Crab Lake

Yesterday was a beautiful day that was made for taking a long hike. The aroma of Fall was in the air, the sun was shinning and more importantly was I finally on top of the work needed to close Rockwood for the season. 

I decided to take a couple of hours and hike the Crab Lake spur, over a section of the Border Route Trail and up the Bridal Falls. 

It turned out to be a fantastic hike. The Crab Lake spur was an easy trail that would be great for family hikes. The cutover trail from the east end of Crab Lake had a few wet spots but I managed to keep my feet dry. The views from the Border Route Trail overlooking Gunflint and North lakes were payback for the time I invested in hiking.


Gunflint Lake Narrows



Bridal Falls is next to the overlook at the Gunflint Lake Narrows. The hike turned out to be more of a challenge than was I was expecting. The sun sets early between the high ridges along this collection of trails. I made the hike in about two and a half hours but I really had to push my pace on the way back out.

 

North Lake











White Roofs, New Trail and Draining Waterlines

A week ago we were wearing shorts and basking in sunshine. The next day we had over night temperatures below freezing and a high daytime temperature in the thirties. Yesterday we woke up to snow on the roofs and had to find an ice scraper to clear our windshield. Minnesota constantly suprises us wide daily weather variations.

The cold weather is Nature's way of reminding us that the waterlines here at the Lodge have to be drained in order to avoid having to repair broken line next Spring. Draining all the water from the cabins and blowing water out of the cabins and mainlines is a four day task. Our air compressor and the horse that hauls it around to the cabins certainly get a workout.

To keep cabins open for the last couple of weeks we had to put tarps and fiberglass insulation on all of our exposed water valves. (There are 32 metal valves that have to be covered to keep the water/valves from freezing.)  Buried waterlines, below the frost line, are not an option when you live on Ledge Rock.

After we wrap up work on the waterlines we'll start winterizing the sewer systems. Meanwhile we still find a little time to play. The new Moss Lake Trail is officially open.  Until the trail becomes "worn in" we would rate it as difficult. Be sure to check with someone locally for trail conditions before heading out on this hike.

We don't expect the lake to freeze over until after Thanksgiving. We still have a lot of activities to keep us busy -- Stream Trout fishing season is open until the end of October and the netting season for Whitefish is just around the corner. Meanwhile, a few guests have already book stays in our winterized suite.