Well, the last group – the Countryman party - checked out November 1^st, ending the busiest season in the camp’s history.

We managed to get quite a bit done during the summer – not everything we had hoped for – but still a good stab at it.

Probably the biggest change in 2003 was adding our old residence – Cabin #6 – to the rental choices available to guests.

We mainly used it for peak periods in 2003 and it was very popular with large groups. With 3 bedrooms and a large kitchen / dining / living area, it’s really what we needed for groups of 7 – 10.

We put new carpeting throughout, along with new curtains and a small deck overlooking the lake. We moved the entrance so you have a "mud room" upon entering to hang coats, leave boots etc, and framed in the third bedroom where the camp office once was.

As far as exteriors go, both Cabin # 5 (the "Grannyshack"), Cabin # 6 and the Camp Office was finished with rough cut cedar siding. We were thinking of vinyl but felt that it would be too "modern" a feel for the camp, so we went with cedar. It looks so good the plans are to add it to Cabin # 3 and any new cabins in the coming years.

We finally got a shower into Cabin #2 – that’s the little log cabin right on the lake. In the past it was cold water only, with guests using the Showerhouse facilities. This makes life a lot easier for the folks staying in that cabin now.

In 2004, we plan to renovate the interior of Cabin #3 (the 6 person at the end), adding new paneling, flooring, paint, light fixtures as well as a new kitchen counter / sink & cupboards.

The bigger cabins (#3, the new 3 BR # 6 and the Grannyshack) will also get some more creature comforts – microwaves, clock radios, propane bar b ques and satellite TV (so late season groups can keep up with the Packers or the Vikings or whoever they’re cheering for!). These larger cabins are each getting new (cooking) stoves as well and will be considered housekeeping units.

The smaller, older cabins will continue to be light housekeeping cabins, suited for smaller groups.

We hope to have some smaller housekeeping cabins within the next few years as well.

We installed electric and water hook ups to a site on the way into the camp (beside the excavation where we plan on building a lodge / restaurant). It’s kind of a "lawn" there, and eventually you’ll have a nice view of the lake (with some underbrushing). It was a handy spot for guests – particularly "overnighters" with big trailers or motorhomes.

The biggest change on the camp premises is the west point has been cleared of all poplar trees, setting the stage for a number of nice, new campgrounds. We’re hoping to have some good, serviced "pull through" spots for RV’s & trailers, and a number of good tent sites as well.

The trees were cleared as a result of two big storms in 2002. Many of them were already down or leaning, and the rest we felt were just a matter of time. They really were dangerous. With the aspen gone, the remaining coniferous trees – red & white pine, jack pines and spruce trees – are thriving. It’s looking really good down there, and with the added visibility it’s really obvious that we’re situated on a peninsula with Banning Lake surrounding the north, east and west points.

Of course we had a few more big storms in late June and early July 2003, which snapped a handful more jack pines like twigs. It seems a good portion of every year is dedicated to cleaning up tree falls

We began to rebuild the shower house – new exterior and roof so far, and the "tanks" are in the ground for 2 new outhouses on each end of the camp. With "tank" style outhouses, we can get them pumped periodically, as well as vent them. In all it should be a lot nicer for our campers!

We finally got the payphone installed outside the Camp Office. It’s made things a lot more convenient for guests needing to use a phone at any time of day. It takes toll free & collect calls plus most major phone & credit cards. Cell phone service continues to be hit & miss, with only analog service in the Atikokan area.

As usual, we added more 18’ Souris River Wilderness 18 kevlar canoes, as well as a

" Souris River Quetico 18.5" 3 seat canoe, which is a great craft.

Look for a couple of square stern canoes in ’04, and perhaps a new solo canoe.

We supplemented our existing gear with more of the same – some more Ostrom Outdoors pack sacks, Coleman stoves, Carlisle paddles plus a Eureka Breezeway screen tent.

We’re planning to do a custom pack sack in 2004. Ostrom Outdoors is going to base the "cut" on some of my Dad’s old prospector packs, which he still thinks have the best design. We’ll add some comfort features as well. What do you think we should call it? I’m leaning towards "The Prospector" as that’s what my Dad was when he was lugging the old packs throughout North America.

We added another 6 Man Eureka Timberline tent – "Outfitter" model, which basically is the same as the regular Timberlines, but with some extra seams, and an extra thick floor. Basically more "heavy duty" all around.

We also added our first "kitchen tents" – the Eureka Breezeway – which is a great convenience when on a trip. It’s best if you’re "base camping" though, as it is a little heavy to lug over a lot of portages.

We may put together a canoe trip package that focuses on "base campers". As portaging etc would be minimal, we’ll add more creature comforts to take along such as the kitchen tent, collapsible camp chairs etc.

We added the usual ‘odds & ends" some Carlisle paddles, Coleman & Peak 1 stoves,

Portable depth finders etc.

Our Canoe Trip Menu was tweaked a bit in 2003 – we used a lot more drinks sweetened with aspartame which helped lighten the load. We’ll always offer a choice between sugar or aspartame sweetener though.

We experimented with tuna & chicken salad sandwiches utilizing the small mayonnaise packets and the packaged tuna & chicken. Everyone who tried them gave a big thumbs up for both taste and ease of preparation. Needless to say, we’ll be adding them to our Lunch menu in 2004 along with some tasty Canadian treats for dessert (like MacKintosh Toffee). Keep watching the Menu Planner page on this site for the new choices. We’ll keep working to make the canoe trip food as delicious and easy to prepare as possible!

We’re also planning to add some gear & stock that would be more condusive to other types of wilderness / adventure travel trips.

We’ll be adding some literature (for sale or loan) that would help rockhounders checking out the area. Mineral references, history of mining in the Atikokan area etc.

We’ll also add some books related to birdwatching / birding – guides, basic binoculars, etc.

We’re toying with the idea of having some mountain bikes for rent. There’s lots of opportunities for biking in and around Atikokan. Even though the "die hard" bikers will likely have their own, some folks may want to try it for a day or two, and not want to transport their bikes all the way to Quetico Country (especially those who fly in).

2003….

The ice was out on the Seine Chain by April 27, and the minimal snowfall we received over the winter set the stage for fairly consistent low water levels throughout the season, although not as extreme as places like Rainy Lake experienced further downstream from us. Levels were low, but not really low. Just low enough to wreck a few lower units on outboards!

For the second year in a row, the first guests of the year headed into the chilly wilds of Quetico Park. The Foster party was knee deep in adventure by the middle of May and had some awesome smallmouth bass, walleye and lake trout fishing. The guys checked out the Maligne River and Namakan River as well as Quetico Lake but had particularly good fishing on Jean Lake. They even got to see the sturgeon spawning at Twin Falls!

The Anderson party wasn’t far behind, checking out central sections of Quetico. We were really happy to welcome Jim and his Dad back for a cabin based trip in early June as well!

The Poer group did a trip in the Pickerel Lake / Rawn Lake / Narrows area.

The Brue group stuck to the west end of Quetico.

It’s always great to see the Hartnett / Godfrey group each summer. They surprised me this year, heading into Quetico on their annual canoe marathon a month early. As usual they had a great trip and great fishing. Still waiting for some pictures Meghan! (Meghan’s been going in with her Dad, John since she was just a little gaffer – apparently she has accumulated some great pics over the years and we’d love to get some of them up on our site).

We had a real rush of Quetico & White Otter / Turtle River canoe trips in early July…

The Rimmer family had a great trip looping from Beaverhouse Lake, down into Jean Lake, eventually over to Badwater and back to Quetico / Beaverhouse. They had some great stories of their adventure and were nice enough to do some "testing" for some of our new menu ideas. Thanks folks. Hope to see you again soon!

The Webb group had to cut their trip short but had a good day of fishing on Quetico Lake. The Webbs’ experienced one of the worst storms of the summer, and almost got trapped down the Beaverhouse / Flanders Roads after being picked up, as trees were falling hither tither & yon across the road.

My Dad was on one side of Flanders Road with the Webbs heading north, while Stan Ottertail from Lac La Croix & I were heading south. Thanks to Dave from Quetico Wilderness Outfitters for lending us the chainsaw to hack our way out. That was a doozy!

Back at the camp the Pozarski’s were back for their 26^th consecutive year! Craig was sitting on the verandah of Cabin #1 watching this same storm and saw funnel clouds on the lake. They basically ripped the water right off Banning Lake & shot it up to the sky. Amazing!

It was great having the Rubin party again. The guys headed up towards the White Otter (their second trip up there with us), and had some amazing fishing. Here’s hoping this is an annual trip!

The Russell group did that portage twice – by choice! They headed in that way and spent their trip down in the Badwater area, and then backtracked back. Anyway they had a great trip and it was a lot of fun meeting the gang. Hope to see you all again next year!

The Sodini party had a great trip despite all kinds of weather and some wild winds. They also had some really good fishing – particularly on Oriana Lake.

 Charlie Cook came up to fish with Randy & Karla in July as well. Charlie’s our resident northern pike master, so it was fun to see him catch a bunch of walleye including a nice 26".

A good story about Charlie this summer – he’s a die hard fisherman with boundless energy. Anyway, one day in July, Charlie and Randy and Karla Patrick were hitting the fishing really hard (catch & release), dawn ‘til dark every day in Charlies’ square stern canoe. Finally, one afternoon on Miranda Lake, after reeling in fish number 67 or thereabouts that day Charlie laid his rod down and said : "I’m done - I can’t bring any more in!"!!!! That doesn’t seem like a big deal, unless you know Charlie and how much he likes fishing. Anyway he recovered and was ready to go again within the next day or so. It was one of those unbelievable history making events at the camp!

It was great seeing the Langers from North Carolina again. Talk about ultralite outfitting, Tim & Karma have it down to a science with minimal packs for a 3 week long Quetico canoe trip. Needless to say in 3 weeks they covered a lot of the park and they had some awesome fishing. Karma snagged the biggest walleye of the summer at the camp at 30", while Tim caught the biggest lake trout coming in at 34". They also caught a 37" northern and loads of nice walleyes. They said Cirrus Lake and Quetico Lake is where they had their best luck. By the way thanks to Tim & Karma for the great racks to hang my paddles from. They work perfect!

The amazing fishing that the Langers and others had in Quetico Park this summer prompted us to put together our "Quetico Lakes Fishing Package" – a completely outfitted canoe trip with particular focus on fishing in the park. Check out our "Fishing" or "Complete Canoe Outfitting" rates for details.

The Taylor’s from Michigan had a nice, relaxing trip into Quetico.

The Milne family had a great Quetico trip, aside from being the 4^th or 5^th victims of the Badwater / West Bay portage, and having their walleye dinner eaten by snapping turtles!

The Schultz’ had some good fishing, particularly on Miranda Lake where they spent a couple of days and brought in some nice pike. They also picked some blueberries to have with the fish! A true Canadian meal!

Early in August we were wall to wall with Quetico & White Otter canoe groups as usual, although one night was a little different. We had more groups from Northern Ontario than we ever had. Fort Frances, Sioux Lookout, Thunder Bay and Atikokan were all represented that week. It was great having local Northerners take advantage of the great wilderness in their back yard!

The Nordholz bros. had a good trip in through Nym Lake, Lonely Lake and Maria Lake area but had to push it to hit their targets.

The Saint / Peck group started off and realized they forgot their fishing rods at Nym Lake. Once we got some replacements they were off and when I saw them the next time a week later at Beaverhouse Lake I found out that it was a good thing they had their fishing equipment. They caught loads of fish and had an amazing time.

The Cox / Foy party was quite adventurous. They split their trip between a remote canoe trip in Quetico Park, and then spent the other half of it fishing the Seine Chain with a boat & motor. I’m already looking forward to the plans for some remote lake adventures next year!

The Beyerl party came all the way from Austria and did a quick trip into Quetico.

The Streichers’ had a good trip in the French / Pickerel / Buckingham Lakes area of north east Quetico.

The McGoven / Imhoff group had a good Quetico trip and had lots of ideas on marketing our camp (still open to doing some Japanese translations for me?).

The Stein / Cody party had to cancel their Quetico trip at the last minute due to the little technicality of broken ribs. They still kept their sprits high and stayed in a cabin at the camp and did some canoeing, exploring and had some great walleye fishing with the Patrick’s. Arleigh went from being the person who couldn’t catch a fish to being a walleye angling master. We hope you’re feeling better Paulette and hope to see you both again!

The Debrow group had some great smallmouth action on the east end of Quetico.

The Donegan / Nelson / Van Alstine group had a great Quetico vacation despite some intense heat.

Scott Timmerman and Eric Nygaard spent a week in Quetico in the Russell & Chatterton Lakes area and caught some awesome smallmouth. Thanks for sending the pics guys! They look great in our 2003 Gallery!

It was great seeing Pat & Janis again, who spent a week in Quetico for the first time since 2001!

Evon Decko & Carla made it up in September which was a real treat. The Decko’s and all their kids came up for years and years and, as many of our guests have, became more friends than customers. I could go on and on about some of their visits, but I’ll save that for a few beer and a camp fire. There’s talk of the Decko’s and Eaton’s getting together and having a huge reunion at the camp. Name the time folks – I look forward to it!

The Dentons were up several times over the summer. Thanks to the boys for bringing the telescope & giving us a crash course on the planet Mars which was nice & clear in our September skies.

We had some great Northern Lights this summer as well. Anyone get any pictures?

We had a great bar-b-que in mid September as a "Thanks" to folks who helped us over the summer. Mike McNabb & Co were there, as were Randy & Karla Patrick. Butch & Sue, our friendly neighbourhood minnow suppliers, the Air Canada guys, Garry & Dianne Demchuk and Jason & Anna & kids all made it. The Williams group was in camp but kept pretty busy fishing. The Air Canada guys were there, and by the end of the evening the AC gang and Randy were the last standing. I think a lot of fishing and canoeing stories, tips & tricks were shared that night. As was a lot of beer, coolers, steak, burgers etc. All in all a great night – we’re definitely doing it on an annual basis. Maybe next year we can get all the musicians from Mankato MN to come up for entertainment (hint to Clint & the Eaton’s!).

I did a lot of "system orientations" this year – a few hours showing new folks the rocks, reefs and hot spots (I hope). I also guided a few times…the first time I’ve been out actually guiding in a while. Boy, there’s a great job!

Thanks to everyone who helped this year…

Mom & Dad – it’s great having that support there! Next summer you folks have to take a vacation!

Garry & Dianne Demchuk as always. Too many things to list, but when you look around the camp, a good portion of it was from them. Besides, Gary’s expertise with carpentry and related things was invaluable. You renewed my energy when I was running out of steam!

Jason Demchuk too. Jason would sometimes just drop in and do a ton of work. Thanks for everything!

Tom & Lorna Marr from Marr’s Perch Lake Lodge. Tom’s a contractor as well, and he did a ton of work at the camp this summer, plus offered some great suggestions!

Randy Riding and Dale Stus for some great guiding.

Clint Riding for a lot of work and some good old moral support. Especially for helping us when my Dad was in the hospital!

Randy & Karla Patrick for all the great hand made shelves plus for guiding for many of the new groups. Here’s a good story – I jokingly said to Randy that he should grow a beard or something, because I’ve got so many pictures of him & Karla, everyone thinks it’s the same fish. Guess what – he did!

Mike McNabb for all the suggestions, and for all the business he’s sending our way. Thanks Mike!

Ken Arneson as well. Mike and Ken should open up a travel agency. I think they book more trips for me than I book myself!

Of course Gary our web master from iMarket. He’s the reason that I haven’t seen you folks at Sports & Adventure Travel Shows. He does awesome work and he’s an experienced outdoorsman and guide, so he really knows our business as well as we do. Thanks Gary!

I’m sure I missed people in this newsletter, and I apologize for that. Thanks to everyone – all the guests, supplies, bankers and friends. We couldn’t do it without you all.