Woodchucks at Camp Chicken

The weekend weather looked pretty iffy. A front bringing lots of rain was supposed to roll through the area about noon on Saturday. We needed to get Mom and Dad's winter wood cut, so we decided to go to camp anyway.

Friday was really nice, sunny but cool. We made it to camp about 5:15 and got our woodcutting gear ready and the big trailer hooked up to the car. We headed to the area near Arlene's deer shack where we had a pile of wood that we had gathered the spring before.

About 3/4th of it was still good, so we managed to get it cut up before dusk. We went back to the trailer and decided to go see if the big buck was out in the field again. We saw does with fawns (a good sign) and two small 4-points but no big bucks. So we headed back to camp for dinner.

Arlene made our Friday night favorite: sliced polish sausage, baked beans and fried potatoes all mixed together. It was delicious! We ate it out of our new "cowboy" bowls that Arlene's sister Judy bought for us in Ohio. They are made from metal with a white enamel coating and remind us of the kind of bowls that cowboys use around the campfire.

Saturday morning we were up at 6:10 AM having our coffee and we were out in the woods by 7:30 AM. We knew that we had to beat the rain that was coming by noon. We were really hustling. I think we only took one break. We cut up all the piles of wood that we had collected and loaded them in the utility trailer.

The rain had held off so far. Mom came up for a visit just as we finished and we headed to her house to unload our trailer. We finished up about 2:00 pm and headed back to camp. We just got in the trailer and changed our clothes when the rain came down. After a warm cup of coffee, we opted for a nap. We were pooped!

Cindy came up for supper and we had Arlene's famous hamburgers. Wow, were we hungry. After dinner, we played Phase 10 until 10:00 PM and hit our beds.

Sunday we slept in until 8:00 AM. We had our coffee and headed out for Phase Two of our woodcutting weekend. There were about six large, dead, peeled, maple trees near Arlene's shack that we thought we could cut down.

Now we have a new Husqvarna chain saw and it is a really good saw, but I've never taken down a tree bigger than eight inches and these babies were over a foot in diameter. But, we figured we could try it. I cut it just the way the manual that came with the saw had described and it fell exactly where I wanted it to. I was pretty proud of myself.

We felled at least eight or nine of those big trees and cut them into lengths of four blocks. Then we had to move those big logs. They were to heavy to carry so we flipped them end for end. What a lot of work.

Cindy came up just as we were about half-done and helped us move logs. We put them in piles near our trails and the road so that we can cut them up and split them. Our neighbor at camp, Ronnie Leach, is kind enough to let us use his wood-splitter to split them up.

After our chore was done, Arlene grilled us up some Polish Sausage and we had them on a bun. We were starved. Mom came up for a visit as we were eating.

It was a beautiful sunny day. We took our time closing up camp and left about 4:00 PM. We stopped at Cindy's and put more Round-up on the poplar gads we had cut off. We knocked on her door but when I peeked in, it looked like she was asleep in her chair. So we went to the BP for an ice cream cone and headed home.

We got about two miles when Mary noticed that a large black cloud had come up out of nowhere to the west of us and was moving rapidly toward us. We joked that we had been trying to beat the rain all weekend and now we had to race it home.

As I drove faster the cloud seemed to be gaining on us and by the time we hit 9-mile road it had almost caught us. We hurried to get to the Soo before it hit. We dropped off Mary and Tiny and hustled home. We made it into the house and got everything unloaded as the rain hit.

I was in the shower when the thunder and lightening started. I got out of the shower and went downstairs to check the weather on the Internet because the sky looked really weird. Sure enough, we were under a severe thunderstorm warning.

It was a humdinger too. Some areas near us got baseball sized hail. Mom and Dad had lightening strike so close to the house that it blistered the paint on their back door and the wind was so bad that it blew their storm door open and broke one of the hinges.

Thank goodness we made it home before the thing hit. The storm was pretty severe.

We are hoping for better weather for next weekend.

Labor Day Weekend

Labor Day weekend was a bust! Friday night we had heavy rain and 60 mph winds and it was really scary here in the Soo.

Arlene had gone to Ohio with her sister, so Mary, Cindy and I planned a night at camp for Saturday. But, Saturday's weather wasn't much better than Friday's weather. We had rain and more wind so we canceled our Saturday stay at camp.

Sunday was a little better so when the rain cleared out by 11:30 am, I called the girls and we decided to head to Pickford. Mary, Tiny and I stopped at sister Cindy's trailer first to give her a hand.

We cut away the small poplar trees that had sprouted around her trailer and soaked them with Roundup to see if we can get rid of them. Then we fixed her screen door and back door so that they would latch. Mary fixed her tub faucet so that it would turn on without using pliers. We tried to fix her bathroom door knob but I think it needs a new knob.

Having finished our chores, we all got in the Blazer and headed to camp. It was cool but sunny so we sat outside for awhile and relaxed. I had brought burgers to cook out so I got to try out the new cook shack. My culinary skills are not in Arlene's class but I managed to cook the burgers without burning them.

By then, it had become a little chilly so we decided to eat inside rather than outside. Dinner was pretty good. Burgers, chips, fresh tomatoes and cucumbers.

After dinner, we opted to stay in and play Phase Ten.

I did remember to take some photos of the new tables we had made from the deck lumber leftover from the "Cluck Shack". They look pretty good if I say so myself.





It had begun to get dark so we closed up camp and decided to take a ride down the Three Mile Road toward Moms. Cindy had to drop off some books for Mom. We saw deer out in the fields near the river. Unfortunately, I only had the little binoculars that I keep in the Blazer console. We saw several nice bucks in the river fields.

We continued on toward Mom's and saw two does with fawns out in the fields. We turned around and started back and noticed some good sized deer that had joined the does and fawns. One deer seemed really large to me so I had Mary and Cindy take a look at it with the little binoculars. It was hanging at the edge of the field about 150 yards from us. Suddenly Mary said "Oh my gosh, that is a big buck".

I took the binoculars and sure enough, he was huge. Biggest buck I've ever seem. I had the camera in the car but it was too dark to get a photo. He seemed unconcerned with our presence and proceeded to walk majestically along the edge of the field.

We watched in awe until he disappeared into the brush at the end of the field. Wow! It was really a thrill to see a big buck like that.

We reluctantly headed to Moms and then home.

Hopefully, we'll get nicer weather for this weekend. We have wood to cut and lots of other chores at camp to get done.

"The Cluck Shack"

We had to tear the old side deck off of our house this summer and replace it. The new deck boards looked so nice that we decided to put new deck boards on the rest of it.

We hauled all the old lumber to camp and Arlene got this brainstorm for a lean-too for her grill. The grill is under a spruce tree and tree trash falls on it all the time. So she thought if it was under a shelter, it would stay cleaner and she would be out of the sun and rain while she was cooking.

So she drew up the plans for this lean-too and last weekend at camp we started building it. We used the 2 x 6's for the floor and used landscape timbers for the supports.





We used the old deck boards for the roof and for the floor.



This weekend, we headed back to camp to finish her lean-too. Mary and Tiny came up too so we had the whole crew.

Last weekend was cool and it rained off and on so we couldn't finish. We managed to get all of the boards cut so all we would have to do this weekend was screw them on. After a few glitches, we got the sides and the back on.

We had so much lumber left that we decided to make a small table to put by the fire so that when you are sitting in your chair you would have something to set your coffee or whatever on.

We used to use milk crates but they are really low and in the dark you can't see them very well and I always worry that someone will trip over them. Many times, I've set my cup down on what I thought was the crate and totally missed and dumped my coffee.

So I wanted a table and I thought that with the old deck boards it could look really rustic. So we started with an idea of how tall and wide we wanted and it turned out perfectly. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a photo of it. Oh well, next time.

It looked so great that Arlene thought we could make a tall one so that she could put it by her grill shack and have a place to set things as she is grilling. For some reason, the table didn't go together as well and the first one but we got it built.



Mom came up for a visit while we were working and we were telling her about the idea we had for the sign for our grill shack. She said that she would go home and make the stencils for us on her Cricket machine.

Today, we got up and had our coffee and packed up our suitcases and got them out of the trailer. While Arlene cleaned the trailer, Mary and I bravely tackled building another small table to set by the swing so we would have a table at each end. We managed to get the sides assembled and with Arlene's help put it together. It turned out so nice that Arlene had us move the old round table to the other end of the swing and she claimed the new table for her end.

Shortly after we finished it and were putting away the outside things, Mom pulled up. She had the stencils and her Sharpie markers and was ready to make our sign. Mary and Tiny had to go so Arlene and I visited with Mom while she sat at the old picnic table in the shade and made our sign.

It turned out really great and I think she was really happy to put her stamp on the new shack. After it was finished she wanted to see it up on the shack so I got my tools out of the car and attached the sign to the cook shack which we had named "The Cluck Shack". The sign really makes the shack look great.





Mom thought that the "Cluck Shack" sign turned out so well, that now she wants to make a "Camp Chicken" sign for out by the gate.

She had to go so Arlene and I finished packing up and closing up camp. It was 85 degrees today and really hot so we got in the car and turned up the A/C and headed home.

After unloading the car in the heat, a nice cool shower felt really, really good.

Family Visit July 2010

Well, we haven't been able to spend much time at camp this year.

We had to repair the north foundation of the house this spring, then we had to build a new side deck and then replace the boards on the back deck and Arlene had knee surgery, and then the summer has been very, very hot and humid.

The week of July 12th, my brother Chris, his wife Judy and my nephew Ross came home from Spokane, Washington for a nice visit.

They had flown into Minneapolis and rented a car and drove the rest of the way. On the way through Wisconsin, they bought fireworks and these really cool sparklers. Here, Chris and Ross are lighting them at the fire.



They spent two days at camp. We played croquet and badminton and had a nice fire both nights. The weather was a little cooler than it had been so evenings were pretty comfortable. The second evening the mosquitos got really bad so we went down to Mom and Dads to set off the rest of our bottle rockets and light more sparklers.


We went to Mackinac Island for a day, too. It was nice but pretty warm. We went to the Fort and the Butterfly House and had dinner at the famous Horn's Bar on Main Street. Here's some photos of us on the ferry return.





Friday, Chris was going to a golf scramble for his LSSU Computer Science and Math reunion, so Judy, Ross, Cindy and I went to the beach for the afternoon. The wind was really blowing so the waves were pretty big for Lake Huron. We had fun but as the afternoon wore on the wind just got stronger and stronger so we packed up and headed to Cedarville for supper.





We had a wonderful time but all too soon, their visit was over. Hopefully, they will be able to return next year and we can spend more than just two days at camp.

Saturday Trip to Camp

We took a trip to camp on Saturday to burn our brush pile while there is still snow on the ground and everything is still really wet.

We were up bright and early and after loading the car, picked up Mary.

When we turned onto the road that heads up to camp, we noticed that something was on the road. It was a large flock of wild turkeys. They were right in the middle of the road and in no real hurry to cross. I got some nice shots of them in front of the car.







On the way up to camp, Arlene spotted a deer standing completely motionless in a thicket by the road. It always amazes me how long a deer can stand perfectly still.



We got to camp and there was still snow left but not enough that I couldn't get through it with the Blazer. We had brought two fire sticks to get the brush pile going but the pile was so wet that they had little effect.

Arlene, ever the firebug, decided that we needed to try gas, so I drove to the storage shed to get the gas. But even that wouldn't get the pile going.

I decided to try a more traditional method so I walked to camp and got some maple and cedar sticks and then gathered birch bark. Finally, we managed to get the thing started.







Arlene and Mary tended the fire as it slowly burned away. It was quite windy, which helped fan the flames and kept things moving along.

As the pile began to really get going, a small mouse came scurrying out of the inferno and flopped on his back to "Stop, Drop, and Roll". Apparently, he had seen the video! He dived under the pile of birch bark and huddled there. We peeked in at him and found him to be shaken but largely unhurt. I'm sure he'll be inside our trailer in a few days, looking for a new home.

The fire finally died down to one stubborn wet spruce log and a pile of coals so Mary and Arlene rolled the spruce log into the wet snow to extinguish it and we poured two big cans of water on the coals and covered them with snow.

Satisfied that everything was completely out and the coals were cold, we went to check the trailer. We did have a couple of mice in our traps, so we cleaned that up.

Instead of getting warmer, it began to get colder so we headed to Hessel to gamble.

As usual, Mary and I had no luck and Arlene was pretty lucky.

About 7 o'clock, we decided to get something to eat. Arlene thought we should try out the food at the "Runway" Bar.

Now let me explain about the "Runway". When I was younger, the Runway Bar was a notorious "Dive". There were fights in there every single weekend and one time, someone got mad and tried to drive his car through the front door. My Gram called it the "Beer Garden", and would jokingly say "want to stop and hoist a few?" every time we passed there on a ride. Most people wouldn't be caught dead in the Runway.

But several years ago, new people bought the bar and completely remodeled and expanded it. Now it is very nice in there and really clean. The decor is what we call "North Woods" and they have old snowshoes and skis on the walls along with deer heads, a stuffed raccoon trying to open a Cracker Jack box, a stuffed squirrel, a coyote and even a martin.

I was reluctant to go there but Arlene convinced us and I was pleasantly surprised. It was really nice and the burger and fries were first rate. It was real hamburger made into patties not the frozen stuff from Gordon's foods.

We had a nice dinner and headed home. It had been a really long day and we were all ready for our beds.

Gladys Susie Rutledge - We Miss You Gram!

Today is my grandma, Gladys Rutledge's birthday. She would have been 106 years old. She passed away at the age of 100 on April 18th, 2004.

It is because of her and my grandpa, Elmer Rutledge, that Camp Chicken even exists. It belonged to them and when Gram passed, it was passed on to my mother, Gloria Smith.

Gram lived through many trials and changes, the Great Depression and all of the major world wars to name a few. She saw America change in so many ways. The things we take for granted today; cars, telephones, indoor plumbing, electricity, radio, and television were all "new" things in her lifetime.

Gram loved Camp Chicken, only she called it the "Forty". She liked to sit in a chair outside at camp and listen to the birds and the wind in the trees. She loved the sound of the wind in the trees and would always remark that "the trees are really talking today".

Camp brought her peace, I think, and good memories of the times she spent there with Gramp. They had huge gardens at camp and helped Mom and Dad cut wood to heat our house.

I think of her often when I'm at Camp and sometimes, I feel her presence there. Arlene, who has what I call "Native ESP", sometimes actually sees her spirit there. I think she comes to see what we are up to and to just make sure that we are all right. It is a comforting feeling, really.

I miss her and even now, I'll pick up the phone to call her if there is something on TV that I know she would like to see. Sometimes when I'm driving to Pickford, I'll think, "Oh, I should stop by and see Gram". Then I realize that she is gone.

She had a huge influence in my life. She told us stories about our family history and because of that, we know where we came from and how we got here. She taught us to be frugal with a dollar and to work hard.

Gram loved to read and passed on that love to our Mother, Gloria, who passed it on to us. My brother, sister and I all love to read and my nephew, Ross is a voracious reader. Ross gets his love of reading from his Mother, Judy and from our side of the family too.

Gram also loved the outdoors and was an avid birdwatcher all of her life. She took great pleasure in nature and all of the plants, trees, and animals that inhabit our world.

Gram was a wonderful cook and baker. She made the most incredible ginger/molasses cookies, chocolate chip cookies and my favorite, apple pie. I really miss the apple pie made from the transparent apples that grew on the apple trees at Camp Chicken.

I know that my sister Cindy really misses the ginger cookies.

One time when Gram and Gramp were away, Cindy and our cousin Sandie Nettleton got into Gram's large cookie jar and ate all of the ginger cookies. Boy, were they sick!

When Arlene was desperately ill with cancer and couldn't eat anything at all, Gram baked her ginger cookies every week, and told her to eat them because ginger helps settle your stomach. Arlene says that Gram's ginger cookies helped save her.

Oh Gram had her moments too. She had an awful temper and could be difficult. When she got very old, sometimes the bad seemed to outweigh the good. There were times when I know she drove my poor Mother crazy.

To my Mother's great credit, she still went to Gram's house every day after my Grandpa passed away in 1983 and made sure she was all right, brought Gram her mail, and did countless chores for her. I know it wasn't easy for her to be Gram's caregiver for so long.

But, as is usually the case, we tend to remember the good times we had with Gram and all of the wonderful things she did in her lifetime.

Happy Birthday, Gram! We sure miss you.

A Ride to Camp

Yesterday was a beautiful, sunny day here in the EUP so Arlene and I decided to take a ride to camp.

We have very little snow on the ground so the road in to camp was easy to navigate. Many thanks to Dana Galer who keeps the camp road plowed every winter.

We parked at the gate and walked in. I had put the snowshoes in the car, but we didn't even need them.

Camp was quite serene and quiet. There were quite a few animal tracks and we had fun investigating them. I love coming up here in the winter and looking at all of the tracks in the snow. You can really see what kind of critters visit camp while we are away.



There were small tracks that could be a fox or a small coyote and the spot under a spruce tree where he killed a rabbit for his dinner. The snow was all torn up and there was bunny fur everywhere.

That is nature's way. One dies so that one may live.

There were some mystery tracks also. This animal has fairly large feet but pushes a path through the snow as it moves. There were quite a few trails like this all over camp. We had fun guessing what it might be.

We saw no wolf tracks, thank goodness. There were big deer tracks though and he/she had wandered all over the camp clearing.

We brought the camera but never saw any animals to photograph. Darn. So we took turns taking each other's pictures.





I would guess that if we don't get any more snow this winter (fat chance of that), we will be able to start cutting wood in a couple of weeks.

Mom and Dad burned up everything we had cut for them and had to buy two cord of wood for the stove. It seems a shame that they had to buy wood, when we have 40 acres of maple to choose from.

Maybe with the new chain saw, I'll be able to cut larger diameter trees and we can borrow Ronnie's splitter and really get some wood done.

After spending some time at camp, we decided to go to Hessel casino. We had a lot of fun. As usual, Arlene gave me a twenty to play and I won her $200. I took my $10 that I had to spend and turned it into $40 so we left pretty happy.

Then it was on to the Soo. We wanted to take Cindy out for dinner but she is down and out with a terrible cold. So we went to the Soo casino and had dinner and gambled until midnight and didn't spend a nickle of our own money. Those kind of days are really fun.

We can't wait to start going to camp again. We have been playing Facebook games all winter and that has passed the time but I am ready for some outdoor pursuits.