Trail Center

Nothing like a little chainsaw sculpture to make one feel at home in the wilderness.

The Weaver and I have been going to “our” place up North for many years now. We had thought about buying a lake place of our own and we were even offered the chance to buy my father-in-law’s old lake cabin but the idea of maintaining another house three hundred miles away wasn’t very appealing.  A few of neighbors are into this lifestyle and every weekend finds them fighting traffic for hours as they spend their days off mowing, painting and working on a house they live in less that a couple of months out of the year.  More power to them, but I’m way too lazy for that.

We’ve returned to The Little Ollie Lake Cabin again and again. We find it to be just the right mix of comfort (sauna, washing machine) and wilderness (a stone’s throw away from trails into the Boundary Waters) and, best of all, when our stay has ended we are free of obligations. The only things we have to carry home are our memories. This year we were treated to an evening of food and stories, thanks to blog-pal Jono. He stopped in at our cabin which he remembered having worked on years ago! He suggested we go to the Trail Center, a lodge/restaurant a few miles away. It is the quintessential North Woods establishment, with numerous artifacts adorning the ceilings and walls:






We were joined by “The Cooker"” and “Stitch”, Jono's partners in crime, as well as an animated server:



Everybody knew everybody, of course, both Jono and “The Cooker” had worked at the Trail Center in years past. We shared a delightful meal, with several “sides” of stories from the north land. Afterwards came the traditional “long goodbye” a hallowed Scandinavian tradition. Even the parking lot was picturesque:




Thanks again to Jono and his “crew” who gave us a wonderful time.