We have everything you need to begin your adventure in the Northwoods. Disconnect and escape to nature. Jordan’s provides the gear and knowledge you need to navigate your trip to Northern Minnesota’s Boundary Waters and the Quetico Provincial Park.

Story Portage is a non-profit, centered in Ely, Minnesota, created to foster the art of personal narrative and to promote literacy and reading here in the Northwoods. Current and future projects include: Ely, Minnesota Chapter of the League of Minnesota Poets The Maud Hart Lovelace and Star of the North Children’s Choice Book Award Program Random Acts of Poetry VCC Visiting Writers Program   Visit our website and take a look at our current projects to learn more, and contact us if you’d like to be part of Story Portage’s future! Story Portage P.O. Box 286 Ely, MN 55731

Portage North and Sundog Sport, formerly Kondos Outdoors, was born in Ely, in 1980 out of a need of the outfitters to have gear that could withstand the rigors of being on trail all season long. With a roll of fabric, some thread, and the determination to craft the best gear, began the course for the next 40 years. I grew up venturing into the Boundary Waters from age three and spent much of my formative years exploring the Ely wilderness. In 2017, I married my wife, Corissa, who had been guiding BWCA trips for seven years and has been the director of Rock Ridge Christian Camp since 2015. We enjoy being able to take our personal experiences and knowledge and incorporate that into how we design and build products for Sundog Sport. By bringing in state-of-the-art cutting and sewing equipment, implementing continuous improvement philosophies, researching the best materials, and having a 1.4 million acre test lab to vet our products, we strive to craft for you the toughest gear that will last you and the next generation a lifetime.

Insula restaurant features American fare with a twist served in a cool setting with industrial accents & a sizable bar. Owned and run by Executive Chef Daniel Vollom and Sarah Wigdahl-Vollom, Insula has captured the imagination and enlivened the tastebuds of the eating scene in Ely, Minnesota.

Our story began innocently enough, out in the fields of produce that my wife and I were tending during our time as farming apprentices. We learned some great life lessons out there, stuff you can’t learn from a book. One day I said something like “wouldn’t it be funny if we made cranberry apple granola and called it Crapola?”. I say lots of things like that, but for some reason, this idea actually became a reality. The next thing I knew, a business was born. Be careful what you say in front of your wife. It could change your life forever. Since our humble beginning almost ten years ago, we have grown our product line and our distribution area. We have put the “fun” in “functional” food, and reminded scores of people about the importance of fiber in their diet, in our own signature style. We have had a lot of fun marketing our granola, but we’re serious when it comes to quality. Just like we learned in farming, it’s worth taking extra time and effort to do things the way we believe is best. Running this business has been far more work than we imagined, but we learn as we go and take pride in our accomplishments. We have grown the business, but the business has also grown us. Each day brings new opportunities and we’re excited about the future. We want to sincerely thank our “regular” customers for supporting us all these years!

Ely Community Resource…helping make Ely a great place to grow up! Our mission is to foster positive youth development through activities designed to increase self-esteem, build a sense of community, and provide positive adult relationships that allow effective interventions.