A Strange Day

It is a strange day today. After breakfast Bruce went out to feed some corn to the deer. Not one deer came looking for food. In fact, right now at almost 10:30 a.m. we have yet to have even one deer in the yard. I went down to the lodge earlier and there are no deer around the lodge either. Our speculation is that there is a wolf pack hanging around and the deer won’t come in. We will see what happens as the day continues.

Today is partially cloudy with the sun peaking out between the clouds. It’s about 5 degrees outside but feels colder because the wind is blowing. I can hear the wind inside my office as I type this blog. Just a couple of minutes ago I poked my head out the door to listen to the sled dogs yipping as they went down to Campers’ Island. The clouds are supposed to clear up tonight and the temperature drop. I don’t really care as we got 3-4 inches of new snow last night. We have been getting a few new inches on a regular basis. It keeps our ski trails in great shape. Bob Baker was going out this morning to groom the trails after our snowfall.

One of the neighbors saw a wolf down by the Tucker Lake Road. She said it was huge and in no rush to move off the road. It is times like that when you are happy to be in a vehicle. You kind of get a chill up and down your spine.

Another neighbor was snowmobiling down Gunflint to go fishing on Tuesday. He came across a dead coyote on the ice. My immediate question was how he knew it was a coyote and not a wolf. The answer was its size. Coyote are lots smaller than wolves. Again we speculate on what happened. It probably was a wolf kill.

Gunflint Lodge is starting to be an engagement capital. This week we had Emily and Matt get engaged. He popped the question during a pre-arranged stop on their dog sled ride. The mushers conveniently got lost in the woods during the moment. Here is the happy couple at dinner that night.

Bruce and I along with Daughter Shawn spent last weekend in Minneapolis. We exhibited at a three-day Women’s Expo and a one-day Bridal Fair. Both events were in the same building which was handy. The Women’s Expo was not always as busy as we might have liked. During one quiet moment Bruce was enticed over to the booth across from us. They advertised an instant facelift in a bottle. Here is Bruce sampling their wares.

He didn’t buy so I guess his face will continue to sag.

Sheryl and Bonnie took a day off yesterday. They went up to Grand Portage and hiked into the High Falls on the Pigeon River. Sheryl said it was just gorgeous. Here is her picture to prove it.

With the cold temperatures we have had this winter, there are plenty of ice creations to see anytime you get near water.

One of the neighbors on Seagull Lake reports that a lynx has been hanging around their home for the past couple of days. She has seen it but can’t get a picture. She is a little concerned about her dog and won’t let him out alone. A lynx could take a dog with no trouble. Meanwhile there are lots of rabbits and fox around to keep the big cat happy.

This weekend is the chocolate lovers’ weekend. I have been baking cookies for their cabins, the front desk, and the car ride home. I also made a pumpkin seed-cacao brittle to be crumbled on one of the salads. The rest of the salad is endive, roasted beets, goat cheese, and a vinaigrette. We have found appetizers, entrees, pastas, and desserts that all have varying degrees of chocolate flavoring from just a hint to very intense. I hope that everyone enjoys it.

I just walked back to the kitchen. Still no deer coming in. It is very strange.