Andy and I ventured down to Long Island Lake to check out the impact of the Famine Lake Fire. It’s hard to leave this time of year— with the 70 degree weather calling us to do all of the spring tasks at once, but we had a day —and we were reminded how lucky we are to take advantage of our expansive back yard.

· We HIGHLY recommend early bug-free spring trips, when the only footprints were ours—-and those of the wolves, moose, and deer.
· Denali finally became an expert at canoe etiquette for Labradors—as long as we put her in the bow of the boat.
· We were scouring the bogs for moose on Rib Lake and saw bounding deer instead—don’t know how long that will surprise us, but definitely didn’t feel “normal”.
· The south shore of Long Island was touched in just a few places—one badly burned point, one brown island as we entered the lake. All of the favorite campsites are the same—some views have changed slightly. (The photo was taken from the island site on the far east end of Long Island—note the eagle in the top right corner of the photo). We both felt confident after the day trip that folks won’t be disappointed—and needn’t avoid that route because of the brief September fire.
· The Loons are back in full force. The waterfoul were active, the birds seem to sing especially boisterously this time of year. It’s great to be alive in the north woods!