Fishing is still very good!

Over the past couple of weeks we have had a number of people out fishing. The Miller party had a good deal of luck over by the river. The top picture is one of Johnathon with a nice northern. The second picture is of Steve who works for us and has caught the fishing bug. He has caught a number of nice northerns and a few decent bass. The Clasen party just checked out today but they caught a nice variety of fish. Wayne caught lake trout, northern, small mouth bass and even a walleye. Yes I know it is hard to believe a walleye on Loon Lake but strange things do happen.

Camp is full tonight. The weather has not been cooperating with people camping so we always get a few people looking for a dry place to sleep. That is great with us because sooner or later most people give up that crazy camping idea and want to vacation someplace with a nice bed and a warm shower and have we got a deal for them.

Fish are biting!!

Sorry I haven't been keeping up on my blog. May flew by and here it is June. The ice went out late. Our first guests had to fish over by the river because that was the only open water on opening day!!! The bay was clear of ice by the 11th of May and the main lake went out on the 15th. In the last couple of years we were ice free by the 19th of April.

We have had a good number of big northerns caught in the bay over the last couple of weeks. Our son Adam got this 42 inch monster in just 2 feet of water over by the river coming in from Little Iron. Jerry Hinkle-Johnson brought in a very nice 38 inch northern off our dock last weekend. As you can tell this is the time of year to get the bigger fish when they are up in shallow water. Surface temperature today was 50 degrees. Still a little cold for swimming.

Adam's father-in-law Jack got the nice lake trout off our pontoon dock. Jack has been up a couple of times since the season open and each time he catches two of nice lake trout in about the same spot. Why change?

We still have some good openings in July. Give us a call if we can help out on your vacation plans, 1-800-552-6351.

Spring?

I was walking on the lake today! That can't be a good sign for people waiting for spring. The ice is still out to the edge of the lake and the river is just starting to open so it will be another week before we can hope to see open water. I saw two pair of Mergansers at the mouth of the river. They are the ducks with the brown heads and the males have a white body and females are brown. We always seem to have more of them than any type of duck.

We have half of the cabins cleaned but they are not complete. We still have to go back and wash all the curtains and clean all the stoves. Jack and Cindy came up from Duluth this last weekend to give us a hand. It is always more "fun" when there are others around to share the cleaning duties. We have to have the "Shack" ready to go for the first of May. Then we will need to have them all ready by Memorial Weekend.

Things are set and ready to go for the big tree planting weekend May 2 - 4. Twelve of us will unload 75,000 seedlings on Tuesday and then position them on Friday for the hundreds of people who are signed up to help get them in the ground. Big dinner, party and dance follows Saturday night. Then on Sunday there will be a half marathon. I won't be running!! I know that surprises many of you. I will be driving behind the runners to lead cars around them since we can't close the Trail to traffic. Should be exciting.

Signs of Spring!!!

Believe it or not Terry was skiing on the lake just yesterday!! Today however is a different story. The lake is just starting to get dark spots and that means melting. We are getting some warmer weather and rain is predicted before the end of the week. Before long we will start to hear the river run and within a short time loons and other summer creatures will return.

It is hard to get fired up about spring cleaning when you have to climb over snowbanks to get to the cabins. We will start in earnest in the next few days. We are opening early this year with our first guests arriving May 1st. That will be "Green Up Weekend". There are a number of events planned from tree planting to a dinner dance and finally the Ham Run Half Marathon. There has been a great deal of interest and I am sure there will be plenty of people on the Trail.

We are all looking forward to "ice out"!

Snow, Snow and more Snow

Just when you start to think summer mother nature plays her little game with you! The past couple of days we have received over a foot of fresh snow. The Lodge road was just starting to dry out and we were just getting started with our spring cleaning. That is on hold right now and Terry is back out skiing!! The lake still has over 2 feet of ice and there is very little slush. It wont last too long they are talking about temps in the high 50's by this weekend.

We are really in the summer way of thinking right now. We get excited about the new season, seeing old friends and having open water. We have hired some summer help this year so that will take some pressure off and who knows we may get more work done.

Remember we have discounted rates for May and June. If that is something that appeals to you give us a call. July and August do have some openings and there are always some short stays open around other reservations that would make a nice get-a-way. Stay in touch!

Sad Day

In our last post I talked about the "Best burgers on the Trail" and Hungry Jack Lodge. Just a few days after that post the main lodge building at Hungry Jack burned. Our hearts and prayers go out to Forrest and Ericka. The good news is that no one was hurt in the fire and I am sure when they rebuild they will be better than ever.

"Best Burgers on the Trail"

I don't get a chance to go snowmobiling but our son Adam was up for his birthday and we made the best of the great weather. On one of our trips we started out heading down the Crab Lake Trail and then running the length of Crab Lake. As you get to the end of Crab there is a small trail that goes up the hill over to Little Mayhew Lake. This is the area that was hit the hardest last summer by the fire. The view is spectacular from the top of the hill before you head down into Little Mayhew. You look over Crab into the Gunflint Lake area. From Little Mayhew you head to Mayhew Lake. It was long and lots of snow drifts. We hit the main snowmobile trail and headed to Hungry Jack Lake.

Forrest was pulling a truck off the lake when we got there. Quite a site! The girls meet us there - Terry, Janelle and Hannah. We had stopped down to enjoy what are called the "Best Burgers on the Trail". The Place was jumping and Ericka serving food downstairs in the Lodge. The food was very good and if you are looking for a burger while on the Trail during the winter months you have to stop at Hungry Jack Lodge.

Adam and I headed back to Loon this time going on Poplar Lake then Iron Lake and home. It was a lot faster and much smoother than the snowmobile trail. It was a great ride and we both had good day.

Winter Tracks

The Winter Tracks Festival just finished up and it was great!! There was something for everyone and most events are free to the public. All of the winter business along the Gunflint Trail and some in Grand Marais participate in this 5 day event. Just to give you some idea on what goes on there is everything from seminars to snow sculptures and northwoods crafts to knitting by the fire. There are events for cross country skiing to snowmobiles and kids to adults. There is truly something for everyone.

Terry and I even got to a few of the events. We stopped by Heston's Lodge on Gunflint Lake. There Barb was cooking pizza in an outdoor wood-fired bread oven. She had all the toppings and it was some of the best pizza I have ever tasted. So we stayed for more. I will admit it was somewhat cold outside but with oven fired up it wasn't too bad.

We drove around the area and took some pictures of the snow sculptures. All I can say is there are some very talented people up here. They started with a 5 foot by 5 foot block of snow and then started carving away. They made everything from a dog team to a snow wood stove. They had them placed along the Trail and at different resorts. They were all well done.

There was a dinner for all at Gunflint Lodge followed by a dance. It was well attended by over 200 people. So next year if you are looking for a late winter get-a-way consider the Winter Track Festival.

Winter Camping

Many of you have meet Jerry Henkel-Johnson and his family over the years. They have been guests for over 20 years and know the area well. This year Jerry and a couple of his buddies wanted to try winter camping. I too have thought about it but never had the courage! Well Jerry and his friends picked the weekend to give it a try and what a weekend to pick. The temps dropped to -25 below and the winds were gusting up to 35 miles per hour. Now that is cold. They laid down a tarp and put some camping pads down next. Then came the sleeping bag and they would pull the tarp over the sleeping bag. Sleeping under the stars with the wind and the cold. Burrrrr. Not one night but two!

They did have a cook tent in which to do the meals but for the most part they spent the weekend out in the elements exploring and fishing. I give them credit. Jerry did catch one very nice lake trout - around 15 pounds. I think he earned it. Overall he said it was a great weekend and he is ready to go again.

Little Iron & Tucker Lakes

Snowshoeing Saturday

Terry and I got a chance to get over to Little Iron & Tucker Lakes on Saturday. It was a nice temperature but it was snowing like crazy. We walked the shoreline of Little Iron and there were tons of animal tracks. Mostly deer tracks but there were also some signs of wolves. This year we have seen more wolves than ever before. In years past you would see signs of wolf activities but almost never accually see the wolf but that has changed. On this day we just saw the tracks of one or two wolves. Over on Tucker we saw few tracks but ran into some slush. Never fun because it builds up on your snowshoes and soon they wiegh a ton. It was a great day but couldn't take any pictures because of the heavy snow.

The picture I used today is one taken from the house. It is cold today -25, so there won't be any walking today maybe just a good book by the fireplace.