Our Little "Up North" Retreat

One of the perks of working at the college is this wonderful retreat facility we can rent out when student groups aren't using it. It's only about two hours north of Green Bay but you really feel like you're getting away from it all. Below is a photo of the new lodge that was built after the original cabin was hit by lightning and burned to the ground a few years ago. Many people in the college community contributed to the rebuilding fund. It's really nice inside and out and still a major bargain to rent, but the only downside is that everybody wants to go there now.


In the old days we could rent this 40-acre property pretty much whenever we wanted to and it only cost $10 a day, but that was when it was really rustic. It was basically a one-room cabin with a few odd additions tacked on over the years, and the only running water came from a hand pump in the kitchen sink. And of course the outhouse was down the trail about 100 meters. I think the only people who used it were former military people like us and the science professors!

I guess in a way it was a blessing in disguise when it burned down, because now the place is much more accessible to everyone and it's benefitting our students in the way the donors originally intended it to do. A brief story about the property and the lodge is here on the college web site.

The Nature Channel Live

It was still way too cold for swimming, but we enjoyed some hiking in the woods and just watching "The Nature Channel" from outside on the deck.


There is a small island in the middle of the lake directly in front of the lodge, where a loon is currently nesting. It also has several large rocks which are prime sunning spots for the big turtles.


Here is what the lodge looks like from the lake. I took this shot from the canoe, and in the spirit of full disclosure I have to confess that all these photos were taken with a $5.99 disposable camera. I almost lost a $250 digital camera here on Memorial Day weekend of 2003. We were way out in the middle of the lake when a wicked north wind blew in and we nearly got swamped, so I wasn't taking any chances this year!


Everyone who uses this place is asked to chip in and help with the upkeep. The people before us took care of restocking the woodpile, so we tackled the boathouse and swept out a winter's worth of dead bugs. Now it's all cleaned up and reorganized in the finest Feng Shui tradition!