Snow! We had a light dusting on the ground this morning and by this evening there was 4-5 inches in many places. It is the second snow fall we have gotten here at the resort but the first only lasted overnight. It might be a little pre-mature for actual snow shoeing but we were anxious to start cross country skiing so I was out packing the trail today, and Liz actually made it out on skis just before dark. I included a few extra photos, taken from the lodge deck, during the morning snowfall.
Usually by this time in the fall, all of the docks have been in for quite some time. We typically wait until right before the ground freezes to pull them in so the docks don’t sit on the lawn and kill the grass. Dad and I were thankful for such a beautiful day yesterday to finally get this done. It’s not too often that we only have to wear a long sleeve t-shirt on November 10th!
Many of the docks we simply pull in using the skid-loader, but we have three longer docks that are a little more challenging. Throughout the summer, their wheels/supports get driven down in the soft lake bottom and require some extra ingenuity to get them out. We use bottle jacks to lift the posts from mud, and then float the entire dock into shore using the swim raft.
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!
Thanks again, Michaela, for the great pictures!
One of our guests enjoying a picture perfect morning on the lake. These types of mornings, where the fog slowly lifts and the lake is like glass, are one of my favorite parts of living up north.
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!
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!
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!
Sunday wasn’t the warmest day we have had this spring, but it felt great to get out and spend some time outside as a family. We packed up a quick tin foil dinner and headed over to my parents “farm” that is about 15 minutes away. The farm isn’t a working farm anymore, but is an old farmstead that my parents own about 75 acres on. It’s a unique piece of property that contains fields and several different types of woods, including the dense pines that you see in the picture. Our family enjoys hiking and hunting on the land when we get the chance. Notice that Liz is getting prepped for summer with her s’more!
Having a never-ending project list is one of my favorite parts of resort life! We have jumped headfirst into several of them, and I recently took full advantage of my brother Nate being home for the weekend. We worked on replacing the water heater for the three lodge units and installed a new water softening system for the lodge. There has been more than one occurrence that Liz has asked, “do you have any idea what time it is?” Time flies when you’re having fun!
The cracked corn was piled high in the squirrel feeder this morning and Mabel paused during her play to watch the squirrels fill their cheeks with the feed. We have a slew of squirrels that skitter around the yard and up and down the trees that we enjoy watching. It is especially entertaining when they try to eat out of the squirrel-proof feeder which has perches that collapse under their weight.
Ryan enjoyed a brisk morning ski on fresh snow! The couple inches of hard-packed snow on the lake have been great for skate skiing, but there haven’t been many opportunities for traditional skiing this winter with the lack of fresh snow. It was a welcome sight yesterday when the flakes stared coming down. It was below zero this morning, but the wind whipped snow on the lake was beautiful, especially with a couple of sun dogs to top it all off.
Hello from the new owners of Half Moon Trail! Our first week started out with frozen septic lines, and leaky water heaters, followed by two days of a flu bug for our little family. Despite the exciting start, we are happy to be settling in and are enjoying our daily Resorting 101 classes with Professor Dave Ahrendt. We are hopeful for a passing grade and our graduation into Resorting 202…
Here are a few highlights of our week:
Mabel enjoyed her first chore of taking out the trash with daddy in the golf cart.
Liz got a taste of small town living when she had to go inside the country store to pay for her gas. She enjoyed a nice chat with the locals.
Ryan is excited that his new office view includes bird feeders and frosty mornings.
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