4/19/15 – We didn’t hang around on the lake very long for today’s ice report. Just long enough to drill a hole and measure 13.5″ of ice. The last week of summer-like weather has changed to an all day rain with temperatures in the high 30s. – Bill

Brian drills the hole from the safety of the canoe. It was probably safe to stand on the ice, but we didn’t want to find out the hard way that it wasn’t.

4/18/15 – Today’s ice thickness is 15″. It’s hard to believe that we were confidently skiing around the Kelso Loop just a week ago. Progress has been rapid, but the forecast taking a drastic turn for the colder tomorrow and for the foreseeable future. Sigh. – Bill

We have another celebrity ice testing technician today. Tyler Campbell, Duluth native who now lives in Colorado and long-time Sawbill crew member, does the honors.

4/17/15 – The ice measured 17″ thick on Sawbill Lake today. The first foot is just loose slush with 7″ of clear, hard ice under that.

When we arrive at the lake each day for the ice measurement, Phoebe, Chief of Outfitter Security, and Roy, Deputy Chief of Outfitter Security, execute a perimeter reconnaissance to identify and neutralize downrange threats.

Too thick to paddle, too thin to walk. Looking north from the Sawbill Lake canoe landing.

Brian gets the honor of carrying the first canoe of the season to the lake.

…and now you see how the canoe is used.
Here are the most recent editions of the Cook County West End News from WTIP-FM, North Shore Community Radio:
April 16th, 2015
April 9th, 2015
April 2nd, 2015
March 26th, 2015

4/16/15 – Today’s ice thickness on Sawbill Lake was 18.5″. The warm spell continues. – Bill

4/15/15 – We have visiting celebrity ice auger operators for today’s Sawbill Lake ice thickness report. The ice was 20″ thick, very soft for the first foot and pretty solid for the last 8″. – Bill

Former Sawbill crew members, Leif “Leifboat” Gilsvik and Jess “Hammer” Hemmer, acting as honorary ice depth testers. Don’t worry, they both took a turn on the auger.

In honor of the visitors, we had the first outdoor lunch of the season. Photo by Brian “Mongo” Henry.

Brian found this beautiful and intrepid crocus in the yard between snowbanks.

4/14/15 – Sawbill crew member Brian Henry is back on the job and one of his first duties was to drill a hole and test the ice thickness. The warm spell is taking its toll with a loss of more than 4″ since yesterday.

Brian couldn’t do it without the help of Roy and Phoebe.

Today’s measurement is 21″, down from 25.5″ yesterday. Bright sun, wind and warm nights make for quick melting.
Meanwhile, Sawbill’s own Cindy Hansen is in Germany, enjoying spring on the shores of Lake Constance in Bavaria. Her trip is part vacation and part acting as an unpaid assistant to her sister Sherrie who travels to Germany for her job.

Cindy imitates a statue in the background.

4/13/15 – On my way home yesterday, I was treated to a couple of fun weather phenomena. – Bill

The Temperance River was breaking up under the 600 Road bridge along the Sawbill Trail. This classic old iron bridge is slated for replacement soon.

The first Spring storm of 2015 as seen halfway up the Sawbill Trail. It eventually yielded .35″ of rain, along with strong winds, thunder and lightning.

4/11/15 – Spring arrived abruptly today with the temperatures shooting up into the high 50s. My old friend and former Sawbill crew member, Joyce Klees, came up for t-shirt weather ski trip around the Kelso Loop.
Roy and Phoebe accompanied us. Phoebe fell into the water once and Roy twice. They didn’t really break through the ice, but more just jumped into the open water. They climbed out themselves and continued on the journey.
Today may be the last day of skiing for the season. – Bill

Does this qualify as water-skiing?

Open water at the mouth of Kelso Creek on Sawbill Lake.

Roy and Phoebe soaking up the sun after their chilly dip.

4/5/15 – Swans!
Yesterday, as we were driving home from Grand Marais, we slowed down to look at some open water on the Temperance River near Baker Lake. To our surprise, there were two swans swimming in the river. In my 59 years at Sawbill, I’ve only seen one other swan and that was just flying over head. – Bill

Distance and lack of experience keep me from judging if these are Tundra or Trumpeter Swans.

3/24/15 – A couple of weeks of warm weather have transformed Sawbill from deep winter to an extended spring season. Around here, I’ve always heard this season referred to as the “crusted snow moon.” That is certainly the case at the moment.

Skiing down the Temperance River on crusted snow a few days ago. Right after this picture was taken I saw moose tracks on the river and even the moose was being held up by the crust! Photo by Nickie Dietz.

Here I am with the great group of friends that skied down the Temperance River. Photo by Nickie Dietz.

These warm, early spring days bring out an insect know locally as “snow fleas.” They are actually a species of spring tails that jump long distances when they feel threatened. They move so fast, they give the illusion of just disappearing.

Sawbill Lake is like a big open field for Phoebe and Roy this time of year. They love to run joyfully and bark at ravens flying overhead. What looks like slush is actually frozen solid.
Here are the last few weeks editions of the West End News from WTIP-FM, North Shore Community Radio:
March 19th, 2015
March 12th, 2015
March 5th, 2015
February 26th, 2015
Last but not least, let’s not forget that the canoeing season is just around the corner.

Canoeist, Craig Nathan, was nice enough to send along this evocative early morning shot of the Sawbill Lake canoe landing as he began is trip to Cherokee last June. – Bill