Minescapes
by Pete Kero
The lands of the Mesabi Iron Range in northeastern Minnesota hold both riches and beauty, and over the decades people have approached these offerings in different ways. Some extracted valuable ore while setting aside lower-quality rock for later use, others repurposed those rock piles as ski jumps or built homes on top of them. More recently, residents have pushed to open former minelands for fishing, hunting, and mountain biking, thereby strengthening links between mining and tourism, both activities essential to the region's future. Minescapes explores the record written on Minnesota's mined lands- and the value systems of different generations that have created, touched, and lived among these stunning landscapes.
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