Groceries and snow...happy Friday the 13th

Yep, woke up this morning to a brisk NW wind and snow. While the snow was not heavy, it was enough to remind us just how cold it was outside...not that we really needed any reminders. I think the official high temp today was just above freezing, and I do mean just. At 6pm it was already back down to 30 degrees and falling. So what happens at camp when it gets this cold? Well normally we would be hunkering down inside looking for any project that we could do near the oil stove. However, just our luck, today is grocery delivery day. That means having to unload 5 full pallets of food and dry goods while trying not to freeze in the brutal weather. The truck arrived at 12:30 and 5 hours later we finally had the last box out of the yard. Needless to say, the rest of the night is going to consist of watching movies, playing games with the kids, catching up on office work, and just relaxing in our nice warm cabin.
The bad news for me...I will most likely be up all night as I will have to make sure all water continues to run. I will have to run the water pump every hour or so, then let the faucets drip, then run the pump again, and so on and so on. It stinks, but it is the surest way to prevent frozen pipes. I hate crawling under cabins trying to fix cracked water lines!

Yep...this is spring in Red Lake. 

And this is only part of our seasonal total! 

Jeremiah's rain dance worked!

We have finally received some very over-due rain! It has not been a lot of rain but it has been steadily drizzling for 2 days and more importantly no lightning. The fire nearest our camp has been put out, but the big one located in the Woodland Caribou Park is still going strong. Fortunately for us the winds have been in our favor, so the fire and the smoke are moving away from camp.

The bad news (for this weekend anyway) is that the rain is turning over to snow! Yep, a week ago we were sweating with 86 degree temps and tomorrow's high will struggle to get above freezing. Lows will be in the 20's. Not the best conditions for unloading 5 pallets of groceries, which are to be delivered tomorrow morning. But that's the way it goes sometimes, welcome to camp life.

I have held off on getting water to the fish house and shower house until the weather returns to more spring like conditions. I do not want to deal with any broken water lines. As it is, I will have to be diligent in running water throughout the night in the 2 buildings that have water, so that none of the pipes freeze up.

Luckily there is always some inside jobs that need to be done. Jillian is 90 percent done in the main lodge, we have started some cabin cleaning, and I got some repairs done to the camp road. After the groceries get unloaded, I will be spending a lot of time in the motor room. Only 29 more motors to go.

The kids enjoy rainy days the most. They play in the mud puddles, catch rain falling from the roof and overhangs, and they get to watch movies and play games in the warm cabin.

Josie drying off after coming in from playing in the rain.

Jeremiah did not want to come in...
he was having way to much fun in the puddles.

Game on!

"watch this Dad!!"

Camp chores continue.

With the continued nice weather, there has been plenty of opportunities to keep the camp work moving along. I think I have too many projects going in fact. The Main Lodge is almost completely cleaned and ready for guest, the yard has been mowed, trees have been cut, water system is up and running, our trailer is empty, our porch is cleaned of boxes and bins, and the kids even helped me put 14 boats in the water. It is starting to look like a camp again! Just need some fisherman.

This is what happens when you sit down for just a minute. Jillian thought it
would be funny to take a picture of me snoozing on the couch.
Apparently I fell asleep faster than Jeremiah did for his afternoon nap.

Happy Mothers Day!

Happy Mothers Day to all of the Moms out there...especially to ours. Last night (or more correctly) this morning, we celebrated Mothers Day by attending a late show. The start performer was the Aurora Borealis. Just after midnight, the Northern Lights gave us one amazing display! For 2 straight hours Jillian, Josie and I laid in the yard and watched the lights shoot and dance across the sky. They were seen in every direction, a 360 degree epic display. The only issue we had was trying to stay warm. The temperature dipped into the 20's and it took many layers of clothes and even some sleeping bags to remain out there for a couple of hours. It was all worth it though. Unfortunately it is very hard to photograph the northern lights. But even if I could, it would never do them an justice. It is truly magical display that I wish all of our guests could experience.

You must be a little crazy to be a camp owner...

In order to keep guests and surrounding buildings safe, some of the very large Poplar tress have to be cut down. Most can be dropped safely in one cut, but some of the larger ones, that are of course leaning the wrong way, must be cut down in stages. That means someone must climb up the tree and systematically prune the to portions first. Then the rest can be dropped safely without crushing any surrounding structures. And since the kids are not quite old enough yet to be 30 feet in the air, and Jillian is afraid of heights...that means I get the nod. I guess this is where 2 decades of competitive gymnastics and rock climbing finally pays off. Sorry you had to see this Mom. For those of you who have a queasy stomach for this kind of stuff...fear not, I was completely roped in and and Jeremiah was spotting me the entire time.

Guess I need to buy a bigger ladder.

Nice view from up here.

Fallen trees make great backwoods balance beams for the kids.

Mom says, "my husband is NUTS!"
Josie says, "please don't get hurt Dad."
Jeremiah says, "Awesome! Can I help too?"

Mystery bug is identified

I saw this little guy for the first time ever. Apparently it is a hummingbird moth. This particular type is a Snowberry Clearwing. It has a fury body that resembles a bumble bee and has a long straw-like proboscis to sip nectar. It does not sting. It flies like a humming bird and unlike other moths, it is readily seen during the daylight hours near gardens and meadows.  According to my research, this little guy is much further north than its typical habitat range. The one map I looked at said this species is rarely seen past the US/Canadian border.  Like I said, in 30 years of coming up to Red Lake, I have never seen one before. Very cool!

Things at camp are heating up!

No this thermometer is not located in the Florida Keys. This was the temperature in Red Lake Ontario on May 5th. The official high temp today was 86 degrees!! Usually this time of year we are looking for inside jobs because the wether is to cold or rainy, not to hide from the sun and heat.
While it is nice to get jobs done without getting soaked, we are way over due for some rain. The Red lake region reported its first forest fire of the season today. While no where in the same scope as what is happening in Alberta, it is still a wake up call that things are getting a bit on the dangerous side.
Other than the 10 minute drizzle we got last night, it has not rained here in nearly 3 weeks. Time for everyone to do a rain dance for all of Canada. Here is Jeremiah giving it a shot...

I even set up a tent for the kids, which almost always means it is going to rain. Guess they will be able to enjoy their special fort for a while longer yet.

The 2016 season is here!!!!

Finally, we are back at camp. The family and I got an unprecedented early start this year. We arrived at camp on Thursday morning (April 28th), It is also the first time we have ever seen camp in the month of April. And it is also the first time Josie got to celebrate her birthday in Canada. In case you were wondering...there were no complaints from the 7 year old. Of course donuts in bed and a surprise party hosted at our friends house in Ear Falls sure helps a lot!!! I can not thank the Bates and Rice families enough for making Josie's day so special!! Jillian and I also enjoyed spending time with our friends from town. Because of our 'camp schedule', most years it is nearly impossible to take a full day off to see friends. I may have enjoyed it more than Josie.

As for the camp...the place made it through the winter quite well. It might actually be the best the camp has looked after the long winter since we took over 10 years ago. There was minimal damage to the roofs, the docks looked great, and every machine started right up. Even the weather cooperated in our early arrival plans. We have had nothing but blue skies and comfortable temps. It may even get into the upper 70's later this week! Although there was ice on the lake when we arrived, it did not last long. By day 2 our bay was free of ice. The main lake should be open later this week. And since we have open water, that means we also have running water at camp! Good thing to, as our entire family was well over-do for a long hot shower.

As you can see from this post, our internet is up and running. Even though we still have lots to do to get ready for our first guests, I will do my best to keep the Blogs coming, so pass the word...Black Bear Lodge is back for another great year! Heck, I may even go fishing this week.

Day 1 of the 2016 season.

This is what we saw when we arrived.

This is what it looked like 2 days later!
Best office window in the world!!!!!

In case you were wondering...NO, they did NOT sleep the whole way up.

Birthday donuts!!!

Dad let me bring my new ATV to camp! 

That's because Dad wants these two to start learning how to haul gear
and help out the guests. Dad wants to fish!

For the Hunters...

The baits are being hit and the cameras are rolling....

 A good bear

A great bear!!

400 lb+ easy!!

Young color phase boar.

Mature color phase boar.



Keep practicing boys...you do not want to miss your shot on these trophy bears.