagle populations began to bounce back in the lower 48 states.

Eagles were hard to spot in the summer, when they spread out over the north woods of Minnesota and Wisconsin, but in the winter, they'd gather to fish in the open water beneath dams or at the mouths of large rivers.

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