I have four more pictures to frame for the cabins. Problem is that I can’t decide which pictures to use. Bonnie has already hung up five pictures from the thirties and forties at the outfitters. Then we have a set of pictures of Bruce harvesting birch bark, Justine growing up in Barrington, Illinois, and old pictures of winter at the lodge in the 1930’s. These last three sets will be in cabins so look for them when you visit us again.

While looking through the old pictures, I discovered a “Diary for Gunflint.” From the text and handwriting, I believe that Grandma Spunner (Justine’s mother) wrote it. There is also a small section written by Grandpa Spunner when Grandma was out of town. He is the only one I know who would complain about rheumatism and know how to spell it correctly. The problem with transcribing or even reading is that Grandma Spunner’s handwriting is very bold and difficult to read. Also she is writing with a fountain pen and the ink sometimes goes onto another page. The diary covers 1931 Nov. to June, 1932 Nov. to June and 1933 Nov. to Dec. Once I get it finished, I will put some in here.

All winter we are having lots of guests driving up and seeing moose on the way. In fact there are a lot more moose seen than in the past two years. Especially at night, it can be difficult to see the moose. Their eyes are not caught be the headlights like a deer’s. The best thing is to watch for tracks on the road. Then you will sometimes see a big black hunk in front of you. It is quite a sight and you don’t want to get to close.

The ice on the lake has been heaving. Generally the pressure from heaving causes to ice to come up and create a pressure ridge which can be as high as five feet. If you are snowmobiling around, it is hard to see because of the shadows and you can be thrown. Even more dangerous is when the ice heaves down. Then you have open water or thin ice for a period of time. This happened on Gunflint last week and the snowmobile and rider went into the water. Luckily the rider got himself out and his partner quickly came back for him. The next day the snowmobile was chopped out of the ice and towed in to thaw out. You must remember that ice on a lake is always changing so be alert.

Bruce and I are off again on Thursday. It is time to go to Missouri for Zach’s birthday. We are taking the large truck to bring home more hickory for smoking in the summer. On the 5th we will fly to Panama City for some outfitting meetings. We are also going to check out another canopy tour. This one is in operation so I will be going for a ride. Wish me luck. When we get back to the Twin Cities, we will get to visit Lee, Eva and the kids for a bit. Then it is home on the 12th.

A couple weeks ago, Bonnie set up a camera on one of the trails behind our maintenance garage. She has had great luck with it. The first night she got three great wolf pictures. On the 19th she started with a deer picture and then got two wolves before 11:00 p.m. These pictures above are two of those. It is interesting to wonder if the wolves and deer ever meet since they use the same trail.

On Friday Don, Jason and Lance walked out to test the ice again. I followed along for pictures. The picture above shows the three of them. Don is out quite a bit further on the ice. You can see the rope leading from Jason and going out to Don. The holes revealed a constant depth of 10-12 inches. Also our friend, Bob Baker, reports that he has found the same depth all over the lake as he has been fishing.

Bob’s fishing is a source of great joy to us. Last week he brought us two fresh trout. They were of the size that it was more than we needed for one meal but not quite enough for two. What to do? You guessed it! We ate them both for one meal and they were wonderful. Thanks, Bob

After about an inch of snow over the weekend, we are getting more snow now. It is not a huge amount but just enough to freshen up the trails. After lunch Bruce will be out grooming. When it stops, Jason will be out plowing. Others will be out shoveling the snow off the steps. It is quite a bit of work to clean up from even a light snowfall.

So last week I drove to town with a list of errands. It was warm and the road was slippery. After the straight stretch south of the north Brule, I saw a big beautiful moose on a curve. With the slippery roads, I didn’t want to jam on my breaks. The moose also slipped on the road and went to his front knees. Luckily he quickly got up and off the road. Naturally, I didn’t have my camera with me. It would not have made a difference as I was concentrating on avoiding the moose, not taking his picture.

Later in the Day: I started this blog in the mid-morning. It is now 3:00 p.m. and the snow is still coming down. Jason has the plow truck taking off the snow accumulation in our driveway even though it is still snowing. When this is finished, I will go out and shovel. Don tells me it is to continue all night. I still can’t see across the lake so life is good.

Ever since Bruce and I figured out how to make money from snow, I love every flake that comes down. All of you in the Twin Cities must know we are getting new snow because the phones are ringing off the hook.