Ash River

We took a pontoon ride with the other two workamper couples.  We went to the Ash River.  The Ash River dumps into Namakan right at the border between Lake Kabetogama and Namakan.  We used to stay at a campground on the Ash River about twenty years ago.  There are also several resorts and a houseboat rental business on the river.  We stopped at a resort called Ashkanam.  They have a bar and restaurant right on the bank of the river and a nice dock.  

The ride over to the Ash River was a little rough with some pretty good wind but we were fine because we were going with the wind.  We lucked out coming back because the wind had died down by then.  It is a very nice perk to be able to use any of the rental boats when they are not being rented by guests.  We just have to pay for the gas.  Unfortuanately, now our boat is in the shop -- the motor needs work- and all of the resort boats have been rented for the week so no fishing for now.  We are hoping the motor problem is simple and covered by the warranty.   

Ellsworth Sculpture Gardens

We went over to Ellsworth Sculpture Gardens.  It is located on the northside of the lake.  You can only get the the gardens by boat.  The park service has a tour boat that makes a stop here and have a staff person on site to help you understand the work that went into the place.  The gardens were created in the 40's by Mr Ellsworth who loved to carve stone.  He carved many different shapes out of the rocks around his property.   There are rocks that look like animals and others that look like furniture made for the Flintstones.  The flower gardens are not tended anymore so there are few flowers but you can still see where all the flower beds were. 
It is a large area to walk through and the paths go up and down and wind around and at every turn you see something different.  Some of the sculptures are hard to decifer with the weather wearing away at them.  The bugs were bad when we were there so we had to keep moving but it would be nice to go back in the fall and spend more time.

Water Birds

We've been fishing our little hearts out.  Some days we catch a few fish and on the hot days with no wind we cruise the lakes.  We have seen all kinds of wildlife cruising around.  Lots of pelicans but according to the park ranger they don't nest here.  The pelicans that hang around here are immature males not ready to mate yet.  The other ducks we see a lot of are mergansers like the ones on the rock.  We also see a lot of golden eye ducks - they have dark heads with a bright "golden" eye. 

We are enjoying our work.  Saturdays are the toughest day cleaning cabins and sprucing up the grounds but the other three days we work are pretty easy.  We just help folks with their boats and clean fish. 

We saw the northern lights for the first time last night.  We are hoping tonight they will be even better.   They didn't have much color just a light green and only danced a little bit.  The solar flare/sunspot activity isn't at its peak yet so they may get better.each night for a few nights.

Voyager's National Park Campsite

We checked out a few campsites that are on the islands out in Lake Kabetogama.  This one was on one of the Grassy Islands.  It was very nice with a grill, picnic table and food locker (to keep the bears from getting your food) and also a nice tent pad in the grass.  This site was nice because you could sit out on the picnic table and catch a breeze which helps keep the bugs off.   The other thing that most camping sites have is a wilderness toilet.  It's an outhouse without the house.  You don't need the house because these are all in the woods at least a hundred feet from the campsite and very private  -- but bring your own toilet papet.

Our resort is called Northern Lights Resort and Outfitters.  The only outfitting we do is rent canoes and kayaks to those who want to go camp on the islands for a few days or a week or two.  We don't have much else that you would need to actually camp.  You need to bring your own tent, sleeping bags, stove, food, etc.  There used to be a guy who had an actual outfitting business on the lake but he retired and no one else was interested in the business.  Its too bad because we get a lot of requests for this kind of service. 

Around the Resort

We had a nest of baby robins next to us.   They grew up very fast and were gone from the nest the day after I took this picture.  There are more nests around the lodge with one full of flycatchers and another robin nest.  There are so many birds around the resort and in the woods all around us that they make quite a racket in the morning but its a nice way to wake up. 

The resort has 12 cabins and the one in the picture is called Teton.  It was completely remodeled over the winter.  They had to keep one back bedroom in order to remodel it otherwise the codes have changed and they wouldn't be able to rebuild in the same place.   The guests who have stayed here in the past have all been really impressed with how nice the "new" cabin is.  It has a loft and big open living and kitchen area with a nice gas fireplace.  It also has beautiful granite countertops and the stove is in the kitchen island.  It has a screened in porch as well as a deck that wraps around half of it.  It would be a beautiful lake home.