On the Lake

We finally got out on the water and did a little fishing.  Mainly we were giving the boat a shake down cruise.  After the boat traveled 4,000 miles and hadn't been used for two years the motor started right up.  The only issue we have is we lost a little plastic tube for the live well so until we get another one we can't use the livewell to keep fish alive.  I guess we will have to be quick and catch fish and get them to shore and filleted before they get stiff. 

We didn't get very far out on the water because we didn't have much gas.  We don't like to tow the boat with a lot of fuel on board because it adds a lot of weight.  We did get to see the campground from the water and we saw one cabin and one old beaver house.  The lake is shaped like a big H and we are in the upper right of the H and we have only seen a small part of the upper right part so far.  It is a very popular fishing lake and the boat launch is jammed on the weekends.  People can camp on the islands and leave their vehicles and boat trailers at the launch.  There really isn't enough parking for either boat trailers or vehicles.

Fishing Opener on Whiteface

The campground was pretty much full this past weekend for fishing opener.  If your lucky enough to have a campsite on the water than you can have your boat on shore by your site.  The fishing was a little slow but most people caught something.  One guy showed us a picture on his phone of a 10lb walleye that he caught and released.  Jim is ready to go out and try to catch it himself and get pictures.  That size fish usually isn't the best eating so pictures are good.  The DNR law enforcement guy was on the lake.  He came to the office for some coffee at the end of his shift and said he was surprised at how many people were fishing without a license.  He wrote out quite a few tickets. 

I was going to take pictures of the sunset on the lake when I spotted something swimming in the water toward me.   Here it was a beaver.  I watched and saw another one coming toward the first one.  I followed them along the shore hoping to get a picture when they came out of the water.  I got back to a little cove and there was a third beaver.  They didn't get out of the water but continued down the shore looking for tasty trees. 

Ice Out

It was nice to see the ice melt away quickly once we got settled in for the summer.  The breeze coming off of the ice was cold and we have become winter wimps.  Opening of fishing is this coming weekend and we should be fairly busy.  Now its a matter of the lake level coming up.  Whiteface is a reservoir and Minnesota Power raises and lowers the water level to meet their needs for power.  We helped put the docks in but at the moment only small boats will be able to launch. 

We have been working hard to get all the campsites cleaned up -- leaves blown and firepits cleaned and trees trimmed.  The campsites have paved parking for vehicles and RV's and some have electricity.  Water is available at the water pumps around the campground and there are pit toilets but no showers.   They allow some people to camp for the season and some sites can be rented for a month at a time.  Otherwise you are allowed to stay up to two weeks.  You have to reserve sites through the rec.gov website.  We don't take reservations at the campground so there is no phone to answer which is nice.