Crisp Fall Morning

Posted on by

This past week, Michaela and I took advantage of a beautiful, crisp, fall morning and paddled out to capture a perfect morning on the lake. The tamarack trees are in prime color, and are one of my favorites this time of year.

Fall is one of the most beautiful seasons at the resort and we are excited to announce that we will be open through September next year. If you are interested in coming north to enjoy the fall colors, we would love to be your host!

Foggy-Morning-#1

Foggy-Morning-#2

Foggy-Morning-#3

Foggy-Morning-#4

Foggy-Morning-#5

Foggy-Morning-#6

Foggy-Morning-#7

Foggy-Morning-#8

Foggy-Morning-#9

Thanks again, Michaela, for the great pictures!

Posted in , ,

Northern Lights

Posted on by

Michaela captured some great photos of the northern lights over the beach this past week. We don’t see them like this too often, but when we do it’s a real treat!

We have been busy with the fall routine this past week and a half, even though it hasn’t really felt like fall. It has been unusually warm for this time of year, so we are taking full advantage of the nice weather to get things ready for winter. It’s much easier working with the pressure washer when it’s 75 degrees, versus just above freezing outside.  The boats are out of the water and cleaned, most of the cabins are shut down for the winter, and the Adirondack chairs are all pressure washed and ready for another coat of finish.

Although fall is a little slower paced, there is still some adrenaline pumping to get everything prepped for winter and get a head start on maintenance items for next spring. None-the-less, it’s a beautiful time of year at the resort so we will definitly be taking some time to “smell the roses”;).

Northern-Lights

Northern-Lights-2

Posted in , , ,

Smoky Sunrise

Posted on by

Recent fires out West caused the horizon to be a little hazy this past week. As with many other parts of the country, we enjoyed several amazing sunrises and sunsets that resulted from the smoke in the jetstream. Thankfully the air cleared after a couple days and allowed for beautiful weather most of last week. Liz’s family was up and we snuck away for a couple pontoon rides to enjoy lake life at its best!

Smoky-Sunrise

Pontoon-Ride

Posted in ,

Pool Day

Posted on by

Relaxing at its finest! I took this picture a couple weeks back and wanted to share for all of you who are already anticipating next year’s vacation at Half Moon Trail.  We have had wonderful weather this summer, and many days have been like the one pictured, hot and sunny, and perfect for a dip in the pool!

Pool-Day

Posted in

A new birthday to celebrate!

Posted on by

Our little family has grown!   Much to my (Liz’s) surprise (I was CONVINCED the baby was a boy), our precious little Mary Kate (we’ll call her by both names) was born on Thursday evening, August 6th, at 8:05 pm.  She weighed in at 8 lbs. 4 oz. and is a chunky little babe.

We brought Mary Kate home on Friday afternoon, and she made her debut during the pool contest.  She is extremely loved by Mabel, and we just adore her mushy little self.

Mary-Kate-2Mary-Kate-3 Mary-Kate-4Mary-Kate-1

Posted in

Gardens

Posted on by

Our gardeners hard at work…;) We are very thankful for these ladies and all they do for the gardens. The gardens are in there prime this time of summer and look amazing! Special thanks to mom for all the hard work that she has done over the years in designing and building the gardens. We are working on learning how to keep up the gardens, but are thankful that mom is still heavily involved until we can grow our own green thumb!

Gardeners-#1Gardeners-#3 Gardeners-#2
Gardeners-#4 Gardeners-#5 Gardeners-#6

Photo credit to: Justin @ Bees-Knees Photo

Posted in , ,

Sunset After Storm

Posted on by

We recently had an evening thunderstorm and an amazing sunset soon followed. Michaela (my younger sister who is much more capable with the camera than myself…) hopped into a kayak and snapped a few photo’s to share. Thanks Kayla!

Kayak-3

Kayak-2

Kayak-1

 

Posted in ,

Craft Activity

Posted on by

Summer is definitely in full swing and we are thoroughly enjoying our first summer as resort owners! The craft has been a real hit this year again, thanks to Dad who has spent countless hours making special “walking stick” stands and a custom work bench. Here are some action shots of  guests hard at work on their sticks. A big thank you to Heather Steffel for the photo’s.

Craft-Activity-1

Craft-Activity-3Craft-Activity-2

 

Posted in

BBQ Dinner

Posted on by

An entourage of help arrived the Monday before Memorial Day weekend to help us tie up loose ends before officially opening the resort for the season.  We were so blessed by everyone’s hard work and long hours they put in.  There was sanding, painting, power-washing, planting, cleaning, repairing, and lots of laughter that happened between sunrise and when we all fell into bed each night.  We couldn’t have done it without all of the help.

To thank everyone, we hosted a “We Are SO Thankful for You!” barbeque the evening before we opened.   Pictured below are many, but not all, of the wonderful helpers, many of whom have come for many, many years!

BBQ-Dinner

Posted in

Ice Cream

Posted on by

Ice cream is here! We have been getting a lot of deliveries lately, but this one is more fun than the rest. We start the year off with about 60 gallons, but typically go through between 40-50 gallons a week in the peak summer months. It’s been a long time Half Moon Trail Tradition, and we have no intentions of stopping!

Ice-Cream-#1

Ice-Cream-#3

Posted in

Coffee Mugs

Posted on by

Just in! We received these in the mail yesterday and are excited to offer them to our guests this summer. They are hand thrown pottery mugs from a place in St. Paul, MN. They did an excellent job with the design and they turned out even better than we had hoped. These will be a perfect fit for a steaming hot cup of joe out by the lake!

Coffee-Mug-#2
Coffee-Mug-#1

Posted in