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Massive Bog Refuses To Budge On North Long Lake

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A troublesome floating bog near Brainerd caused more trouble Wednesday when it refused to budge.

The bog on North Long Lake is blocking access to the Legionville swimming beach.

Early Wednesday morning, volunteers got started with their plan to move the bog using boats and bobcats.

As you might imagine, there is no instruction book on moving bogs.

When the plan they'd worked on all winter didn't work, it was on to plan B.

Covered in cattails and lined with tamarack trees, this giant bog is an unwelcome guest.

"It's going to be work," said Rob Gifford, who was part of the crew. "Just like plowing a field by hand."

With motorboats tugging and heavy equipment pushing from shore, the crews hoped to budge the stubborn bog away.

But it wasn't to be.

"You just got to keep being creative," Gifford said. "We tried to create a magic balloon, but it's not going to work."

A drop in the lake level means the bog, several football fields in size, is snagged.

So crews devised another approach and cut the bog in two.

"The only way to kick it is to work, get some mini hoes on a pontoon, break it in small pieces and get the beach back," Gifford said.

But the late spring means there's a six-week backlog for barges.

As such, moving the bog might take a back seat to getting all those docks and boat lifts in.

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