John & Mona's Blog

Fire on Ice 2012

2012-02-12T17:40:00.001-06:00

We ended up getting there late but Fire on Ice is happening again this year. They switched from Cecil Bay to the County Park area on Shawano Lake I assume to coincide with the famous Figure 8 Musky Club Fishing Tournament this weekend. The landing to access the contest appears to be better on the other side of the lake. The Fishing Tournament has a pretty good draw by itself.

As you can see – the number of cars in the races that were left when we finally arrived was slim but they still gave it there all.

John & Mona's Blog

Snowmobile Race

2012-02-12T17:14:00.001-06:00

Races took place at the Red River area just North of Dykesville on the Bay of Green Bay on February 11. The temperatures were in the low single digits and and the wind chill was minus digits (Sub-zero). There was a nip in the air…

Granddaughter Miranda on sled # 65 participated in her first snowmobile races over the weekend. Her friend Nick posed for a shot on a classic sled # 19.

Miranda’s first run hit 61 mile per hour while her last run topped out at 91. Nick, I assume not on the vintage sled but on his racing sled had a high speed of 101 which was the fastest speed of the day. Nick’s parents run Simonar Sports Inc. in Luxemburg, WI. There was a little bit of tragedy that followed the race when Miranda and Nick decided to take a run after the race had ended. For some reason Nick wiped out his sled and ended up in the hospital over night. At this time everything appears to be OK.

Christmas Eve 2011

2012-01-01T09:33:00.000-06:00

Corey, Tracy and Miranda came up for Christmas Supper and the exchange of gifts at our house on Christmas Eve again this year. Since John normally has the camera in his hands he took some pictures for our photo albums. He had the tripod ready but forgot to get a shot of the entire group at once. (Maybe next time?)

John’s Wooden Pens #1

2012-01-01T09:00:00.001-06:00

I had a couple requests from people to see some of the pens I’ve made over the last several months. This is most of what I’ve done so far. I would guess there should be over 40 different types of wood.

#	Type of Wood	Origin
1	Teak (1816)	India or Malaysia
2	Taboti	S African Lowveld or Swaziland
3	Rosewood (1832)	Honduras
4	Zebra Wood (1828)	Africa
5	Curly Cherry (1806)	USA
6	Purple Heart (1809)	South Africa
7	Bloodwood	Rockwell
8	Bocote (1831)	South America
9	Red Oak	From Eugene L. Durben
10	Yellow Heart (1829)	South America
11	Bloodwood (1826)	Sourth America
12	Coyate (1813)	Central America
13	Koa Wood	Hawaii (Harvey Neverman Sr. 1982?)
14	Iroko (1800)	West Africa
15	Zebra Wood (1828)	Africa
16	Paduck Wood (1808)	Africa
17	Pink Ivory	Mozambique, Zimbabwe and South Africa
18	Swiss Pear Wood (1830)	USA & Europe
19	Shedua (1833)	Western Equatorial Africa
20	Olive Wood	East Africa
21	Honduras Mahogany (1821)	Honduras
22	Koa Wood	Hawaii (Harvey Neverman Sr. 1982?)
23	Wenge (1823)	Africa
24	Afromosia (1804)	Mozambique

Click on Photo to enlarge

John’s Wooden Pens #2

2012-01-01T08:53:00.001-06:00

#	Type of Wood	Origin
25	Paduck Wood	Central Africa
26	Zebra Wood	West Africa
27	Hedge Apple	from a line fence in Central Illinois
28	Mopani	Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Northern Province of South Africa
29	Curly Pyinma	Indochina and extending into Indonesia and the Philippines
30	Butternut	from Eugene L. Durben
31	Walnut	Harv Neverman Jr
32	Olive Wood	East Africa
33	Dark Walnut Burl	GRB
34	Imbuya	(Brazil)
35	Black Wood	Africa or Australia
36	Cherry	Eugene L. Durben
37	Spanish Cedar (1815)	Spain
38	Spalted Maple	Eugene L. Durben
39	Maple Burl	Eugene L. Durben
40	Mahogany	GRB
41	Sapele (1810)	(Central Africa)
42	Goncalo Alives 1803	Central Africa
43	Lacewood (1827)	Australia
44	Bubinga (1805)	South America
45	Grenadillo (1802)	South America
46	Antique Heart Pine (1818)	USA This Antique Heart Pine was cut from a support beam removed from a 150 year old barn in Vermont.
47	Aromatic Cedar (1819)	USA
48	Koa Wood	Hawaii (Harvey Neverman Sr. 1982?)

Click on Photo to enlarge

John’s Wooden Pens #3

2012-01-01T08:47:00.001-06:00

#	Type of Wood	Origin
49	Hedge Apple	From Harv Neverman Jr (ILL)
50	Oak	Habitat for Humanity Resale Shop
51	Blood Wood (1826)	South America
52	Paduck (1808)	Africa
53	Rosewood	Honduras?
54	Rosewood	Honduras?
55	Cocobolo	Central America (Rockwell Lg pc)
56	Wormy Chestnut (1817)	USA
57	Cherry	Eugene L. Durben
58	Maple Burl	from E.L. Durben
59	Paduck Wood	Central Africa
60	Mesquite	Mike Durben (TX)
61	Red Oak	E.L. Durben
62	Curly Maple (1807)	USA
63	Santos Mahogany (1814)	(Brazil)
64	Cherry	E.L. Durben
65	Aromatic Cedar	Woodcrafters GRB
66	Butternut	E.L. Durben
67	Apple Wood	From the Green Bay Post Office before employee parking lot was put in - 1984
68	Aromatic Cedar	Woodcrafters GRB
69	Oak	Habitat for Humanity Resale Shop
70	Koa Wood	Hawaii (Harvey Neverman Sr. 1982?)
71	Oak	Habitat for Humanity Resale Shop
72	Walnut	Harv Jr. ILL?

Click on Photo to enlarge

John’s Wooden Pens #4

2012-01-01T08:39:00.001-06:00

#	Type of Wood	Origin
73	Teak?	Wood from the trim off our old Charbroil gas grill
74	Walnut	Habitat for Humanity Resale Shop
75	Rosewood (Predrilled 9/16)
76	Honduras Mahogany (1821)	Honduras
77	Cherry (1820)	USA
78	Goncalo Alives 1803	Central Africa
79	Mesquite	Mike Durben (TX)
80	Lacewood (1827)	Australia
81	Lacewood (1827)	Australia
82	Bloodwood (1826)	South America
83	Bloodwood (1826)	South America
84	Red Heart Wood	? Rockler
85	Peruvian Walnut (1822)	Peru
86	Tulip Wood	Rockler
87	Black Palm	Rockler
88	Jobillo	Guatemala
89	Bocote	Central & South America

Click on photo to enlarge

Christmas Day

2011-12-25T07:22:00.001-06:00

Getting ready to visit the family by my Mother’s house.

Happy Holidays.

Merry Christmas

2011-12-18T08:49:00.001-06:00

We celebrated the Neverman Christmas yesterday by Mona’s Sister in Manitowoc. We had a good time. Mona got her quick fix of the Monopoly Card Game.

Photos to Follow when I get a little time.

Special Update

2011-11-12T09:45:00.000-06:00

Mona mentioned to me last night that my Sister-in-Law reminded her that I hadn’t updated the site here in quite some time. This posting is specially for her.

Here is a photo of Mona cutting the grass for the last time in 2011. It was taken about two weeks ago. I said it’s the last time this year because right now, most of the lawn is covered with SNOW! The next time might be me on the 4-wheeler removing the snow from our driveway?

Last Open Water Fishing in 2011?

2011-10-18T17:56:00.000-05:00

We went out fishing on Shawano Lake just over a week ago. You couldn’t beat the weather compared to this week. Near 80 degrees on October 9 – can’t beat that.

Mona caught this Largemouth Bass on a spinnerbait after a half hour or so.

If she can do it – I can do it too. I think hers was a little bigger though (not by much). Both fish were released.

A Few of the Turkeys We Saw A Couple Weeks Ago

2011-10-18T17:35:00.000-05:00

As we took a ride around the Lake a couple weeks ago we came across theses Turkeys. They didn’t seem to be too bothered by our presence as they slowly walked away and crossed the highway in to the woods.

Temple Bay Lodge on Eagle Lake – Ontario (July 2011) part 1

2011-08-05T16:06:00.000-05:00

(All photos left to right) Mona took this photo of John jigging with a round jighead and minnow on the Barber Pole Reef. This is the last fish we need to go home with our limit of Walleye. Now we had to switch over to try to catch Northern Pike or Perch.

Mona checks the boat line to make sure it is secured properly so we don’t loose it. You can’t tell by the water in this photo but the wind is blowing pretty strong that day. Once the boat is secured Mona comes to the center of this small island. We assume it has a name but we named it “Moose Island” because we ate lunch there with some friends we were traveling with back in 1996. We found some fresh signs of Moose that he left behind. We have yet to see a life Moose up there after 5 trips to Ontario.

Mona is taking a break from fishing as we slowly motor around the Bay where the Lodge is located. Temple Bay Lodge as seen from Eagle Lake.

On our last day of fishing we had a dock hand take this photo before we took all of our gear up to the cabin. One of the meals we had for supper one evening. We actually had steak two night we were there.

The waitress caught this picture. We shared our table for meals with the same guests all week. There was a couple from the Wisconsin Rapids area and a couple of guys that got picked up in Appleton.

View from the end of the Bar going toward the office, store, and dining area. One of the walleye we brought home.

Mona poses with one of the walleyes she caught. This one appears to be a keeper. Mona measuring another fish on the board which shows us the slot sizes to keep.

John checks out Facebook in the Lodge on our laptop. Mona didn’t forget her books as she’s caught here reading while sitting on the porch of our cabin.

Temple Bay Lodge on Eagle Lake – Ontario (July 2011) part 2

2011-08-05T15:56:00.000-05:00

Sunset photo taken from the porch of our cabin. The dock area as seen from the balcony on the Lodge. Naturally our boat was on the far left side about as far as you could walk out.

Inside the cabin. Two rooms (bathroom in the back) was plenty when all of the meals are included with the trip. John holds up one of the Northern Pike we brought back.

This Northern Pike that Mona caught was just in the slot size that had to be returned to the water. The next photo she holds a walleye that didn’t get so lucky.

Mona was bartender here as she makes up a couple of Whisky Old Fashion Sours. Great touch before heading to the dining room for supper. One of our neighbors from the Milwaukee area took this photo of us on our front porch. (Why is my drink darker than hers?)

John pulls in a Walleye as the guide looks on John caught and released a Musky. It’s the first Musky we caught in 5 trips to Canada. Little guy was only about 13 inches long though.

Our guide caught here cleaning fish for shore lunch. The rest of the meal is already being cooked as he takes time out to do this. He has his secret egg and breading mixture that he coats the fish with before it goes in the frying pan.

The fish being cooked to a golden brown and finally dinner is served. A nice slab of onion tops off the bread as we served this buffet of food. There are some things that I didn’t have room on my plate for.

Mona finds a chair along the shoreline to eat her dinner. This little squirrel even got his share of the left-overs as the guide was packing up all his cooking materials. This little guy is stranded on an Island probably from winter so I’ll bet he enjoys it when people stop to visit him. Everything was gone when Mona and I went back the next day to use the bathroom there.

DURBEN REUNION 2011… another one in the books

2011-07-24T08:44:00.000-05:00

The 2011 Reunion has come and gone. Turn out was pretty good. The weather was hot with a few rain drops every once in a while but it looked like everyone enjoyed themselves. The food was good and plentiful. (Grilling was done by Chef Doug.) The event was sponsored by Toni Durben this year at her house in Darboy.

Once I get more time, I’ll try to post more photos. If anyone else wants to share some of their photos, please get them to me. I’m sure there’s a lot of good ones out there.

(The John M. Durben Family will host the event in 2012.)

Reminder - 2011 DURBEN FAMILY REUNION

2011-06-26T07:44:00.000-05:00

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Where: W5641 Michelle Way, Appleton, WI 54915

Noon Picnic Dinner: Bring a dish to pass (hamburgers, brats, hot dogs, chicken breast furnished by Douglas) BOYB (Bring your own Beverage).

Plates, forks, knives, spoons will also be furnished.

Relatives from Texas, Florida, California and possibly Ohio (Mitizie is not sure if she will come) will be in attendance. Everyone is looking forward to a GREAT get-together.

Please inform members of your family (brothers, sisters, children) .

Photos from 2010…

Whole Bunch of Pictures from the 2nd Neverman Family Reunion (2011)

2011-06-07T17:44:00.000-05:00

As promised here are a few more photos from the big event. If anyone else has some they’d like posted – get them to us so we can do so. Of course you will get credit for your efforts. The photos may look pretty small so click on them to make them bigger…

Some of the people were taken up with the Monopoly Card game. Actually playing until 11:30 P.M. and starting again in the early A.M. hours. Looks like there may be a new tradition? (Heard there’s been a few card games purchased since then.)

Saturday evening we started going through some of the slides from Hawaii back when Mona and Walter were young. The fourth photo up on the left are Harvey and Bernice; too bad the slide show had to end early after the projector malfunctioned, it would have been great to see all of the photos because all the rest of us that weren’t on that trip in (69?) will perhaps never be able to see them now.

Although we were still only going together – I remember sending Mona off with her parents at the Airport in Manitowoc.

The next reunion date has been set for next year.

Chippewa Flowage #2 - 2011

2011-06-01T18:32:00.000-05:00

John caught and released a small Northern Pike midway through the week. The weather hasn’t been cooperating this year like it normally has. Between the rain and thunderstorms and wind – we’ve been spending time watching TV.

Small Northern Pike-released.

Mona and Brew as we spend a little extra time in the cabin because of the weather – We are fare weather fishermen.

2011 Neverman Family Reunion

2011-05-29T18:14:00.001-05:00

May 21th is when we headed down to Albany, WI for the 2nd annual Neverman Family Reunion.

Here we are sitting on the shit hill (mound) for the second time in two yearsw. If you look at last years photo – you’ll see that some of the faces have changed. (While the others just got older looking.) More photos to follow.
Click on photo to enlarge.

Mona Catches a Crappie at the Big Chip

2011-05-29T18:04:00.000-05:00

We've been staying at the Chippewa Pines since 1998 and have really enjoyed the place.

Got in yesterday at about 1:30 or so. By the time we got unpacked it was 2:30. We went fishing today and didn't run out of gas yet.

Chippewa Flowage–2011 #1

2011-05-29T14:03:00.000-05:00

Fishing is going to be limited for Mona with her arm in a sling, but that doesn’t mean she can’t catch anything.

This one is too small for the frying pan but we did get more. We ended up with 14 crappies today. Our size limit was 10 inches so we think we got over 4 meals for the two of us.

Short Trip to Rochester

2011-05-17T17:05:00.000-05:00

Got to Rochester, NH two days ago and it hasn’t stopped raining yet. The weatherman is saying they won’t have sunshine for 5 days yet. Great weather.

Leaving for home at 5:30 tomorrow morning. Hoping we’re not fogged in.

Here is a photo out my hotel room window. Note the nice cloudy sky. The silver building in the foreground is the Rocker Diner (Restaurant). It’s a 50’s era establishment that serve a pretty good breakfast. The Shell Station in the background is our liquor store where we buy a six-pack of beer to take back to the room.

John’s New Hobby

2011-04-30T17:30:00.000-05:00

John has been getting setup to make wooden pens for about 4 or 5 months now and finally got around to starting his new hobby. The first pen went to Mona, the 2nd to Tracy and the 3rd to Miranda.

Since then he got a couple ahead for a while. Eventually he wants to sell them at craft sales or on the internet.

Different species of wood included in his pens are Black Walnut, Zebra Wood, Olive Wood, Spalted Maple, Koa Wood (from Hawaii), Padauk, Black Wood, Cherry, Mesquite, Aromatic Cedar, Hedge Apple (the yellow one), Spalted Birch, Mahogany, Apple, Soft Maple and Mopani.

All the woods are natural colored, there was no stain applied to any of the pens. Not all pens are pictured above.

Mona Taking it Easy

2011-04-30T17:14:00.000-05:00

Mona takes some time off playing games on the laptop after shoulder surgery less than a week ago.

Happy Easter!!!

2011-04-24T09:30:00.000-05:00

Mona, Tracy and Miranda color Easter Eggs on Good Friday.

Lots of “Deviled Eggs” comin’ up

Paul & Leonora Durben Family Reunion 2011

2011-03-06T10:01:00.000-06:00

MARK YOUR CALENDAR NOW…

I received the following information from Toni Durben regarding this year’s reunion. Her Family and her will be hosting the event this year.

The date is: Saturday, July 23rd, 2011

Place is: W5642 Michelle Way, Appleton, WI

Time: 12:00 noon

She will provide a hot sandwich, so bring a dish to pass, plastic ware, plates, and something to drink. Sandwiches are also welcome. Hope to see the entire family attending.

Additional information will be posted as it is received.

Picketing in Madison

2011-03-06T09:25:00.000-06:00

On Saturday, February 26th Mona and I went down to Madison to support the Wisconsin Public Workers. I had received a call from APWU National Postal Press Association President, Tony Carobine the preceding day inquiring as to whether Mona and I would like to join him and his wife in the adventure.

(Left) John takes a break after walking around the Capital building several times. (Right) Mona was given a sign from AFSCME. You can see the snow is coming down pretty good.

An adventure it was. There were between 70,000 and 100,000 people filling the sidewalks, the lawn, the streets and the Capital building itself. It was an experience I’ll never forget.

(L-R) John, Mona, Cathy, and Tony

Click on photos to enlarge.

Three Day-er

2011-02-18T17:40:00.000-06:00

Mona and I have a 3 day weekend comin’ up and we hope to get in a little bit of fishing at least one day. That depends though on whether I can get the Ice-Auger started. It probably hasn’t been started in 2-3 years so it might need some coaxing?

Fire on Ice on Shawano Lake–January 9, 2010

2011-01-11T17:53:00.000-06:00

These photos were taken on Sunday, January 9. We weren’t able to stay at the race very long since we had a previous commitment but it’s the largest crowd I remember seeing. I hope to get more photos posted in the future and even have a short movie but also short of time. (You should be able to click on the photos to enlarge them.)

Miranda gets an ear full from Santa

2011-01-08T10:12:00.000-06:00

Miranda got to meet Santa up close and personal at our house on this Christmas Eve however it was too late for her to plead her case for more gifts this year.

Doesn’t Santa look a lot like Mona?

Christmas Eve Night at John and Mona’s

2011-01-08T09:52:00.000-06:00

Christmas Eve 2010 brought Corey, Tracy and Miranda to our house for Supper and then the opening of gifts. It was also a good time to pull out the camera and catch a few of those “Kodak Moments” for the future.

Happy New Year’s to All!

2011-01-01T13:25:00.001-06:00

Here’s wishing you all a Happy and Safe 2011.

It’s Christmas Eve… and we have way too much snow!

2010-12-24T10:33:00.000-06:00

John out plowing snow again. It’s the third time already this year that he’s had to clear the driveway. We have over three months to go yet!

Note: Above left – Shawano Lake in the background; also snow covered with about12 inches of ice and 4 inches of slush for the fishermen that are driving out there.

John & Mona’s 40th Anniversary

2010-12-24T10:23:00.000-06:00

Tracy, Corey and Miranda took us out for our 40th Wedding Anniversary. We went to the Washington Inn in Cecil. Miranda likes those Cheeseburgers.

Cory Durben

2010-12-24T10:16:00.000-06:00

CHRISTMAS AT ARLINGTON CEMETERY

2010-12-11T08:48:00.000-06:00

Rest easy, sleep well my brothers.
Know the line has held, your job is done.
Rest easy, sleep well.
Others have taken up where you fell, the line has held.
Peace, peace, and farewell...

Readers may be interested to know that these wreaths -- some 5,000 -- are donated by the Worcester Wreath Co. of Harrington, Maine. The owner, Merrill Worcester, not only provides the wreaths, but covers the trucking expense as well. He's done this since 1992. A wonderful guy. Also, most years, groups of Maine school kids combine an educational trip to DC with this event to help out. Making this even more remarkable is the fact that Harrington is in one the poorest parts of the state.

There’s One Born Every Minute… (Swan Acre Boat Landing)

2010-11-28T08:34:00.000-06:00

Two days after Thanksgiving and there were two groups of guys out on Shawano Lake on the ice fishing already. By the landing down from our house we saw two guys walking out on the ice with a piece of galvanized pipe which one of them used to punch a hole in the ice. It took about two or three blows and he had his hole ready to start fishing. As he scooped the ice out of the hole with his bare hand, you could see it was only an inch to an inch and a half thick. The guy wasn’t very small and he moved about rather gingerly as not to go through the ice the way it appeared. Mona said they didn’t stay out there long so I assume he could have fallen through? (only three to four feet of water by the dock) or they got sick of it real quick. I know they didn’t catch their limit of fish there that soon.

A second vehicle parked down there later on in the afternoon into the evening. I couldn’t see where he was fishing but I think these guys are really pushing it too soon.

Note: The photo was taken about a half an hour ago from our activity room. There were also three Bald Eagles out on the ice yesterday.

HERE'S A TIP FROM A FRIEND ----

2010-11-21T06:42:00.000-06:00

Much of our clothing, sheets, towels, etc. now comes from companies outside of America. Even the most expensive stores sell clothing from China, Indonesia, etc. The bed bugs are coming in on the clothing from these and other foreign countries.

Professionals recommend that if you buy any new clothing, even underwear and socks, sheets, towels, etc., that you put them in your clothes dryer for at least 20 minutes. The heat will kill the bugs and their eggs. DO NOT PURCHASE CLOTHES AND HANG THEM IN THE CLOSET without first washing, or at least putting in the dryer.

It doesn't matter what the price range is of the clothes, or if the outfit comes from the most expensive store in your town. They still get shipments from foreign countries and the bugs can come in any new clothes.

(P.S. We didn't have that problem when clothes were made in America.)

Last Day Fishing in 2010–Shawano Lake

2010-11-14T12:26:00.001-06:00

We went fishing on Shawano Lake one last time this year on Sunday, November 7. The fish didn’t cooperate but we had fun anyway. (Plus we didn’t have any boat problems this trip for a change.) Mona decided to take it a little easy this day so she brought along a book to keep her busy. Weather was in the 50’s and wasn’t to bad unless we were running the boat at 45 to 50 mph.

John takes a break from casting just to enjoy the last outing of the year. It’s going to be a long cold winter until we can get the boat out again. Monday night the boat went in to get winterized and we picked it up and put it back in the garage for storage on Tuesday night. Note the BP Station in Cecil over John’s left shoulder. That’s the corner of Highway 117 and 22.

Photo of the boat landing and Camp Grounds in Cecil. All of the seasonal campers have been pulled out and put in storage as well. There’s a few seagulls sitting in the calm lake in the foreground. The Washington Inn can be seen on the right side of the photo.

With a sad feeling within us, we decided to hang ‘er up around 3:00 pm or so. We didn’t even see one sign of a fish that day. No strikes at all, and normally you can see the little ones swimming around the boat, especially on a nice sunny day like today. This photo was taken by John as we started pulling up to the Swan Acre Boat Landing. You can make out our house in the background just over the cars and trailers in the center.

Mona's Sandhill Crane Photo

2010-10-18T12:29:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday I had a Fishing Club Meeting at the Walleyes For Tomorrow Office in Fond Du Lac, WI. (About 85 miles from Cecil.) There was some pretty good stretches of fog every once in a while so it was a little tuff to see where we were from time to time. Below is one of the photos that Mona snapped in once area where the fog lifted some. It was taken about midway between Navarino and Black Creek.

Mona caught this photo last Saturday morning.

Sauerkraut 2010 Update

2010-10-13T18:58:00.002-05:00

The white kraut on the left is half fermented. It needs a total of 6 weeks. The kraut on the right was made just over a week ago with two heads of white and one head of red cabbage. We've got 36 quarts of kraut fermenting compared to 17 last year. We just cleaned up the last jar from last year yesterday.

One Way Trip on Shawano Lake on 10/10/2010

2010-10-13T18:38:00.000-05:00

Sunday morning we got up and made our breakfast as usual. Hooked up the boat to the van and took off to Cecil to fill the boat with gas before heading out to Shawano Lake. We didn't want to run out of gas like we did a few outings ago while we were out by the Island. We got on the lake shortly after 8:30 or so. (Click on photos to enlarge)

Mona caught and released this 5 inch Largemouth while fishing for Bluegills.

While heading down the outlet toward the river we spotted a pair of Eagles.

A short time later we came upon another pair of Eagles. One of them flew away before we could get a picture of them.

We fished for about 3 hours for Bass and Northern with little success. Being somewhat bored and needing to put a couple meals of fish in our freezer we decided to fish for Bluegills. Between the two of us, we caught about 20 of them but nothing with any size worth putting in the livewell.

The decision was made to head over to The Lighthouse Bar near the Airport to hit the rest rooms and get a couple cans of soda since the weather was beginning to warm up a little bit. Once returning to the boat we decided that we would head down the outlet towards downtown Shawano. While motoring towards downtown at a no wake speed, John kept on snapping photos of the fall scenery that surrounded us. By the end of the day he had over 150 photos.

After going as far as we wanted we turned around and ran wide open up to the no wake area a few hundred yards from the bridge we go under to go back towards the lake. All of a sudden the alarm on the motor went off indicating the the motor had over heated on us. John shut the motor of right away so that we wouldn't cause any damage to the motor. We had been traveling through a lot of weeds in the water and the motor probably wasn't getting enough water to cool it properly.

We used the trolling motor again to get us over to the marina right by the bridge and tied up to one of their docks and waited for the motor to cool down so that we could head back home and watch the rest of the Packer Game. The motor wouldn't start after several attempts over a period of time. Here we are nearly 8 miles from our van and boat trailer and we can't get the boat started.

Mona had her cell phone so she called one of our neighbors who was kind enough to pick John up and run him back to our vehicle. The marina had a boat launch, however it is not in the best condition. We got the boat on the trailer after a lot of effort but when we tried to pull the trailer out of the water the front wheels of the van only spun and wouldn't move. We had to push the boat back into the water and move the trailer out of the water a little more. The landing has a drastic 6 inch straight down drop that the trailer tires got stuck on. Now there were no trailer rollers in the water so it was going to be a job getting the boat out. We were lucky that there was a women who stopped to check out the area for fishing and a guy with a jet ski who wanted to launch showed up. After a good amount of effort from the four of us we got the boat on the trailer and this time the van had no problem pulling it out. (The motor started the next day after changing the spark plugs.)

More Rain

2010-09-23T06:37:00.000-05:00

The "Old Weather Man" is telling us we're going to get 2 to 5 inches of rain before this storm front blows over some time tomorrow. Whoopee!

Sure glad it's not snow...

Starting to Look like Fall on Shawano Lake 2010

2010-09-19T17:38:00.000-05:00

We're only three weeks into September and the change in tempuratures and the change of the colors outside is making me think that fall has one foot in the door already. We should have a few days yet before it's official. Below are a couple of photos I took today around the Lake.

Time to Make Some More Sauerkraut

2010-09-19T17:21:00.000-05:00

It's that time of the year again. Time to make some more Sauerkraut. We made 17 quarts last year and we only have one quart left.

Mona pictured here today cleaning and

chuncking the cabbage so that I can grate it on our

mini Cabbage Cutter. It's a little small -

but beats cutting it up with a chef's knife.

We use a big plastic tub to put the kraut in over night.

Here is some of the kraut as we dumped it into the big tub with salt. Yesterday we went to Black Creek (through all the road construction) to get some cabbage. We came home with 9 pretty good sized heads. We wanted to make sure we had enough because we wanted to make more this year than last year. We only grated 5 of the 9 heads and had 43 pounds of kraut. The recipe claims they use a pound per quart so we know we have more than last year.

Tomorrow night (Monday) we will place it in jars and put the lids on tight and let it sit for six weeks. After it has fermented, we dump it all together in the tub again and then pack it back into the cleaned jars with new lids. Throw it in the pressure cooker for the desired amount of time and then we have Sauerkraut.

Another Shawano Lake Large-Mouth

2010-09-18T18:15:00.000-05:00

Of course I'm referring to the fish. Mona caught this nice Large-Mouth Bass last weekend on my favoirte spinner bait by Northland. Note: In case you were wondering - we only do C.P.R. on Bass and other large trophy game fish. This one should still be swimming around in the Lake until it grabs another lure.

The Schwoerer Family 2010

2010-07-16T16:06:00.000-05:00

Mat, Ervin, Lisa and Carl. The Schwoerer's were elected to host the reunion this year and I have to add they did a great job. They picked a great park with a shelter that hid us from the hot sun, and perhaps the rain after we left because we hit rain on the way home. You couldn't ask for better weather while we were there. Although I didn't take a head-count, I heard someone say there were about 50 people there.

Peter Michael Durben Family 2010

2010-07-16T15:55:00.000-05:00

Third and forth from the left are Eunice and Adam, I'm going to need some help with some of the rest of the family and friends.

Agnes Schwoerer Family 2010

2010-07-16T15:44:00.000-05:00

Agnes (third from the right). I'm going to need some help with this one.

A Couple of the Diedrich Girls

2010-07-16T15:38:00.001-05:00

Lynn, Dexter, Jeanette and Don caught here after I missed them with the formal pose set up by Toni earlier.

Michael Paul Durben Family 2010

2010-07-16T15:30:00.001-05:00

Mike, Carol, Denise and Dustin made the trip from Texas again this year.

Servatius Durben Family 2010

2010-07-16T15:16:00.000-05:00

Toni and Cindi with their family attending this year.

Joy Rose (Durben) Nienow Family

2010-07-16T15:07:00.000-05:00

David and Joy on the left with their family.

Durben Family Reunion - (Last group but not least)

2010-07-16T14:42:00.000-05:00

From left: (The John M. Durben Family) John, Julie, Cody, Mona, Dorothy.
Note: Next year's reunion will be hosted by Toni Durben and Family.

Photo from Algoma Webcam

2010-07-16T13:25:00.000-05:00

Cousin Denise caught this photo of us while we were facing the Webcam in Algoma. She downloaded it from the Internet on her iphone and emailed it to me. It was taken while they were up here for the 2010 Family Reunion.

Photo includes: Dustin, Mona, Denise, Carol, Mike and myself.

Chippewa Flowage 2010

2010-06-22T17:01:00.000-05:00

Mona keeps her eyes glued to the bobber in anticipation of it going down.

John/Mona and Brewster

John brings the boat to the landing so we can load it up in preparation of leaving the next morning.

Mona with more fish on the "Big Chip"!

2010-06-22T16:44:00.000-05:00

Got a little Northern in the basket.

Another little Northern

Time to clean some crappies

Wildlife on the chippewa Flowage was Fantastic...

2010-06-13T17:37:00.002-05:00

Above Left this photo was taken directly into the sun of a young Eagle. The Right photo was taken just after this Blue Huron swallowed a fish (looked like a small bluegill). Note the lump in it's throat.

Left - This Blue Huron is stalking some of the little bait fish that hung out around the shore line while in the other photo a mature Eagle sits on a fallen tree waiting for lunch.

Above left: This guy just moved over to a different spot as we were fishing bluegills. The right photo was taken from inside the cabin. You can see the side of the window on the left. It appears he got him self a little snack there. Again, into the sun. I wonder if this is the same guy that checked out my boat last year?

This is the same bird from above right and now he has to get a little

drink to wash it down.

This Grouse was on the side of the road one day when went for a

ride around the Flowage.

Again we went to Hayward one day and this Turtle was on the

side of the road on Hwy CC. I had to grab the camera quick

and snap this picture. I know that if my Father had been along

with us he would have stopped and picked him up and we would

have had Turtle Soup.

As we were cruising along heading out to one of our fishing spots

John noticed this deer in the bushes keeping an eye on us. A

little while later we saw another deer in the water crossing the lake

coming to the side where this one was.

This little guy was running around when we were up checking our

e-mail up at the Lodge. He had a mouth full of oak leaves and he

was bound and determined that he was going to go around us.

Later he ran right under the table past John's feet to get where he

wanted to go. You can see, there is a lot of wildlife around if that's

what you're into. We are.

John Caught Some Fish As Well

2010-06-13T16:31:00.000-05:00

First of 3 small northen caught in Scott Lake

Number 2 of 3 in the same place.

This guy has some scuffs on his skin from something larger

than him.

Brew - The Poodle had a good time on Vacation too

2010-06-13T16:15:00.000-05:00

Pictured here is Brew. He is a fairly neat dog. Notice the napkin he uses after his treats.

Brew and Mona

Brewster and Mona again.

Our Cabin at Chippewa Pines Resort

2010-06-11T16:13:00.001-05:00

This is the side of the cabin that faces the Flowage. Cottages 5 & 6. We've been trying to rent number 6 for the last 5 or six years now.

Inside Cabin 6. Two bedrooms and enough room for us and our stuff. Real nice and cozy.

Saturday morning Mona puts the last couple of small items in the van before we check the cabin to make sure we didn't forget something. (Still can't find the battery charger for the camera so we hope we didn't leave it there somewhere.)

Last view is from the van in the previous photo looking towards the cabin and the Flowage. We had a lot of fun again this year.

(Click on photos to enlarge - You may also scroll left and right to see the entire photo)

New Look...

2010-06-09T08:18:00.000-05:00

If you've visited here before you'll notice the difference. I am still in the process of experimenting with the layout of this blog so that I can figure out changes to others. Don't know where this will end.

Mona Caught Some Big Walleyes on the Chippewa Flowage This Year!

2010-06-06T13:22:00.002-05:00

On Suday, May 30th, we went to one of our favorite Walleye Spots

and Mona landed this 23 incher that will go nicely into the frying pan

for a Friday Night Fish Fry once we get back home.

About 20 minutes later she caught this nice 28 inch Walleye on a

minnow with a slip bobber again in the same spot. This fish was

released so that it can help produce more fish just like it for some-

else in the future. No idea how much it weighed but it was nice.

Click on photos to enlarge

Mona measures her 28 inchWalleye. You can tell by the background that both fish were caught in the same place.

Up North - Chippewa Flowage

2010-06-02T13:51:00.000-05:00

We are currently up north at the Chippewa Pines Resort trying to catch some fish.

That's a small fish for a big bait like that!

Memorial Day 2010

2010-05-25T18:17:00.000-05:00

Our families have many ties to war and distruction down through the decades. Be sure to take a few moments this Memorial Day to remember those who have fought the battles and sacrificed their lives and limbs so that we may remain free. It's just not all about having an extra day off from work to grill some burgers and brats or to get an extra day at the cabin. Take a few moments to reflect.

Neverman Family Get Together

2010-05-24T08:06:00.004-05:00

May 21 through the 23 Mona's Family had a get together at her Brother's place. Pictured here is the "Group Shot" taken before the fire pit was lit and the marshmallows came out on Saturday Night. You can tell by the sun burnt faces on a few of us that the weather did cooperate.

(Click Photo to Enlarge)

Durben Reunion 2010

2010-05-03T17:33:00.003-05:00

Mark Your Calendar Now!

I've been advised by Lisa Schwoerer that the 2010 Durben Reunion will be held on Sunday, July 11, 2010. It will be held at Oswald Park in St. Nazianz, WI. this year in Shelter No. 1. (Shelter 1 is nearest the parking lot.)

BBQ Grills will be available for your use. Please bring your own meat, drinks and a dish to pass. Hope to see you there.

More Testing

2010-04-28T21:12:00.000-05:00

Just a test post We are currently sitting in our Hotel Room in Appleton, WI. and I am playing around with the computer to see if I can make this post. If you see it - It worked.

Experimenting

2010-03-15T17:53:00.001-06:00

I am experimenting with my new wireless laptop to see if it works. If you see any typo's it's the computers fault.

More Fire on Ice - 2010

2010-02-01T18:05:00.005-06:00

Here are a few more shots of the Fire on Ice Races on Shawano Lake. The first couple images are some of the vehicles coming off the Lake on January 24th, 2010. We took a ride around the Lake and by the time we got back to the Cecil end the races were over. They must have had a mess though with all that water.

Yesterday, the 31st we got there a little earlier and stayed until the intermission. The crowd is getting larger each week and it appears as though there were more cars this weekend. You can listen to the results on the Radio on FM 100.1.

I've got more photos but I just need time to post a few more.

Hampton Beach, New Hampshire

2010-01-31T10:13:00.006-06:00

Mona just found this picture we had taken of ourselves while visiting Hampton Beach in New Hamsphire a couple of years ago.

The machine (booth) that took the photo is simular to the old one you used to sit in when you went to the "Dime Store" when you were a kid. (How many of you really remember the "Dime Store"? How about Ben Franklins? Green Stamps?)

Once the photo was taken, you could have it do different finishes on it before it printed. This is the finish we chose.

Aside from visiting New Hampshire on business, we also drove along the coast of Maine checking out the Portland Head Lighthouse and Old Orchard Beach to name a couple points of interest.

Go Fly a Kite

2010-01-17T16:12:00.006-06:00

This guy was out on Cecil Bay on Shawano Lake on Saturday January 16th. At one time he had 8 kites in the air (that we saw). I had a few videos (actually one or two better than this one) but I lost them somewhere in my gigabytes.

The first kite with the long tail is huge and I think very impressive. The last one at the end resembles an Eagle.

Don't remember if it was last year or the year before when Mona and I were out on the Lake we saw these same kites being pulled by a couple in a boat. (Trolling slowly of course.) Yesterday (as per Mona with the binoculars) said it looked like he had them tied to buckets. Sure wish I could find the other videos. If I do, I'll post one. (This particular video was shot with a Sony DSC-HX1 Digital Still Camera)

Fire On Ice on Shawano Lake is Back in 2010

2010-01-17T15:32:00.007-06:00

The Fire On Ice Races are back on Shawano Lake again. I guess they started last Sunday. A couple of the photos below are from last week and a couple from today. I saw I was getting a few hits on searches for the event so I figured I take the time to throw a few more pics up here.

With the nice weather today the attendance was decent. I ran down to the Cecil end of the Lake with the 4-wheeler and parked for about 1/2 hour or so. Got parked in and had to ride the length of the track just to get out.

There was one spectator there all set up for tailgating with the card table and chairs out as well as the old Smokey Joe BBQ.

Hope to get a post or two in the future if everything turns out OK.

Our Christmas with John's Relatives - 2010

2010-01-17T09:41:00.006-06:00

It started out with Christmas Cookies at our house. Mona, Tracy, and Miranda put the finishing touches on dozens of sugar cookies while John watched. Then it went from Christmas Eve to "Tree Hopping" and more.

Mona took the Aluminum Tree from my Grandmother down earlier this week and is in the process of taking the real tree in the activity room down as I post these photos. There are probably a couple hundred more in the camera so I guess I'll get started downloading them.

Hope everyone had an enjoyable Holiday Season.

Our Christmas with Mona's Relatives - 2010

2010-01-16T17:37:00.006-06:00

The Holiday Season for 2009-2010 has come and gone so quickly. Below are a few of the photos taken while visiting with Mona's side of the family.

Hope you enjoy it.

Spicy Chicken Wings for the Day After New Year's 2010

2010-01-03T09:30:00.004-06:00

1 pkt (1.25 Oz.) Ortega Hot and Spicy Taco Seasoning

3 Tblsp Canola Oil

2 Tblsp Red Wine Vinegar

4 Tsp Tabasco Sauce (originally 2 tsp. if you want to start out slow - divided)

4 Pounds Chicken Wings w/ tips snipped off

1 Cup Ranch Dressing

Celery Sticks

In a one gallon zip lock bag combine Wings, Taco Seasoning, Canola Oil, Red Wine Vinegar, and 3 Teaspoons Tabasco Sauce. Seal bag and then work bag until all wings are evenly covered with mixture. We like to place them in the refrigerator for a couple of hours to marinade but the original recipe didn't call for that.

In small bowl combine Ranch Dressing and 1 remaining teaspoon Tabasco sauce and set aside.

Preheat grill and grill Wings for about 10-15 minutes total on medium heat, turning occasionally to avoid burning.

Serve with your pre-made Ranch Dressing and Celery Sticks.

One time we added an additional ¼ tsp of cayenne pepper and ¼ tsp of hot chili pepper which gave it a little more zip. The more we make them, the more we like to experiment.

The guests we had over for this batch thought they were hot but I guess it's what you're accustomed to. The recipe started out with a total of two teaspoons Tabasco Sauce divided and we've doubled it so far. Mona and I will probably crank er up another notch when we make it next time.

This recipe originally came from Sandra Lee on The Food Network but we started to modify it a little with the ingredients we wanted each time we make it.

By the way - this picture was taken outside when the wind chill factor was 10 to 15 below zero.

Click on photo to enlarge.

How About Some Brats in Beer?

2010-01-01T12:18:00.003-06:00

It's New Year's Day and what better time for some Brats and Beer?

First we cooked the Brats on the grill and put them in a small Nesco. 2-3 cans of beer, some onion slices and about 2 tablespoons of butter. That way you can keep them hot and serve them when the guests arrive.

Shawano Lake and Surrounding Area Ice Conditions 2012

2010-01-01T08:50:00.003-06:00

For anyone traveling to Shawano Lake for a little recreation here are the current Ice Conditions. Be Safe!

http://www.co.shawano.wi.us/departments/page_f300c0470471/?department=caa27d351746&subdepartment=aa9642ed0774

Happy New Year!

2009-12-31T23:55:00.003-06:00

Last post for 2009...

It's a few minutes before we pass into the second decade of this century. Mona and I went out tonight to celebrate the new year. We started out with "Double Bubble" at the Washington Inn in Cecil at about quarter to five. Dinner reservations were for 6:30 (I have to add the food was great!) and we were probably home by 9:00 o'clock or so.

I just woke up on the couch with the TV still playing and I see Mona must have gone to bed. I just figured I'd say: "Happy New Year!" (Darn... missed Dick Clark again!)

Brew says: Merry Christmas

2009-12-24T14:40:00.004-06:00

Brewster (the 65 pound lap dog) says MERRY CHRISTMAS everybody.

He's pictured here helping Mona decorate the Christmas Tree this year.

Brew doesn't help much, but he likes to supervise.

Mona Gets into the Christmas Spirit

2009-12-24T12:49:00.004-06:00

Right around Thanksgiving or so Mona started getting into the Christmas Spirit slow but sure. Here she is finishing up with some of the ornaments on the tree this year. All that's needed to complete the job is the tinsel yet.

Note the Stockings hanging on the fireplace. They're still empty. St. Nick must have passed us by this year.

What's up with that?

WOW! What a change in the Seasons...

2009-12-21T17:59:00.008-06:00

What a change in Seasons. The last posting was from Route Lake in September (Labor Day Week) when we had 70 Degree weather in the far North.

What a difference. Although it may not look so bad in this photo we just got 13 inches of snow dumped in our driveway. Mona used the snowblower to open up a few areas as John used the ATV.

The ATV seems to be running better since we took it to Gillet to have it tuned up. We always wanted to hit the ATV trails and head up north toward Suring or Townsend but never got around to it. Seems like there's too many things going on.

I heard there's anywhere from 6-8 inches of Ice on Shawano Lake - at least on our end and we've been seeing good numbers of fishermen on the Lake as well as a few 4-wheelers. It won't be long and the Fire N Ice racers will be running again.

Route Lake, Ontario Fishing Trip Photos (1)

2009-11-23T19:38:00.011-06:00

This is the first group of additional photos promised a couple of months ago. Mona above sporting her (my) fishing hat from Tiger Musky Lodge on the Big Chip in Northern Wisconsin. She also caught this fine eating size walleye. The second photo shows us cruising along the shoreline while she is shooting a few pictures with the small camera. Don't let the shoreline make you think we're in shallow water in this photo. You could easily be in 40 to 60 feet of water in this situation.

My camera allowed me to take some panoramic photos. Here is one of them as we continue along the shoreline.

More shoreline shots as we slowly motor along on the left. John caught and released this Northern Pike in one of the only areas we found good weed structure. We used several different colored spinner baits to try to catch these guys.

The boat docking area is straight ahead of Mona as we decided to come to shore and take a break from fishing for a while. From the docking area we follow the timber laid sidewalk to the other side of the hill to the cabin.

The fish cleaning house down by the docking area. We didn't just use it to store our fishing gear as the next photo would suggest as Mona hauls the daily catch up to get ready for the frying pan.

Route Lake, Ontario Fishing Trip Photos (2)

2009-11-23T19:26:00.009-06:00

Mona displays a few packs of Walleye ready for the freezer. Note the skin left on the fillet to identify the species of fish for the wardens when we go back across the border if need be. In case we couldn't catch any fish, we brought along a few meals of food to hold us over for the week. Johnsonville brats on the grill hit the spot today. Corn on the cob with plenty of butter wasn't too bad either.

Time to clean some fish. Note the can of beer on the right. That makes this job a lot more tolerable. We set the camera on timer to catch the next great photo. It looks like we're both haveing a bad hair day.

John caught and released this 30" Northern Pike in the Pike spot that we found. This is the largest fish caught and was also in the slot size for the Lake to be released. Two birds with one stone is next. We grilled up some Chicken Breast for Supper one evening with the intent of having chicken sandwiches for lunch the next day. The plan worked great as we had soup and sandwiches the next day.

Time for a cold brew and a shore lunch. Today we're going to eat some walleye so we can catch some more.

Simple Deep Fried Walleye Recipe

Mona dipped the walleye fillets in raw eggs and a little shot of beer then she breaded them with crushed saltine crackers and dropped them in frying pan with about an inch of hot oil in it. A little pinch of salt when they're done add some fried potatoes, tartar sauce, a rye bread and onion sandwich and you have the perfect Shore Lunch.

Route Lake, Ontario Fishing Trip Photos (3)

2009-11-23T18:00:00.008-06:00

Time to Dine... The Shore Lunch was great and you can't get the fish much fresher. Glen pointed us to a few places to try for walleye and we headed out to catch some more. Note: that although Mona took this picture, she has a walleye in her left hand too.

Believe it... or not... this is another "Double" we had. Two different fish than the previous photo. John caught this Northern Pike with a jig and a minnow and we decided to keep this one to take home. We kept some from Eagle Lake, Ontario several years ago and they are good eating.

Glen took a few minutes to show us how to Fillet the Northern Pike with few bones if any. The Wisconsin DNR put out a flyer demonstrating one technique of doing it but I haven't had any luck with that way. They do it different in Canada and it seems to work better. If you're not catching fish in Route Lake, you can take your boat and roll it over these rollers a few hundred feet to a different Lake. We were satisfied with where we were on this trip.

The camera is actually on the kitchen table with the patio door open as we took this photo. We're standing on the front deck that overlooks the Lake. (Should have used a flash... but it's too late now.) The wind didn't die down too much while we were there. This particular sunset was shot during one of those rare occurances.

Route Lake, Ontario Fishing Trip Photos (4)

2009-11-22T11:43:00.006-06:00

Mona caught and released this cute little Northern Pike. She had one that would have been in the slot size get off right by the boat. John couldn't get the net under it fast enough and it spit the hook. The second photo above is part of the elaborate solar system set up at the Lodge to produce electricity. We couldn't run the hair dryer but it worked out well.

Another shot from the kitchen table. It appears to be Miller Time... This young Loon was photographed by John from the deck by the Cabin. One night there were 8 Eagles flying around us putting on an arial show for at least 20-25 minutes.

Glen and Shirley Roulston were our hosts at Route Lake Lodge and they really made us feel welcome. We won the trip that they had donated to our fishing club and we were the last and only people visiting the Lodge the week of Labor Day. Although they were happy the season was over, they still went out of their way to make sure we enjoyed ourselves and put us on some fish. No... Mona's not washing her face here, she's getting a drink of water from a natural spring that's been providing great tasting water for years. We never would have found it on our own, but it was pointed out to us by one of Shirley's relatives as we happened to be following him when we left for home.

Most of the people that know us know that Mona likes to collect things with a Moose on them. Please note the road sign on the right. The black diagonal line on the GPS is the US/Canadian border. We have 478 miles and 8 hours and 22 minutes before we get home, (had we gone straight home).

Busy Busy Busy...

2009-11-18T18:19:00.002-06:00

Been busier than a Packer Offensive Lineman trying to protect Aaron Rogers. Hope to be able to do some updates in the near future.

Shakey Boat Ride at Route Lake Lodge

2009-09-19T13:17:00.005-05:00

After trolling for Lake Trout one day we tried to grab a video of the side of the Lodge we were on. Here are the results. It wasn't easy operating the motor and the camera while fighting the waves and wind.

We took 3 cameras and a video camera but most everything came from the new camera we had bought a week before vacation.

Route Lake Lodge Vacation (1)

2009-09-19T09:35:00.014-05:00

It all started last Spring (2009) when Mona and I worked at the Sportshow in Green Bay at the Special Olympics booth. Our job there was to sell raffle tickets to raise funds for our fishing Club, the Green Bay Area Great Lakes Sport Fishermen.

Money raised from the annual event goes toward setting up our trout pond for a day where Special Olympians are given the opportunity to catch a few really nice trout. The Olympians are bussed in from surrounding Counties where they catch the fish, have them cleaned for the frying pan, and they're given hats or pins, food, snacks and beverages. Naturally, when you sell raffle tickets, you have to buy some too. That's just how it works.

The raffle drawing took place in April at the Club's Annual Smelt Fry and weren't we lucky enough to win the Grand Prize which was a Canadian fishing trip for two for a week at Route Lake Lodge. The Lodge (which is the only one on Route Lake) is located approximately 25 miles north of Dryden, Ontario. The owners, Glen and Shirley Roulston have owned the lodge for 4 years and have given away that many trips to our Club for our Annual Event.

One of the unique things about this Lodge is that when you drive as far as Dryden, you give Glen and Shirley a call and he will be waiting for you by the dock with his pontoon boat by the time you arrive about a half hour later. There he will pick you and your belongings up for the 10 minute or so boat ride to the lodge.

Below are a few of the panoramic photos I took. You can click on the photos to enlarge them. Also note that since they are so large, you may have to use the bar on the bottom of your screen to see the whole thing.

The Lodge is located on a point between two fingers in the lake. This is the side of the point that we were on. The most noticeable cabin in the center is the cabin we stayed in. In the large view, you might be able to see just the top of the Lodge behind the rocks on the right side.

Pictured above is the other side of the peninsula. Starting with the Main Lodge on the left, there are several more cabins on this side. Although they are not visible in this photo, the fish cleaning house and the main dock area are in a small lagoon on the right side where they are normally protected from wind and waves.

This is the inside of our cabin. It's very modern considering the location. Shirley's brother-in-law told us that when the Lodge was built, all the building materials were delivered lakeside by one of the many trains that continually make their way along the winding tracks through the trees. From there they were transported by boat to the final building site. Electricity at the Lodge comes from one of two diesel generators or solar power. If you want to get away from telephones and tv's and radios etc., this is the place to come. (Note: Mona is in the designated Bar making a couple of Old Fashions.)

Walleye fishing was the best Walleye fishing we ever experienced together. We caught and released a good number of Walleye and kept enough for one shorelunch in the cabin and our limit of 4 each to bring home. (We had another meal last night.)

We found Northerns harder to catch because Route Lake is a very deep lake (at least to us - 150 ft. in some areas) and we normally cast in the shallows down to 10 feet or so on Shawano Lake. John caught and released one 30 inch Northern which is in the slot size that had to be released. He had his line bit off once and broke of once. When it was bit off - we hadn't switched over to leaders yet.

I'm guessing we marked a lot of Lake Trout about 30 feet down in the water column but being greenhorns to this type of trolling we had no idea where our lures were running. We experimented between the two of us alternating putting out different amounts of line with no success. On top of that, I tried different boat speeds for trolling but that didn't help us either.

All in all, we had a great time. Even though we were the only guests at the Lodge for the week of Labor Day, Glen and Shirley treated us well. They said the week we spent there was the best weather they had all summer. It was in the 80's (26 C) almost every day and only rained two nights after we had already gone to bed at 9:00 or shortly after.

More photos to come when I get more time to post them.

Chippewa Flowage Vacation 2009

2009-06-20T09:50:00.004-05:00

First I'm going to show you that we did actually catch some fish while staying at the Chippewa Pines Resort this year. I think we brought two or three meals back which is plenty of fish for us for a while. We can always get some on Shawano Lake if we really, really need fish. Not only that - you can buy it in the store too... although it doesn't taste the same. Mona was on a roll one day. This is one of the Bass she caught and released.

John caught this Largemouth on his favorite spinner. The fish seem to like it too, sometimes... The Resort has a pontoon boat that they rent out. We rented it one year when my Mother came along for the week (just for one day) and had a blast. That particular day it rained off and on and it was nice to be under the canopy.

A small northern pike on the same lure. We caught plenty of crappie too as you will see if you continue to follow these posts.

Poor Brew... Mona told the pet groomer to take a little more of his poof off this time when she groomed him. It looks like she put the proverbial bowl on his head after she hacked the rest of it off first. The last photo in this group shows how heavy his head is even after having all his hair cut off. You'll see later that he likes to rest his chin on things. He does it at home all the time.

More Fish and Stuff

2009-06-20T09:34:00.005-05:00

Mona netted and released a small northern as seen here above left. This small largemouth bass hit the crankbait she was throwing.

A couple more Largemouth... fish that is... that were caught and released.

We took a short break and checked out Crane Island one day. Mona caught John photographing birds.

Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame 1

2009-06-20T09:13:00.003-05:00

One of the cool and windy days while at the Flowage we decided to take a ride in to Hayward and check out the Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame again. John has been a member for over 10 years now and we get a free pass to visit the place and take advantage of it every few years to see how many changes have been made.

On October 18, 1983 a friend of ours, Bob LaMay caught this fish while fishing for walleye (he said) on the High Falls Flowage in Northern Wisconsin. He was only using 6# test line on his rod and reel and landed this 50 pound Musky.

Bob passed away a few years ago, but I know he was really proud of his accomplishment. One of the fishing Clubs I belong to and we were both President of at one time or another would put the fish on display at the Sport Show in Green Bay from time to time.

Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame 2

2009-06-20T08:58:00.003-05:00

Here are some additional photos we took while at the Fishing Hall of Fame.

Both of these photos where taken inside the "World's Largest Musky". John is standing right in the mouth and Mona is somewhere around the Adam's Apple.

Mona in a pose here with one of the panfish. This too was catch and release - he let her go. And as mentioned earlier - the World's Largest Musky.

Chippewa Pines Vacation 2009

2009-06-18T19:10:00.003-05:00

Although there will be more posts from the Flowage - These are the first photos presented that were taken with the little Pentax pocket camera. The little camera also took the film clips on earlier posts.

Mona and Brew are outside this fine morning. I can only assume that Brew just got done doing his thing. Also pictured is Mona with the only Walleye we tricked into the frying pan. This one took a spinner bait we normally throw for Bass and Northern.

John caught a small crappie the way it looks, and then there's the ones that didn't get away.

Mona doing the finishing touches on the Crappie and Walleye before they head to the freezer.

There's a Few Blue Huron on the Chippewa Flowage

2009-06-16T19:16:00.007-05:00

This is the first series of photos presented here regarding the Blue Hurons in the Chippewa Flowage area near Hayward, WI. in northern Wisconsin.

A few years ago a "hail storm" hit the area and damage many of the nests and eggs for that season. It appears to me that the birds numbers are hanging in there for now, but it also appears to me that the trees that held the nests are beginning to deteriorate as well as the nests themselves.

The Stalking Blue Huron on the Big Chip

2009-06-16T18:50:00.007-05:00

One day while fishing in our favorite crappie spot this Blue Huron kept coming back to a small bog that had raised from the bottom of the Lake and would stand like a soldier on guard and wait for it's prey to make its' deadly mistake. The bird did this about 3 or 4 times over a period of and hour and a half or so and here are a few of the stills I captured from his efforts.

Any of you who know me know I like to fish but when you have entertainment like this in front of you, the fish can wait. It's really a privilege to watch these creatures in their own environment. Unfortunately for the bird, all of his efforts of trying to survive for the moment were fruitless.

More Chippewa Flowage 2009 Photos

2009-06-09T19:34:00.020-05:00

Top Left - this Eagle is watching the shoreline for spawning panfish the way it looks. He really didn't appear to mind at the time that we were watching him. This Eagle in the next photo on the right saw us coming from quite a ways away. There's been Eagles in this nest for the 10 or 11 years now that we've been going up there.

If you look carefully you'll see three Blue Hurons sitting in their nests in the top left photo. The picture was taken with a Canon Rebel with a 300MM Lens as most of the wildlife photos. This Loon was in the Crane Lake area and we believe she had a nearby nest because she really acted strange as if she didn't want to leave the area, but kept calling for her mate that was quite a ways away. The area we are in was always good for Bluegills.

The first picture you'll see the Blue Huron hunting as the Turtle is just laying there sunning himself. After the Huron flew away I grabbed a picture of the Sand Turtle. Shortly after the photo was taken he must have figured we were getting too close so it went into the water.

I believe this is the day we had a high temperature of 49 degrees. Later on in the day it got a little windy too.

The sign speaks for itself. This is one of the postings in the cabin. Friday night after a burst of rain we were presented with this rainbow that appeared to come right out of the middle of the Lake. The picture really doesn't do it justice. This young Eagle on the above right watched us for a while when we were getting some photos of the Hurons in the Nests above. Once we got too close, it left the scene.

Since these are still taken with the Canon - I left them in sequence. Mona is running the Movie Camera for the reality movie we plan on releasing next year (just kidding). In the 2nd photo she is looking out the cabin window and Brew has me covered from outside in the lower right.

As in the past - Click on photos to enlarge.

Our Blue Huron Visitor

2009-06-07T06:48:00.010-05:00

One of the highlights for John this year was the day we had a visit from a Blue Huron. The visit was mentioned in an earlier post but as I got a little bit of time I was able to go through the nearly 600 photos we took and sort a few out. (There will be more posts coming.)

This is a sequence of some of the photos I took as they occurred. (You can click on any photo to enlarge it.)

The first photo is when our visitor enters the picture. The red boat on the right belongs to the Resort owner Terry, and the grey one is ours. I've been taking pictures of this guy for some time starting in the front window by the dining room and following him along the shoreline. These photos are taken from the bedroom window facing the lake. The day before this the water behind the boat motor was filled with small bluegills. I assume this guy knew that.

He's reaching out his foot here to climb in to our boat. Probably to get a better look at his prey just over the back of the boat.

Once inside the boat he starts to look around and make himself at home. My thoughts at this time are I sure hope these photos turn out and I hope he doesn't decide to take a dump. I've seen them do it while in flight and it's not a pretty site. It almost looks like one of those dive bombers you see on TV.

He must not have found anything of interest so he decides to exit the scene. Notice in the last photo that he's standing on my trolling motor. From here he jumped out of the boat along the shore and stared into the water. There must have be a twig that he liked so he picked it up in his mouth and flew away with it. Perhaps to replace a twig from it's nest and perhaps he wasn't a he?

Crappie Time 2009

2009-06-06T06:30:00.005-05:00

This is one of our crappie spots in the Chip. At the right time you can catch them as fast as you reel in.

If you look close - (I know it's hard to see on this little screen) there's a white spot in the middle of the screen by the treeline on the other side of the Lake, just to the left of the white spot (actually pontoon boats) is the cabin we stayed at. We kept one meal of crappie for ourselves and one for my Mother.

Crappie Time 2

2009-06-06T06:12:00.005-05:00

Mona continues to catch and release crappies.