Caribou Journal - 1992

Thursday, April 9th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Arrived 9:30pm, 34 degrees. Started a fire and wall heater. Needed four wheel drive to get over the soft icy spots on the driveway. Jeff started the water and the hot water heater. Too cold to use the porch. Ate pizza and went to bed after 1am.

Friday, April 10th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Snowing and blowing, 29 degrees. Water frozen. Jeff spent most of day trying to thaw. Several frozen spots but he got it thawed to the outside spigot. Drained it back after filling the stainless milk cans. Jeff finished hanging and wiring the fixture above the stove. Walked out to the gate and 49. Meg got full of snow. It was cold and windy. 4 inches of snow.

Saturday, April 11th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Jeff's Birthday. High 33 degrees. Partly cloudy. Jeff to water from the lake. The ice was thin. Megan tried it out and fell through to her chest. We cut down a birch tree. Took a walk to the big rock. Megan took off. Maybe she smelled a deer. Jeff started the Jeep. We went to Marcell. Jeff split some birch from last year. The lake thundered all night.

Sunday, April 12th, 1992 - entry by Pat
10 degrees in the morning. Mostly sunny. Went for a walk. Filled the wood box. Cleaned the cabin.


Friday, May 1st, 1992 - entry by Pat
75 degrees and cloudy. Arrived 6:30pm. Broken into again. They broke the bottom of garage door, broke center panels out of shed door and kicked in the door of cabin (broke the lock off). I drove into Marcel to call the sheriff while Jeff worked on the water. Can't find anything missing from garage or shed. They took the flashlight and gas fire starter from the cabin. Sheriff deputy arrived about 7:30pm. Jeff got the water started and we didn't find any leaks.

Saturday, May 2nd, 1992 - entry by Pat
50, windy and sprinkles. Went for morning walk. Went to garage sale and found a $2 door for the shed and a saw to do repairs. Stopped at T'man's...they were there by hadn't been broken into. Jeff started repairs while I painted the vent cover. I wheel barrowed several loads of birch from the tree we cut down last year. Jeff fixed the cabin door and the garage door. The garage took the longest because it was broken. Temps down to about 45 degrees.

Sunday, May 3rd, 1992 - entry by Pat
Went for morning walk. Jeff temporarily fixed the shed door and looked for materials to do permanent repairs. We raked leaves from around shed and garage to cut down on moisture.


Friday, May 22nd, 1992 - entry by Pat
Arrived about 9:30pm. Traffic was bad until about Garrison. Left Minneapolis 85 degrees and humid. Arrived here 40 degrees. 1 3/10 inches in rain gauge. Made pizza and built a fire. JoAnn and Jeff N. made Tom Collins.

Saturday, May 23rd, 1992 - entry by Pat
Jeff started the Jeep and the tractor. Went into Marcell to check out the new bait shop. Got gas and JoAnn and Jeff N. bought souvenirs. Went to garage sale. Returned home and took down the big dead birch by the power line (had to use the tractor and chains so that it wouldn't fall on power line). Then we went to the point and took down all the dead trees and Jeff drove the tractor over the crush down. Jeff N. started splitting wood and JoAnn and Jeff took a Jeep ride.

Sunday, May 24th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Went on a road trip to find Cameron Lake. Found the old road in but had to walk in. Lots of ticks. Finally found the boat landing by taking the snowmobile trail which is on a forest service road. Rough ride but the Cherokee made it OK.

Monday, May 25th, 1992 (Memorial Day) - entry by Pat
50 degrees, partly cloudy


Saturday, May 30th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Sunny and 70 degrees. Arrived 5:00pm. Unpacked. Jeff worked on the cellular phone.

Sunday, May 31st, 1992 - entry by Pat
Jeff fixed the coffee pot. Took the first call on the cell phone. We put in the dock. Mowed down by the lake. Jeff put new battery in boat while I mowed out by 49. Jeep wouldn't start so Jeff had to walk out with the new battery. We drove boat and Jeep down to the lake and put the boat in the water. I mowed the rest of the lawn while Jeff got the boat running then Jeff raked the beach. Jeff went swimming. We ate dinner and went for a boat ride.

Monday, June 1st, 1992 - entry by Pat
Sunny and 75-80. I painted the kitchen ceiling while Jeff cleaned all of the windows inside and out. After painting I washed down the butternut walls in the kitchen with Murphy's oil soap. Washed the kitchen curtains. Late in the afternoon we went fishing on Caribou. Jeff caught one rock bass but let it go. We saw a deer by Dave's cabin.

Tuesday, June 2nd, 1992 - entry by Pat
Jeff went out fishing early. I washed the bedroom walls with oil soap, washed the curtains and washed the ceiling. Jeff made saw horses and cut down and installed the new door in the little cabin. Lots of fitting.

Wednesday, June 3rd, 1992 - entry by Pat
Jeff finished the little cabin door. He put in a new sill and we had to build it up from the ground. We hauled rocks up from the lake to back fill. We went fishing to Duck Lake about 4pm. We had a meal in 11 minutes. We continued to fish but only kept the three best. We went home and fried them for dinner.

Thursday, June 4th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Jeff pulled the toilet to see what parts we needed. He also took apart the water heater but he was able to fix it so we didn't need parts for that. We drove into Grand Rapids. We went to L&M, car wash, picked up a Manny's and found lots of stuff at Cole's Hardware. We also stopped at the grocery store. We returned about 5pm and Jeff put the toilet back in place. He had to cut 3/4 inch boards as the flange is sticking out of floor.

Friday, June 5th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Jeff put new battery terminals on the Jeep. We planted one tree on the beach. We cut up all the piles of wood. Joe, Judy, Matt and Jennifer arrived about 10pm.

Saturday, June 6th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Jeff, Matt and Joe went fishing on Caribou early. Judy, Jennifer and I took the long way into town (Marcell). Jeff, Matt and Joe went fishing to Duck Lake. They brought home their limit bass. We had a campfire 10:30 - 11:30.

Sunday, June 7th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Target practice and wood splitting in morning. Joe and Matt went fishing to Linden while we packed.


Friday, July 3rd, 1992 - entry by Pat
Rainy and 60. Arrived 1:30pm. Jo and Jeff arrived 10:30pm.

Saturday, July 4th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Partly cloudy and 60. Nana and Boppa left in the morning. Went to Swampfinders Flea Market. Jeff fixed Jeep muffler and new bearing on trailer axil. I mowed everything. Had dinner and started a bonfire. Watched T'man's fireworks from boat and they all came to bonfire. Had a big party.

Sunday, July 5th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Sunny and 70. Went to Marcell and filled up both propare tanks. Hung around the beach. Raked, shoveled, etc. Left about 6pm.


Friday, July 17th, 1992 - entry by Pat
67 and cloudy. Stopped in Aitken. Bought and picked up our "new" boat. Arrived at the cabin around 10pm. On driving in, we saw and moved small trees and branches. We were stopped however 200 feet from garage by 2 large trees across the driveway (1 dead red, 1 spruce). Jeff dropped the boat in the driveway and drove the white Jeep in the "back way". 1 inch in rain gauge.

Saturday, July 18th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Mostly cloudy and 70s. We removed the two trees from the driveway and also had to remove two more from the road down to the lake - a poplar and a birch. Jeff washed out the boat and hooked up everything. We launched the boat around 5pm. It started right off and we went for a ride. Ate a late dinner and took Meg for a walk. Thunderstorms overnight. 1/2 inch of rain.

Sunday, July 19th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Stopped over a T'man's to see how their garage is coming. Michael Noyen and his friends arrived around 2:30.


Friday, August 14, 1992 - entry by Pat
70 and clear. 2.5 inches in rain gauge. Arrived about 9:30pm. Jeff fixed the leak on the hot water heater. We ate pizza and went to bed.

Saturday, August 15th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Took a morning walk. Jeff fixed the muffler on the Jeep while I made kindling wood. We put the boat in and took a ride. Picked up Bob T'man on his dock and gave him a ride. Made dinner. Went to town to fill gas cans. Came back to cabin and took a moonlight boat ride.

Sunday, August 16th, 1992 - entry by Pat
75 and partly cloudy. Took a morning walk. Washed and waxed the kitchen and bathroom floor. Mowed the grass, yard, lake, and driveway. Jeff painted the no trespassing signs and I clipped the poplar and birch brush by the side of driveway.


Saturday, September 5th - Monday, September 7th, 1992 (Labor Day weekend) - entry by JoAnn
Saturday: Jeff Neau and I arrived around 12:30pm on Saturday. As usual, Jeff found one of Nana's old puzzles in the closet and went to work. We went into town to get stuff. We bought some wine coolers at Richies. Since we brought our bikes, we rode them down to the lake but could not get them back up the hill so we had to walk them. The rain gauge reads 3 inches of rain since last time.

Sunday: Sunny and 70. Got up, made breakfast and started to watch the Viking game. T'man's showed up and caught Jeff in his underwear. We heard all of the stories from them about the New York dorks who had been up earlier in the summer. We rode our bikes to the gravel pit to the spot that overlooks North Star. Very pretty. Driving into town to play tennis, we saw garage sale signs. Unfortunately, it was just that year round garage sale that always goes on. We did not stop. Tennis courts were occupied. Went home and stopped at craft store at Buckhorn. We had to listen to Mrs. Rime bitch about water skiers and jet skis. Did you know its against the law to get within 100 feet of shore in a motorized watercraft? Mrs. Rime does and she'll call the Sheriff if you try it. Sounds like she and the sheriff are buds. Made dinner. I fell asleep and Jeff finished the puzzle at midnight.

Monday: Rainy and 60. Left at about 11:00am since it was yucky outside.


Friday, September 11th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Clear and 65. 7/10 inch in rain gauge. Arrived about 8:30pm. Cabin smelled like two pounds fried bacon. Unpacked, turned everything on and made pizza.

Saturday, September 12th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Clear - cloudy and 75. Very windy. Went for a morning walk. Saw a lot of deer tracks and bear tracks in driveway. Drove the boat down to put it in the lake. The power trim didn't work. Jeff took it apart and fixed to motor (water had gotten in). Launched the boat and tied it to the dock. I took the Jeep out and dug up some red and white pines. I planted them on peninsula down by the lake. (seven trees) Jeff gathered birch bark for Doug. Jeff fixed the leak in the old chimney with black jack. He also sealed the area around it. We split and stacked the rest of the wood.

Sunday, September 13th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Cloudy, windy, 70. Went for a morning walk. Jeff moved the no trespassing sign from the sawmill to the west side of the road.


Friday, September 25th, 1992 - entry by Pat
65 and windy. 1 inch in rain gauge. Arrived around 8:30pm. Unpacked etc. Ate pizza and watched the news.

Saturday, September 26th, 1992 - entry by Pat
70 and mostly cloudy. Went for a morning walk with binoculars and guns looking for porcupines. Didn't find any. Walked to gravel pit. Came back. Split wood. Cut down a part of a maple. Jeff put new weather stripping around the door. We went to Duck Lake and caught 5 nice bass.

Sunday, September 27th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Went for a morning walk and checked out the gate. Cut a tree that had fallen over the road down to the lake (spruce). Cleaned and packed up.


Wednesday, September 30th, 1992 - entry by Dennis Johnson
Doug, Baldy, Wayne and I arrived at about 1:30pm after a stop at Milaca for breakfast and Grand Rapids to pick up groceries for our stay. The weather was perfect (about 75) for hunting grouse. Wayne, Baldy, and I went hunting for about an hour while Doug took a nap. We didn't see a grouse or even a spent shot gun shell - no grouse! Doug took us out to Lake (Duck Lake) to fish large mouth bass. The lake was perfectly calm and Wayne proceeded to catch fish on his first three casts. We spent a couple of hours there in beautiful sunshine and caught about fifteen fish which Doug and Wayne cleaned for dinner. Baldy and I made a fruit salad, sliced potatoes, which Doug fried along with the fish. It was a delicious meal that was preceded with Baldy's famous martinis. There was a lot of discussion at dinner about Bush and Clinton and Doug gave his soliloquy on race relations. After a few shouting matches we turned in at 10:00pm. - Dennis A. Johnson

Thursday, October 1st, 1992 - entry by Dennis Johnson
We arose to another perfect fall day after a good sleep with the porch windows partially open. We ate some milk and cereal and then left for Marcell on the back scenic leaf route hoping to see some grouse - no grouse. We stopped at the cafe in Marcel for our second breakfast - delicious sweet rolls! Since the grouse weren't cooperating, we stopped at the bait shop and picked up some lures to catch bass at Duck Lake. The wind was out of the west so the bass were not as active but Wayne did manage to catch six fish. I walked the trails for grouse - saw one but it was too far off to suffer harm from my shot gun. Baldy and Doug sat on the log and philosophized. We returned to the cabin for a lunch of hot dogs. Doug, Baldy and I put the boat in Caribou and tried for some small mouth bass - no luck! Doug had put a pot for stew on with carrots, onions and potatoes when we were in for lunch. He later added a couple of pheasants that Baldy wisely has brought along as a grouse substitute. Supper was delicious and Doug gave a seminar on deficit spending. After settling all national and religious problems, we retired at 10:00pm. Temp at that time was 57 degrees. D.A.J.

Friday, October 2nd, 1992 - entry by Wayne Tyra
Leaving today after three perfect fall days. The hunting was poor, the fishing was great and the companionship was, as always, wonderful. Once again Baldy and Denny failed in their attempt to convert Doug and me to Catholicism. (but they never give up) You kids have done a wonderful job on the cabin.


Friday, October 9th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Partly cloudy. 50. 0" rain gauge. Traveled up with Steve, Pat, Elizabeth and Ted (and Butch). Stopped at Jolly Viking in Garrison for dinner. Arrived at 9:45pm. Unpacked the cars and warmed the place. Sat out on the deck and had a drink. Turned in around 1am.

Saturday, October 10th, 1992 - entry by Pat
All went for a morning walk after breakfast. Went into town (Grand Rapids). Goodwill, antique shop, flea market, etc. And of course the bakery. Returned the cabin about 4pm. Pat and I started dinner while Jeff and Steve put the boat in the lake. It wouldn't start. We started happy hour. Jeff barbequed steaks. After dinner we had a bonfire on the beach a roasted marshmallows. Went to bed around 10pm.

Sunday, October 11th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Made waffles for breakfast. Jeff, Steve and Elizabeth went to Duck Lake to fish. Pat, Ted and I drove over to see how they were doing. We then took the bad roads into Marcell. We bought a paper and lottery tickets. We returned to the cabin and took a walk to the gravel pit. Ted tried to climb the sand hill. Pat had to rescue him. When we returned to the cabin, Ted set up a shooting range. When the fishermen returned (3 nice bass) they shot the 22 pistol. Johnson's packed up and left about 4pm. Jeff and I tried to start the boat. We gave up on the boat and cleaned the cabin.

Monday, October 12th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Cloudy, 40. Went for a morning walk. Cut the birch down that was hanging over the east side of the cabin. We had to use a rope. Cut part of the big maple.

Tuesday, October 13th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Partly cloudy, 40. Went for a morning walk. Took down the no trespassing signs that needed paint. Walked the area around the bay. Found the old road. We then took the Jeep and chain saws and cut down a maple in the hole and brought it to the cabin. Jeff started cutting it up and split some.

Wednesday, October 14th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Jeff started painting the signs and I split some more wood. Jeff decided to take the boat and the dock out. He wore his swimming suit. It was cold but not windy. After he warmed up we went back down to the lake and drove the Jeep and boat up the hill. We took the Jeep for a ride.

Thursday, October 15th, 1992 - entry by Pat
40 and cloudy. Frozen water. Jeff was down by the garage trying to thaw the pipes when he heard someone cutting in the woods. He took the Jeep out to 38 and found a surveyors truck. We walked out to talk to them. They were marking the piece of National Forest that V's in from 38. We thawed the pipes and went to Grand Rapids. We dropped the garbage off at the land fill. We went to L&M, an antique sale and Glen's surplus. When we returned to the cabin we walked the newly cut line.

Friday, October 16th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Took the Jeep and the chain saw and cleared the road to the bay property and the new corner mark. We also cut the rest of the dead trees from the lake front and cleared a path to the point. We walked to the east point and put up a no trespassing sign. Jeff painted the other 2 signs while I split the wood.

Saturday, October 17th, 1992 - entry by Pat
Snow (1") Partly cloudy, 38. Put the newly painted no trespassing signs back up. Placed a new one by the blazed line at the bay. Packed up, drained water, etc.


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