Ted Kozlowski was sworn in as mayor of Stillwater in January of this year, but he has been a St. Croix River boater for much longer.

With winter coming on, Kozlowski recently made a short video of a boat ride from the new bridge construction site south of Stillwater, under the historic Lift Bridge, and up to the Soo Line bridge at Arcola. It’s a great ride for anyone, but he says he mostly made it “to have something to watch in February when I start questioning why I live here.”

The St. Croix is a big part of why he does live here. Admitting that it’s hard to put into words, Kozlowski says it feels like his “center,” or simply his “home.”

“It’s just a part of me at this point and its beauty never gets old. Every day on the river is the ‘perfect day.’ Even the cold rainy ones,” he says.

That’s good to hear, considering the gray, cold, rainy weather lately. Now is a good time to watch his video with the bluffs ablaze in color and blue skies above. While it was filmed just a couple weeks ago, it already feels like a season long past. And you might want to bookmark it for February.