7/26/13 – The Sawbill crew has had some quality bonding time this week! At the beginning of the week, there was a tent orientation where the entire crew tested the capacity of our new tents. Then, yesterday being the 25th of July, we appropriately held a Christmas in July party! On Wednesday, ‘Christmas’ Eve, the entire crew pitched in to decorate cookies for the upcoming bash, resulting in some beautiful and some not-so-beautiful cookies. They all tasted delicious, however. Yesterday night, we dined on a Christmas feast (with the cookies for dessert), exchanged Secret Santa gifts and generally had a good time. – Britta

The entire crew (including the puppies) does fit in one Timberline four man tent! There wasn’t much leg room, though.

Everyone shows off the finished tasty treats on ‘Christmas’ eve.

The crew in their festive gear after the Christmas feast. Look at all those Santas and elves!

7/26/13 – Here is this week’s edition of the Cook County West End News from WTIP, North Shore Community Radio. – Bill

7/25/13 – The other week, former crew members Clare Hansen and Dan Shirley dropped in from Missoula, Montana to go on a canoe trip. Not only did they have a great time, but they also caught a really big fish! They landed this monster Northern Pike on one of the BWCA’s many fishing lakes,using only four pound test line and Diawa minispin rod. The pair didn’t even have a net or a leader! While both Clare and Dan were pretty excited about their catch, they decided to release it back into the lake and instead dine on some of the smaller, more manageable fish they caught. – Britta

Dan with his big fish. Photo by Clare Hansen.

7/24/13 – On a routine trip into Tofte for groceries and other necessities, Laura and I came across a lone Timber Wolf trotting down the Sawbill Trail. He ran alongside our car for a good five minutes (just enough time to snap some great photos!) before we decided to drive past him. – Nicole

Panting..it was definitely a hot day for a run!

He didn’t seem to have a problem with the paparazzi..

7/17/13- A week and a half ago, Sawbill held its annual Dome Dance. This contra-type dance is called by the fantastic Terrence Smith, and always boasts a stellar folk band. Since the dance was held so close to the 4th of July, we had many former crew and campers join us. As these photos show, a good time was had by all! – Britta

A circle dance. Photo by Clare Hansen.

Joe and Allison promenade in a stately fashion. Photo by Clare Hansen.

The dome dance always involves copious amounts of twirling and spinning. Photo by Clare Hansen.

Bill sneaked away from the band to dance with Cindy. Photo by Clare Hansen.

Photo by Clare Hansen.

Carl shows off his best dance moves and his dancing face. Photo by Clare Hansen.

7/15/13 – Here is this week’s edition of the Cook County West End News from WTIP, North Shore Community Radio and a couple of pictures of the luna moths mentioned. – Bill

Attracted by the light. Photo by Carl Hansen, copyrighted and used by permission.

Luna moths sleeping the day away on the luna moth tree.

7/14/13 – Sawbill’s snapping turtles are back in residence. On and off throughout the years, one to two snapping turtles have been spotted hanging out in Sawbill Lake. This year, two have been spotted, but they haven’t caused any problems. While in the water, snapping turtles are generally quite docile- if you don’t bother them, they shouldn’t bother you. However, snappers should be given their space on land because they can’t pull their legs and arms into their shells for protection which makes them aggressive if approached too closely. This female snapper that resident photographer Carl Hansen caught on land in early July looked to be laying her eggs. Snappers normally lay eggs mid-June, but the long winter and cold spring have delayed many natural processes. – Britta

A front view of one of Sawbill’s snapping turtles. Photo by Carl Hansen.

The snapping turtle from the side. Photo by Carl Hansen.

7/13/13 – The crew picture for this year has been taken! Last Friday, almost every crew member for this year gathered in front of the store to take a picture in this year’s crew shirts. The shirt features a cute woodblock print of Roy and lists his loves underneath the picture. Roy also got his own shirt, although he didn’t seem too overjoyed to wear it. – Britta

Back Row (from left to right): Luke Opel, Ana Koch, Sarah Davidson, Carl Hansen, Hank Anders Hansen, Crista Clark, Tyler Campbell, Jessica Hemmer, Joe Daniels, and the photo is Leif Gilsvik who couldn’t join us as he is paddling the Mississippi. Middle Row: Nils Anderson. Front Row: Meg Simon, Bill Hansen, Phoebe Fern Hansen, Roy Wonder Hansen, Laura Hoppe, Britta Dornfeld, Cindy Hansen and Nicole Kline.

Roy unwillingly showing off his shirt–he got a biscuit afterward.

7/9/13 – With the casual changes from sun to rain, the types of bugs we’ve been seeing have been oscillating on a daily basis. While the epic battle between the mosquito and the dragon fly continues..deer and black flies have been as persistent as ever to be as annoying as they can manage. But there are some friendlier and more interesting bugs that make the insects up here something to pay attention to. -Nicole

I went to go catch the sunset down at the landing the other warm evening and found these Canadian Tiger Swallowtail butterflies hanging out!

Though I’ve visited Sawbill since I was a kid..this was my first time seeing the turtle-esque Carrion Beetle!

7/6/13 – July 4th, of course, means dragon boat racing at Sawbill. It was a beautiful and competitive evening for all! -Nicole

The four teams line up right before starting time! Photo by Erik Torch

It was a close one and everyone did some excellent paddling.. but team “‘Merica” prevailed! This team included Tyler Campbell, Carl Hansen, Jessica Hemmer and myself. Photo by Erik Torch