10/18/05 – Sunday morning, the dogs’ short howls and yelps of joy told me we had visitors. I quickly set down the log I was carrying and began trotting down the hill toward the kennel and my visitors. It was still early and the sun’s first rays accentuated fall’s golden hues. After a few minutes I heard OB’s voice and found the whole Oberholtzer family piling out of their station wagon. OB said the Surbaughs would be there in a few minutes, bringing the grand total up to four kids (dressed in their Halloween best), four parents, six sled dogs, and myself.
After some picture taking and a tour of my place we began harnessing the dogs. They howled, barked, and lunged in their harness, anxious for a chance to run. We hooked Lichen, Saylix, Thistle, Fennel, and Daisy up to a three-wheeled cart designed for exercising sled dogs before the snow falls. We pulled the brake, and were greeted by the calming silence that comes when the team starts to run.
Steve and his son Will took the first ride, and we continued making trips up and down the Brule Lake Road until everyone had a chance. Shortly after graduating from college, and long before Will and Tristan came along, Kate and Steve Surbaugh worked at Sawbill. After a few seasons at Sawbill they moved to Ely and led dogsled trips for Wintergreen Dogsled Lodge. Now they have moved back to Cook County, and they own and operate Cascade Property Sales. After I graduated from college, Kate and Steve suggested that I work for Wintergreen Lodge, which introduced me to dog sledding, and gave my life a whole new twist.
Kate and Steve are dogsledding veterans, but OB, Kat, Will, Tristan, and Cy had never run dogs before, so this was a totally new experience. I hope they have caught the dogsledding bug and will visit again soon.

(Left to Right)Hazel the cow, Cy the cat, Will the dinosaur, and Tristan the cat all dressed up and ready to Trick or Treat.

Cy takes his parents OB and Kat for a dogsled ride.

10/16/05 – Carl and Clare attended the Grand Marais High School homecoming dance last night. The theme was “a night in Paris”, and Clare was escorted by special guests Carl Shakur and Beau Smalls. Everyone had a good time dancing the night away. One of Clare’s best friends, Jessica Heil, was named Homecoming Queen.

10/12/05 – Last night Jeff, Laura and I piled into a canoe after closing the store and headed for one of the campsites in Alton Bay. We had the lake to ourselves, and the canoe slid easily through the water, propelled by Laura and Jeff’s strong, steady strokes. After unloading the canoe we began exploring our temporary home as the sun lost its grip on the land. Red pines larger than my arms could span stood guard over our tent which was nestled amongst a small stand of white spruce. The stars shone bright by the time the tent was up and our beds made, and we immediately crawled into our sleeping bags to ward off the cold. With a flick of my lighter I ignited a small piece of birch bark nestled in a pile of dry wood. Within minutes the warmth from the woodstove radiated throughout the tent, and we were able to crawl out of our sleeping bags and bask in the warmth like painted turtles on a sun-drenched log. The hiss of the fire and a candle’s soft glow lulled us to sleep as Laura read an excerpt from the Ernest Oberholtzer biography, “Keeper of the Wilds”.
From the comforts of our warm tent it was hard to comprehend the trials and hardships Ernest Oberholtzer must have faced during his legendary canoe voyage in 1912 through the barren lands and down the coast of Hudson Bay in a wood and canvas canoe. All I could think of was how glad I was that he had made it back alive. If he hadn’t, there is a good chance the spot where we slept, and the wilderness that surrounded us, would be as distant a memory as the amazing canoe voyage he took. Later in life, Ernest played a key role in preserving what is now known as Voyageurs National Park, the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, and Quetico Provincial Park. Many people fall in love with this great wilderness, but few leave as lasting an impression as Ernest Oberholtzer. – Dave

Fall colors make a morning commute much more enjoyable.

10/10/05 – Yesterday, Bill, Laura, Jeff, and Pat took a break after the weekend visitors left for home to play a rousing game of soccer. All summer long the parking lot in front of the store is filled with cars waiting for their owners to return from canoe trips. In the fall, as the number of canoeists dwindles to a handful, the parking lot empties and wonderful playing field is revealed.
Laura has been antsy to play soccer for several weeks, and yesterday she finally got her way. After an intense round of stretching and warm up drills, the two-person teams lined up for battle. It quickly became apparent that Laura and Bill would dominate the game. When the dust finally settled Jeff and Pat had scored 2 goals to Bill and Laura’s 10.
Laura told me that I could take Pat’s place for the next game, but I think I would prefer to take Bill’s place because the word around Sawbill is that Laura was the MVP. – Dave

10/7/05 – We had our first snow yesterday. Snow showered down all afternoon and evening. We awoke to snow covered roofs this morning.

Homer collects the first snowflakes of the season.

10/5/05 – There has been a dramatic shift in the weather over the last few days, and the cold and wet days have caused the pace to slow around Sawbill. Luckily the forecast calls for sunshine over the weekend, and I think we are all anxious for a little sun after several days of cold rain.
The weather has not stopped the moose hunters, and several parties are still roaming the area looking for moose. One group of hunters followed Bill’s advice and headed up to Handle Lake to look for moose. They returned with a Bull later that day, loaded it into a giant trailer that they had converted into a freezer before the hunt. It is always interesting to see the different contraptions that people come up with to transport their moose.

10/3/05 – Jasmine headed to the Beach Club to sunbathe and go for a dip in Sawbill this afternoon, and the sunny, unseasonably warm weather continues. Bill and I have been busy preparing canoes for sale. Canoes, packs, tents, and many more used items are now available. You can purchase items through our online store, or feel free to give us a call.
Adam reported that a group of moose hunters shot a moose on Brule Lake on Saturday around 7:30 AM. They had 14 days to shoot a moose, but their hunt only lasted about 30 minutes.
Alison’s family went on an over night canoe trip over the weekend, and her father came back looking like he had been training to become a professional mud wrestler. While unloading their canoe between Sawbill and Smoke Lake he was thrown off balance and went sailing into the muck next to their canoe. Luckily it was warm, and he has a good sense of humor.

Jim heads for the showers to clean up after his first mud wrestling attempt of the season.
Ed Dancek brought three of his friends up to Sawbill for a canoe trip this week. The trip was a way to thank Greg Fuhrman, David Monos, and Bill Widdicombe for helping Ed rebuild his house after Hurricane Charlie destroyed it last summer. Ed lives in Punta Gorda, Florida, and his brother in laws, David and Bill, each flew down to Florida twice to help Ed and his co-worker Greg work on Ed’s house.

Ed and his friends relaxing after their trip.

10/1/05 – The moose hunting season started today, and the hunters were treated to another fine fall day. In reality it feels more like August 1, but who can complain about shorts and T-shirt weather in October? The customers seem to be fooled into thinking it is August as well, because the store was packed at 8 AM this morning. Hunters, leaf peepers, and regular old canoeists couldn’t wait to get in the door this morning.
Adam Hansen, Sawbill’s lawyer in training, is up visiting with, Rishi Gupta, a friend from law school. Today they are off grouse hunting, and inventorying land for the Friends of the Boundary Waters. The Friends of the Boundary Waters are surveying over 90,000 acres of undeveloped lands adjacent to the BWCAW in hopes that some day the wilderness can be expanded. Volunteers like Adam are responsible for taking photos of different sections of forest to help determine which areas are good candidates for wilderness protection.

9/28/05 – The juncos have been hopping up and down every path available searching for stray seeds to eat. Occasionally we hear a loud thunk as the squirrels throw pinecones down onto our buildings. Despite all these notorious signs of fall, we were treated, yesterday, to one more day of summery weather. The remaining crew members took advantage of the sunshine by having one last picnic outside on the back porch.

Today’s weather has not been quite as cooperative. The skies have been grey since dawn and the wind has a touch of winter in its cold gusts. As a result, our picnic today was moved into the store and we dined on tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches by the fireplace.

9/25/05 – Fall has certainly hit up here in the northwoods. The leaves on the trees are becoming more vibrant with each passing day. We even had our first partial frost a couple nights ago when the temperatures neared freezing. The weather, however, is not the only indicator we use to guage the seasons. We are down to a small company of crew members around to run the place. With so few of us left, we have found ourselves turning to our canine companions for entertainment. Homer provides near constant amusement with his games of hide-and-go-seek in the fallen pine needles. He was also recently found trying on a sled dog harness, clearly anticipating the coming winter.
-Alison

Homer attempts a little stealth as he hides in the needles.

Retrievers pulling dog sleds? It could just work.