Sunshine permeated Minnesota on Friday, from the shores of Lake Superior to the creeks and rivers of southern Minnesota and everywhere in between.
Today marks the official start of summer, the longest day of 2025. The summer solstice typically falls on June 20, 21 or 22, but we got lucky today: The weather is hot, but not the kind of extreme heat we’re going to get Saturday and Sunday.
It’s a welcome respite from the dark news Minnesota’s endured over the past week. Here’s what the state looked like on arguably the most luminous day of the year, according to eight Minnesota Star Tribune reporters and editors.
Laporte
To commemorate the longest, brightest day of the year I set out to witness the sunrise on the lake where I live in Laporte, pictured above, and planned to marvel at the sunset wherever the summer solstice may take me. The perfect day is when you see the sun rise and set. Moonrise is a bonus; northern lights is hitting the lotto.
This morning, gentle waves from a southward wind kissed the sand. Songbirds and loon calls filled the air. Pontoons hovered above the water at docks lining the shore, in suspense like horses at the gate, ready for long days of leisure and extreme heat. On the dock, I dipped my right foot in, warm like bathwater. Already I could feel the steam signaling a saunalike weekend.
Days like this remind me of that staple of Minnesota coffee tables by former Star Tribune writer Peg Meier, “Too Hot, Went To Lake.” It’s too hot today, go to the lake. Or several. Growing up, my cousins and I would do lake tours with my aunt, and we would go to as many as we could in a day. Perhaps it’s time to renew that tradition. I challenge you, dear reader, to give it a try and tell me all about it if you do at lakescountry@startribune.com
— Kim Hyatt
Redwood Falls
Hopeful anglers plied the piers as a slight breeze ruffled the waters on Lake Redwood on Friday morning. Bruce Johnson, 66, of Lamberton put a minnow on his hook and cast his line. He and his wife, Betty, 61, both recently retired, each caught a catfish from this pier yesterday. But today, the first day of summer, the fish seemed timid, and all that could be heard was the rumbling waters at a nearby dam, the chirping birds and the children passing by on bicycles.