Arts and Crafts

The Gilbertson family comes every July to stay in cabin 1. Each year Mary Gilbertson brings a art project that the whole family participate in. The mobile made of bits and pieces of the northwoods still hangs in the cabin. This years project was a birch candle. Using pieces of birch trees they made molds with rubber and when that set, cut the mold out and filled it with beeswax. Once the beeswax set they painted and finished the outside to look like a birch log. Each candle is unique as it is formed around a different piece of birch.

Rainy Day Girl

This little one was ready for the rain today. She is staying in cabin 1 with her parents and grandparents.

How does my garden grow?

If you have been reading the blog, you know I planting a hanging garden on the lodge stairs this spring. It has been an interesting experience. The plants seem to hold the water well and the tomato has flurished. The zuchini now has blossoms but the pepper plants are about the same size as they were when I planted them.

I am hoping something produces veggies before the first frost. But, I can always move this garden into the lodge if it starts getting too cold.

What have I learned about this experience?? It is great for tomatos but next summer I would plant the hanging gardens in the lodge as soon as the heat was on so I could get six weeks of growing time before I move them outside. I would do it again as it has been fun and easy. So far no animals have raided my veggie patch so I have been lucky. It would be great for small space living or rocky ground like ours. If interested, order your hanging containers really early because they were sold out every place I looked this spring and it took a month for my order to come in.

Weather note: Mild but sunny today in the lower 70's. Still good sleeping weather at night in the 40's or good camp fire weather if you are in the BWCA.

Hail

This picture is from when Peggy and I were in Indiana. I was taking some pics yesterday and when I plugged in my camera to the computer there were a number of pictures from the hail storm that happened the day we returned. I thought this one was particularly good.

The picture was taken from the lodge porch towards the waterfront with the lake beyond the colorful kayaks. I think Tori was the photographer.

Lynn

MN State Championship Log Boom Running

Sunday, August 2nd is the Minnesota State Championship Log Boom Running. This is being held at Atkinson Pond on Clearwater Lake beginning at 10:30 AM.

Warm ups will begin at 9:30 AM with tournament beginning at 10:30 AM. Bring a chair and plan to spend the day in the woods. There will be autograph signing, free posters, log rolling demos, merchandise giveaways and opportunities for kids to log roll too.

This is also a fundraiser for the Gunflint Trail Volunteer Fire Department. Admission is $3.00 per person at the door.

This week at the lodge

This week we have two speakers at the lodge so come join us!

7:00 PM on Tuesday a USDA Forest Ranger will be here and talk about 'An Historical Perspecitive of Human Occupation in Northeastern Minnesota'.

7:00 PM on Wednesday Harriet Taus will tell stories about what it is like to grow up in the lodge and on Clearwater Lake. Harriet is the daughter of the lodge's orginal family Charlie and Petra Boostrom.

Hail Fight!

There's nothing like a good summer thunderstorm. Yesterday had a gorgeous 70 degree start, but by noon it started to look like trouble. Huge clouds rolled in, and by just after noon it started to downpour. Midway through the storm it started to hail, and all work came to a halt. I was stranded out at my trailer trying to drain the thousands of gallons of slush water that my awning had collected. After the storm had passed, I puddle hopped my way back to the lodge. I took some pictures of the hail that had accumulated, and while walking past the office window I saw the perfect chance to give Matt a little scare. I gathered all the pea sized ice balls my little hands could handle and threw it at the window. Two minutes later Matt and Michael and I were in a full out hail battle. We threw several hand fulls, until our hands were frozen solid. Lily was sure that winter was just around the corner once again because ice was falling with the rain, but we assured her that it would maybe warm up later this week.

-Tori

Memorial Service for Bob Marchino August 1st

From Marti Marchino's Caring Bridge update regarding Bob's Mass and open house.

August 1, 2009

There will be a mass at 9:00 am at St. John’s Catholic Church
10 E. 5th Ave., Grand Marais, MN.
Coffee and social after mass at the church.

In the afternoon, from 3:00-5:30 pm, there will be an
open house, at Clearwater Lodge. The lodge is located
on Clearwater Lake about 28 miles up the Gunflint Trail and 4 miles in on Clearwater Road. Bob was a former owner of Clearwater Lodge.

Charlie Helbling, Bob's paddling buddy, will offer a few memories of Bob at 3:30.
Anyone who has stories or pictures of Bob please bring them to share.

Enjoying the BWCA

The Devore/Dryg family stayed in a couple of our cabins a few weeks ago. They took day and overnight trips into the BWCA. Hal sent us this family picture which was taken at Rose Falls.

Nessy Is That You?

Bryant Mullis sent us this picture of a behemoth Lake Trout he caught while out on a trip in late June. The numbers on this monster are 37.5" in length, 21.5" around, and it weighed in at a whopping 19lbs. Thanks for the pic Bryant.

logs, logs and more logs

In the woods, we use logs for parking barriers, decoration and firewood. So as we are doing the brush and tree clearing, we strip some logs to use around the resort. Here is a shot of Matt doing some prep work back near the garage.

Lynn

Big, Black and Not so Cute.

We all know that bears will go wherever they can for food. I just never thought that place would be my living quarters. As I lay asleep in my bed last night, I was rudely awakened by a loud crashing that I slowly realized was coming from my kitchen. As I came to consiousness, I turned on my headlamp and poked my head around the curtain that separates my bed from the rest of the trailer. I was half expecting Michael and Scott digging for something in my cupboards, but then I realized it was 3:09 AM, which is too late even for those boys. As I glanced out into my trailer from my bed I saw a large black coated creature that was surely not a staff member. I quickly shut off my headlamp and tried not to breathe. I crawled back into my sleeping bag and pulled the mummy cover tightly over my head. As I lay facedown and barely breathing, I could tell the bear didn't care about me. I knew that the bear could not be distracted from its feast of granola bars, unopened salad dressing and dried fruit, so I sat there and waited for it to leave. I was in a slight state of panic every time it moved about my kitchen, but it finished its meal and left within about half an hour. When I heard the bear step out my door, I waited for a couple minutes just to make sure it still wasn't lurking in the depths of the trailer. When the coast was clear I pulled on the closest fleece and a pair of shorts and ran to Michael's trailer which is just next door. I told him what had just happened. I had one ear on the door and one on Michael's baffled responses. I could still hear the bear creeping around in the woods surrounding our trailers, so I went outside and started making some noise. After about 5 minutes of banging my fists on the trailer, clapping my hands, and yelling, Scott and his visiting friend were wondering what the heck was happening. I think the bear got bored of me putting on a show, and finally stumbled away with a bloated belly. Needless to say I spent the night elsewhere. After another night of adventure with my co-workers, I now have a new story to tell.

-Tori

Minnesota Morning

Does this not look like a Minnesota Morning? The canoe packs and fishing poles are all lined up on the porch ready to start out on a canoe trip.

Lynn

What kids will find to do

We don't have any organized activities for kids but they always finds ways to entertain themselves. We had one little guy last week watching some road work we were having done for hours. He was the perfect age to be facinated by trucks. The heavy equipment driver, Mark, took him up into the big trucks for a ride.

All the little kids love running on the lodge porch. It is a wooden porch and the love the sounds it makes when they run on it. It is large enough to get a big run going.

This little one liked to play under and with the canoe that we have up on the porch to be repaired.

A Wedding at the Lodge

Alicia Trace (Peggy and Mike's daughter) is getting married at the lodge in September. The wedding date is 9/9/09 and they will say their vows at the waterfront. For a week all the cabins will be full of family and friends to help us celebrate.

We have closed off one of the Bed and Breakfast rooms this summer and it is now officially the 'wedding room'. That is where we are storing wedding decorations, champaign glasses, dresses, tissue paper and silk flowers. Peggy, being the creative one, visits the room every day and tries new things that she thinks might compliment a wedding in the lodge and woods. She now has the caterer arranged, the cake ordered and the flowers ordered.

Peggy and I leave tomorrow and drive to IN and OH for two wedding showers for the couple.

Weather Note: We had some nice rain last night that we needed. It was starting to look a little dry. Temps are still in the 70's during the day and in the mid-40's to 50 at night.

Lynn

So It's Come To This: A Pancake Blog

This picture tells the tale of a man and his pancake. The guests were all fed. The staff that came in for breakfast were finishing up. What were we going to do with the batter left in the bowl? I grabbed a spatula and emptied the rest of the bowl onto the hot grill all the while thinking this is a mistake, this is a mistake. The result was one whopper of a pancake. When we tried to plate it a good two inches draped over the rim all around. The main question at hand was, "Who is going to eat this?" In true hero fashion we see Scott amble up the road towards the kitchen donning undershirt and sweat pants having just woken up from what must have been a very tiring sleep, because he came in with an appetite and the ambition to match. Just the man for the job. We set him up with the biggest platter in the kitchen, sat back, and watched in awe. I'll let the reader decide whether or not he finished it all, but in the end Scott's appetite was satisfied, the batter bowl empty and we had a subject for today's blog.

Happy gorging,

Michael

Kayaking on the Lake

BJ and Sammi got out on Cleawater Lake and sent us some nice pics of their paddle.

The ground hogs

We have known that there are some ground hogs living out near the garage. Several summers ago (or was that last summer?) there was a batch of babies that the summer staff were watching grow up only to see those become food for a pine martin living in the same general area. But it looks like we had some survivors because we still have a little guy waddling around back there.

Photos by Michael.

Weather Note: Our cool temperatures continue with the highs in the low 70's and the nights still in the 40's. It is still sweatshirt weather in the Northwoods!

A puppy's life

The pets probably enjoy visiting the BWCA and Clearwater as much as anyone else. Where else can they explore tons of wildlife and critters and spend such quality time with Dad? Here is Frank with his two pups who stayed in a cabin for the week.

Projects Continued.....

Tori staining a decorative wagon in front of the lodge. Scott has been making benches. We found some bench kits at our local hardware/lumber store that are perfect to use in a number of places around the lodge. We put two around the fire pit and one in the walkway.

Our weather continues to be very pleasant with sunny days in the 70's and cool nights in the upper 40's. The perfect weather for a canoe trip or a stay in a cabin.

Lynn

Projects, projects and more projects

With temperatures in the 70's during the day, 40's at night and sunshine, the weather has been in our favor for getting some outside projects done this summer. One has been sanding and re-staining the lodge porch. This one was a chore since it is a pretty big area and the edges had to be hand sanded. But we are getting it done now and here is Michael putting on the first coat of stain.

One of the nice things about this business is that you are busy in the morning getting everyone out on canoe trips and helping the cabin folks and cooking breakfast then it slows down for a few hours and you can get cleaning done and any outside projects. Later afternoon it picks back up with canoes coming back in and preparation for the next day. So, as long as the weather continues to be pleasant, we will keep getting more and more of our projects done during the summer. Let me tell you, there is a never ending list of projects that must be done and things that we would like to get done one day. Sometimes we get to tackle the fun ones like the outdoor living space and sometimes the not so fun, like septic problems.

Weather Note: We continue to have some wonderful Northwoods weather with the daily temps in the 70's with sunny skis. The nights are still getting down into the 40's.

Lynn

Creating an Outdoor Space

Peggy is our creative one and she has been pondering how to make the walk up to the lodge more attractive the past few years. The first year here we added the window boxes and since have been expanding the gardens. We have been building the Clearwater Heritage Walkway as as more bricks come in.

In preparation for staining the porch, we moved some furniture out to the lawn. We always puzzled over this porch furniture because no one ever seemed to sit in it regardless of where we put on the porch. We moved it out on the lawn and the next time we looked out the window, there were folks sitting in it. So we watched for a few days and there always seemed to be someone enjoying sitting under the tree.

The end result of this not very scientific experiment is that Peggy is creating an outdoor living space as they call it on the Home and Garden TV networks. She had the kids stain the furniture and make a bench. She expanded the border of the walkway and is adding some small plants.

Come visit!

Sammi's Fish

Sammi Resch, from Tallmadge, OH sent us this picture of her fish. The family had a big fish dinner their last night here.

Tree Frog

This picture was sent by BJ Reach of a tree frog that was outside their cabin. The frog posed for two pictures and then jumped right into the camera.

Fly Fishing in the BWCA

When I think of fly fishing, I think of rocky streams and rivers out west. When I think of fishing in the BWCA I always think of fishing boats or fishing from canoes and kids fishing from docks. Brett Walker and his father stayed in Cabin 5 in June and did some fly fishing. Brett sent some good pictures proving fly fishing is good sport in the BWCA! He said the fly fishing for smallmouth was spectacular on Caribou.

Summer Happenings

Summer has picked up at last. Which does not leave much time for "blogging." In the past few weeks the staff has been out and about making the most of their days off. Tori and Michael spent a day and a half out in the wilderness, mostly napping. Scott and Michael have been portaging into Rove Lake and catching bass. Erik and Tori spent 12 hours on the water last week, paddling and portaging all 40 miles of the Clearwater loop. The past few weeks has been clear, cool and calm. With the exception of the two days Scott, Matt, Michael and Tori were out camping. They spent the day dealing with cold temperatures and rain. Good times were had by all I am sure.

Canada Day eh?

This Saturday is the big day. The mid-summer weekend that every American looks forward to. The historic, meaningful, federal holiday that gives us an excuse to set fire to some explosive pyrotechnics. However, we're not the only nation celebrating our birth this week. Our neighbors to the North celebrated Canada Day yesterday. I'll be honest, I was unaware of this until last night. This is really a shame because oddly enough I was in Canada yesterday. Then out. Then in. And out again. Scott and I were up on some border lakes and we walked a portage that straddled the US-Canada boundary. Had we known it was a holiday perhaps we would have stayed longer on the other side of the path. We could have enjoyed the festive atmosphere and fully realized our appreciation for the signing of the British North America Act on July 1, 1867.
Another thought that occurred to me was the whole timing of these holidays. Did these famous nation-builders work as diligently as possible, and the right circumstances came together on these days? Or did they have the forethought to consider the seasons. I can see Ben Franklin saying, "We were going to challenge tyranny and seek independence in late '75 but we pushed Jefferson's deadline back because Summer is a much better time for a barbecue."
However it happened I'm grateful for the holiday. The Fourth, like many other holidays has developed its own traditions and customs over the years and become a unique celebration that embraces some of the best things Summer has to offer. So this Saturday when you're lighting the grill, filling the coolers, and making sure the fire extinguisher works, remember....Canada undercut us by three lousy days.

Have a great 4th!

-Michael

Moccasin Flower

One of the most common of the temperate climate slipper ordchids found in shaded and wet bogs. It is sometimes called the stemless Lady's-slipper.

Cool weather continues today....

Lynn