Last week, I was perched on top of Smokey the Bear’s hat.  Maybe instead of “Where’s Wolfie?” I should have asked “Where’s Smokey?” Smokey’s location is marked with a red star and is located next to the fire tower (#5) on this map of the MacKenzie Center.  Can you read a map?  When you park your car and start to walk on the path to the wildlife area you will walk right past Smokey.

Come to the MacKenzie Center this week. If I’m still perched on top of Smokey’s hat when you visit, I will waive to you as you walk by.

If you come to the MacKenzie Center to see the animals, make sure that you say hello to my cousins, the wolves, who live there.  They need a new home and the Friends of Mackenzie is trying to raise money to build them a new enclosure. Johnny said that almost everyone is having hard times these days because of Covid-19, but he said that he was sure that people would help out with a small donation if they can. You (or your parents or grandparents) can learn more about how to donate at https://friendsofmackenzie.org/about/donate/.

This week Johnny and his grandfather took me to MacKenzie Center to see a very interesting old piece of machinery and they took my

picture in front of the equipment. Johnny’s grandfather told us a story of how this equipment was used when he was a little boy to make boards for houses and furniture. He told us that trees are a very important part of nature and our world because they give us the oxygen we breathe during the green leaf process called photosynthesis, as well as lumber and good things to eat like apples, nuts and maple syrup (my favorite). At first I thought that photosynthesis had something to do with getting my picture taken again, but Johnny said, “Photosynthesis is the process by which plants make food from sunlight, water, and the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.” Now I am even more impressed with big trees and all the plants. They can just stay in one place and make their own food. I need four legs to walk around and search for food, but trees don’t need any legs.

Johnny’s grandfather also told us that the men who ran this machinery sometimes became very angry when they found a piece of metalin the tree they were processing because it ruined their equipment and caused long delays. So he asked us to never put a nail or screw in a tree because it will be in the same place 100 years from now and no one will know it’s there until they hit it with their equipment.

Johnny’s grandfather further explained that the equipment would likely have been powered by a steam engine, but some were powered by a water wheel where the power of falling water would turn a wheel that pulled the wide belt on the equipment. It was a very dangerous job to run this equipment and one had to be alert every moment to prevent serious injury; no daydreaming here! I’m sure glad I don’t have to work around this equipment.

Johnny’s grandfather is a really smart man. I never knew my grandfather because his pack moved to northern Wisconsin before I was born.

So, can you guess where I am this week? If you think you know, email your entry for this week’s “Where’s Wolfie” contest to [email protected] before 5:00 p.m. on September 18. If you are the prize winner, the Friends will contact you by return email. If there is more than one correct entry to this week’s contest, the Friends of Mackenzie will draw a contest winner from among the correct entries.

Have you started school yet? I have. So far at my Wolfie school, I have learned how to sign my name. Well, at least, sort of. Do you think I need to clip my toenails?