Expanding Your Underwater Knowledge

The Gales of November brought those together Saturday to learn more about the Great Lakes

DULUTH, Minn.- The Gales of November occur when cold, dry air from northern Canada converges with warm, moist air from the Gulf of Mexico over the Great Lakes. The name is inspired by the 1975 sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald and with that comes an educational event here in Duluth.

People filled the DECC Saturday afternoon to bring the Lake Superior community together to learn about the Great Lakes lighthouses, shipwrecks, maritime history, and diving technology.

“For Duluth it’s just that continuation for acknowledgement that this is part of us. The maritime heritage is our heritage and so it’s an acknowledgment of that”, said Konnie LeMay, Vice President of Lake Superior Marine Museum Association.

The catalyst for Gales of November started the event 30 years ago, and says it’s about more than water exploration. It’s about catching up with old friends.

“For me, you see people you haven’t seen till last year’s so it’s kind of like a reunion. Everybody gets together and kind of sees what they have done in years past. It keeps growing every year”, said Elmer Engman.

The funds raised at Gales of November will help maintain and preserve the Lake Superior Maritime Visitor Center.