I awoke last Saturday morning to a beautiful scene at the lake! A heavy fog overnight had coated all of the trees, shrubs, and brush with a heavy frost. It was an absolutely amazing sight! Since there’s been a lack of snow this year to enjoy snowmobiling on trails and exploring new places, it’s been a struggle to keep my glass “half full”. The picture of the lake, though, definitely helped with filling the glass.
My family was planning a long ride for the day with a few of our friends. I just couldn’t seem to get excited about it, though, because I knew the trails weren’t going to be very good and the lakes and rivers are full of hazards this year due to being so low with exposed rocks and open areas of water. So I let the rest of the gang go on their way exploring up north without me. I decided to stay back and explore our little slice of heaven on Lake Vermilion on my own with my trusty camera. To many people this would sound boring as heck, but it honestly turned out to be such a relaxing day for me. It also felt very liberating!
I got myself all geared up to head out on the lake for a day of exploring. This would be the first time I’ve ever done this in the winter time (all by myself). It felt a little scary and downright eerie at first. We’re always very careful in our family to always have a buddy to ride with just in case of a breakdown with the sled. But honestly I’ve spent many days in the cabin hanging out on the days I don’t want to do a long ride and always regret not being adventurous enough to get out there and explore on my own. After a lot of self-talking and thinking things like “my goodness, Kimberly, you’re independent. You know where to go on the lake. You can put your own gas in, etc.” I took off from our cabin and hit the lake. I must have stopped four times in the first fifteen minutes to take pictures of the beauty surrounding me. I like to ride with my ITunes playing in my helmet. It’s a magical feeling to look around and see the beautiful trees all while exploring on your own and listening to your favorite music.
Life is about compromise many times and I’m used to doing this when I ride with others. It’s just normal to all decide as a group where everyone wants to ride for a destination. Today, though, was all about me. It was all about where I wanted to ride and stop along the way. That, in itself, was refreshing to me.
My first stop after about half an hour was to get gas at a local marina. This was quite comical for me and definitely made me feel independent. Upon pulling off of the lake into the marina lot, there were four other snowmobilers lined up at the gas pump. I pulled in behind the fourth sled and turned off my sled. Of course the next thing you do is open your helmet so you don’t fog over and take my gloves off to pump the gas. This is when I noticed that the group in front of me were whispering and peaking in my direction. It was four men in their mid 40’s to late 50’s and I could tell they were pretty impressed with a “chick” hitting the lake on her own. No words were exchanged, just a few smiles and nods. After they left I pulled up to the pump and filled up my blue and black baby to hit the lake again. I must admit I did have a smile on my face as I took off for the next leg of my adventure.
The next few miles brought a few new surprises for me. There’s an area on the lake, known as Moccasin Point. There used to be a great little bar/restaurant there in the past that offered a gas stop and good burgers and beer. They were known for their Moccasin Point Fries! YUM! It was a sad day to all on the lake when the owners sold to the state’s DNR in order to make a public launch area. The lake is always staked for the snowmobilers to find their way to and from different places around the lake. Normally you stay on the staked trail and ride right by Moccasin Point. Two weeks ago this was the case. So you can imagine my surprise when I came around the corner at the Point and discovered there was open water where we normally ride by the old bar. The snowmobile club had moved the stakes over, however, and made a small portage over land in order to avoid the open water.
I crossed over the portage and then headed on to get a signature bloody mary at TheVermilion Club. Margaret makes the world’s greatest bloody mary and I had been thinking of having one for weeks. Well…I guess I’ll just have to wait another week to have hers. I started toward the VC, but came up on an ice ridge that had open water and slushy water on both sides of the ridge. I carefully edged up to the ridge where I could tell other sleds had crossed over, but I heard this little voice say to me “don’t get too brave there Kimberly”, so I turned myself around and headed back to the main stakes on the lake. Part of me is mad at myself for being a chicken and not going for it, but the other side of me knows that I did the smart thing since I was riding alone. Those are the risks to take when you have someone else along to help in case of a problem. Below are a few pictures of what you might see when a ridge is coming up. The clubs always post caution signs to alert snowmobilers. And honestly, you would have to be blind or drunk to not see most of these ridges this year. You can see the ridge off in the distance in the first picture. I’ve included a few different pictures to show those of you who don’t snowmobile just what an ice ridge looks like and how we cross over when paths are made for us. Never fear though…..fun was still to be had for me.
I ended up at BayView Lodge for my bloody mary. I have to say, Laura at BayView knows how to make a great bloody mary also! Thanks Laura for satisfying my craving last Saturday. BayView was another reminder to me that I was a loan chick on the lake. There was an older couple at the bar when I got there having a drink, but the rest of the place was empty. It only took a few minutes, though, for two different groups of men to ride in for a warm up and “breath sweetner.” (My dad used to call alcoholic beverages breath sweetners when I was a little girl.) Once again I could tell there was intrigue among the group about whether I had ridden there by myself. It only took a few minutes for one of the men to ask me where I had ridden from. When I told them I came from the other end of the lake by the river I could tell they were somewhat impressed. One of them asked where I was headed next and when I said “The Landing”, they inquired about me guiding them there. Well at twenty-five I may have fallen for that request but at forty-five I’m quick to recognize a bad idea when it’s staring at me in the face. I wasn’t about to have nine grown men that were drinking and riding following me around the lake. So I quickly rejected a second drink offer from the group and geared up to hit the lake. I must admit it felt pretty good to walk out to my sled and hop on and ride off into the distance (by myself).
Off to TheLanding I went. Last year the owner of The Landing surprised everyone with a new tradition. He figured out a way to design an ice bar down by the lake. He takes five gallon buckets and fills them with water. After they are frozen he designs a bar out of the ice. It’s a really cool idea and a treat to see. Some of the ice blocks have food coloring and there are lights, etc. If you order a shot of liquor or a drink, both are served out of solid ice glasses and shot glasses. He also has many interesting fur hats and dress up items if you need extra apparel while visiting the bar. Here are a few pictures of the bar and the bartender having fun.
My adventure was coming to an end. I was feeling like a cozy fire at the cabin and a cup of hot chocolate. So I headed home and ended my sixty mile adventure for the day without any mishaps or issues. It wasn’t more than an hour or so of being at the cabin that my family found their way home from their adventure. A great day for all was had!
