After a little commute of about 1400 miles we arrived in Red Lake only to find that there was still ice on the lake and we would have to wait an extra day to take the barge to the camp so we met up with Jim and Jillian, the owners of Black Bear Lodge, and spent an evening chatting about camp life and what lay ahead for us this summer.
As we began our journey to the lodge the next day it wasn’t too long until we reached some open water and spotted a large sheet of ice that looked pretty daunting. We cautiously inched the barge closer {having never to break through the ice} and we began talking to ourselves as we contemplated a plan: turn back, try breaking through it, or go around it. We nervously approached the sheet of ice and with great relief, realized that it was nothing more than a bunch of slush and small chips of ice, so onward we kept toward the lodge.
The camp survived the winter in relativity good shape, a few down trees, some dock damage, and several cracked pipes. What seemed an impossible task was nothing more than a few 14 hour days (really about 9-10 days) and little bit teamwork until we had the lodge up and running and ready for our first week of guests. “Kudos” to Jan and Ben as they were nothing short of “Awesome!”
What a view to wake up to, we are truly blessed!!
Ben built and installed 6 new safety handrails, they look and work great! Our plans are to have safety handrails installed for every boat both on Parker Lake and Red Lake by the beginning of next year.
New freezer chests for all of your take-home fish.
We have outfitted the entire camp with new recycle bins and are encouraging everyone to help in minimizing the impact that the lodge has on the environment. We appreciate everyone’s effort in this matter as it really does make a difference!
The camp is up and running the only thing missing is you! We can’t wait to have you here!
Nothing but open water and plenty of hungry fish.
Thanks and take care,
The Holiski’s
Looks amazing. Hopefully see you next summer
Camp is looking fantastic. Dock handrails are a fabulous improvement for us older folks. We are heading up to Eagle Falls this coming week and are really looking forward to some great fishing and company. Tom and Jean
The guys from Arizona can’t hardly wait to get there and these pictures and story of opening camp gets us all that much more excited. Look forward to seeing you all as well as our friends from Wisconsin in about 13 days,,lSee you soon,
Gene