Eagle River Derby Weekend

Carrie and I left for the BCR around noon on Friday the 15th. Cameran was going to hang out with Grandma and Grandpa for the weekend. We were going to make a quick pit stop at the cottage and then head for the Eagle River Derby races for Friday night. We made it to Eagle River around 5:30 or so and quickly learned that the credit card machine was down. Off we went on a walk to find an ATM to get some cash. 30 minutes later we arrive back and are able to get in. The races themselves were great. I was pleasantly surprised at how many people came out along with the speed and pace of the races. The snowcross was great but the real races were on the oval. In all we watched about 20 different races and left around 10pm for the BCR.



Saturday we woke and got ready to go snowmobiling. We were planning on heading west to Price county for the day and then head north from there making a giant loop. On our way to Price county, I decided to stop and visit with my dad who was fishing on Lake Nokomis in a fishing derby. Just as we arrived, he had caught a monster northern.





The fish measured 36.25" and was a giant. We went to register it at the tent and there was a roar as we entered. He was proud of that one for sure and ended up winning the tournament with it.

From our pit stop there, we headed for the Willow Flowage area. I was uneasy as we past my dad's house to find that the trails that I am accustom to running fast had all been plowed because they are logging back there somewhere. Eventually we got to Reel em Inn and took a break. From there, we crossed Willow Lake and into Price County. The trails there were in great shape and we found a nice lunch spot at the NorthernAire right on the trail. After lunch, we headed west more to the Smith Rapids Covered Brigde.





We snapped a few pictures and then headed north into Iron county. From there, the trails seemed to fall apart. We ended up getting some gas in Mercer and then heading south on trail 17. This is notoriously a bad one and today was not different. There were bare sections, rocks, and everything else you can imagine wrong with the trail. Once we got to Minocqua, we stopped at the yacht club for a beer and ended up talking with some people from Illinois for a bit.





From there, we headed home to the BCR. Our original plan was to ride to dinner but the Bearskin trail had other things in mind as it to was in horrible shape from the warm temps and tons of traffic. We got home, changed and went to dinner at 10point. Back home to relax.



Sunday we got up and loaded up the truck to go fishing. I ended up picking Sand Lake which is a small lake near the cottage that we swim in quite a bit. We did end up catching about 20 gills, but none of them had any size to them at all. They all went back. We packed up our stuff, went back to the cottage, and started for home but not before a pitstop out by my dads shanty to check what he was up to.

A great weekend of just Carrie and I.

Fishing Weekend

Bob and I headed to the BCR on Saturday January 9th for a day of fishing Lake Minocqua. We arrived about 11 or so and were finally on the water about 11:45. We had setup on the north side where we had fished many time before and had good luck.



The fishing was slow for the most part until about 300 or so when the perch started biting. We had about a 1.5 hour bite and then it dried up from there. We stayed on the lake until about 800pm and had a good time. The Frabill tent works great with our heater to stay warm enough to fish in your t-shirt if you wanted to. We packed up and headed to Ten Point for dinner and then back home to bed.



Sunday we got going to headed to Deakin Shores for breakfast and then onto Little Bearskin Lake to try that for a few hours. We did manage to catch about 10 perch but nothing larger than my thumb. We packed up early and headed home.

Christmas Vacation

Wow - where to start...

Saturday December 26th, Cam, Carrie and I left from West Bend for the cottage. We arrived around noon or so and got everything unpacked and turned up the heat. Cam layed down for a nap. We needed groceries so we headed to Minocqua to walmart. By the time we got home, it was time for dinner and bed. On sunday, we rose and went off on the snowmobiles for a bit. We had promised Cam that we would go to a bar and get a candy bar if he went with us. We did a little treasure hunting for him on the trail but came up empty. We stopped at the Birch Lake Bar for a soda and a candy bar for the boy. Back home for dinner.





Monday, Bob arrived and was to watch Cam for a few days so we could go off snowmobiling. Carrie and I left around 11 with the destination of Land O Lakes for the night. We stopped off in Sayner at the Sayner Pub for lunch and continued on ariving around dinner time.






We ate at Black Oak and headed back to LOL for the night. Tuesday we left around 8 and stopped right away at Leif's for breakfast. We went straight north stopping for lunch in Twin Lakes, MI at Parkview. The service was REALLY slow even though there were not that many people in there. We headed back down going down through Bergland to Lake Gogebic. We stopped at the Gogebic lodge for a hot chocolate and headed again south. We had dinner at Bent's Camp which consisted of soup as we had such a late lunch. Back to LOL for sleep again. Wednesday we were going again by about 830 and left for home. We made a few wrong turns but made it eventually and played with Cam the rest of the day. We built a sledding hill off the deck which consisted of 3 turns and shooting into the driveway. Along with Cam, my two nephews really enjoyed the hill.



Thursday we were going to fish for the day. We loaded up and headed for Lake Katherine. We sat there most of the day until about 330 with very little luck at all. The lake was really slushy on top make it difficult to find even a decent spot for the portable. We managed. We played some WII and watched some TV until we went up to the rental that Danny had for the weekend. There we ate a steak dinner with the entire family. There was 15 of us for dinner. Soon after, we headed back to our place for more sleep.





Friday we woke and got a late start. Bob and I were going to go fishing while Carrie and Cam played around the house. Bob and I did not have much luck fishing at all. We ended the day with only 2 fish total. Carrie and Cam and all the rest of them played and played. When we got back, Carrie left to go and pick up Donna in Wausau. When they got back, I made a few pizzas. We played some WII and that was about it.

Saturday we woke to -21 outside. It warmed fast with the sun and by 10, we were heading to the snowmobile races put on by the local snowmobile club. It was a good time with friends and family although rather cold at times. We headed back to our place and had everyone over for dinner. It was a good food, family, and friends. On the way out, Danny decided that he was going to sled back to his rented cottage from my deck in only his underwear. Mind you it was -17 at the time. Anyway, he did it and we have the pictures to prove it.



Sunday was a day of packing up and heading home. It was a good week of vacation and we love spending time up north especially when everyone else is there also.