By Joe Crain
At long last the month of May brought some much-desired Spring weather to the Northwoods of Wisconsin. Though the lake was still mostly iced-over for the first five days of the month and temperatures struggled to get out of the 50s, things really turned around for the second week as temps reached above normal. The opening day of the fishing season here in Wisconsin was Saturday May 7th and on the morning of May 6th the lake was still 75% covered in ice! The local anglers didn’t let that hamper their plans as we watched several boats launch into the 200-foot band of open water between the shore and the ice at the public landing and along the shore past camp to the west. The temperature had bumped up near 70 degrees both the 4th and 5th, and the ice cover was looking very candled and slushy, so the boat launchers’ gamble that the ice would be off by Saturday morning was a pretty safe one. Sure enough, they were right, and by early afternoon on Friday the 6th we were watching waves out on the lake, and for the fishing opener the next morning the sky was sunny. Although the water temperature was still very cold, the air temperature reached up into the lower 70s and a delightful day on the boat was had by those who participated in the annual Spring rite!
That’s a fox alright!
Many other markers that Spring has sprung and is here to stay throughout the month were evident all around camp. One of my favorite Spring signs is the emerging of fox puppies from their dens. Camp has several fox dens, and it’s always exciting to see which den will show signs of fresh digging when the first litters are due. This May, the dens up behind the target shooting range showed signs of activity, and as I was passing by early in the month, three pups were out on the edge of the den sunning themselves. I stopped the truck up the road a bit and then snuck back on foot to see if I could get a better look. Two of the three darted back into the den as I approached, but one was very brave and let me watch him for a while. It looked to be a month old or so and was maybe about five pounds, about the same size as my adult Yorky, Zigs. After a while he spotted me spying on him and jumped down in the den. I stayed very still and quiet, and he slowly poked his nose out and emerged again, letting me watch a while longer as he groomed his paw and scratched at its ears.
Another fun sign of Spring I like to watch for is the migrating birds that work their way through camp’s forest. Early in the month, we spotted huge numbers of Common Redpolls. As the days of the month ticked past we were treated to the return of camp’s breeding Merlin hawks, and the call of loons returned soon after. I’ve had humming birds at the nectar bottles I hang around my house since the middle of the month, and in the last week I have been excited by the beautiful song and flashes of orange in the trees of Northern Orioles. I’ve heard Migrating Cranes and Swans as they pass over head and I’ve glimpsed a few in area ponds. They usually only pass by on their way farther South and are rarely seen on our lake for reasons beyond me.
The Axeman/Lumberjack shower room is getting a facelift and new dividers!
Around the shop we are in full Spring mode as the camp season heads our way. Caretaker Andy has re-connected all of the water system and filled the water tower for the first time this year. He had to push that job out as late as he could do to the threat of frost that can burst water pipes late in the month. But things have turned warmer again, and the system got its annual bleaching this week. The whole waterworks was sanitized and ready for the arrival of the second wave of camp occupants: the pre-camp crew who arrived on the 30th and headed into the water the next day to get the docks installed. Thankfully for the pre-campers, the lake temperature has risen quite a bit since the late ice out at the beginning of the month and the water is quite nice. I had my feet in the other day and thought the temp was quite tolerable. I also know of a couple of our staff have been in swimming already and only one of them spent the rest of the day complaining of a permanently lowered core temperature!
Looking forward to that day in June when the buses roll up to the gate filled with all of the eager campers, it’s Caretaker Joe At Camp.