October 7, 2012 -- At Leech Lake

This morning the wind was again blowing hard, at 15-25 mph out of the SW. The temperature was 40 degrees and the sky was mostly cloudy, with only moments of sun now and again.

Just before 11:00 a.m. I noticed through the window that my neighbor Don Poage was struggling to get his trailer backed down my boat ramp and into the water. His numerous attempts ended with the trailer and truck cockeyed and skewed awkwardly on the ramp.

I made my way next door to the cabin and offered him some advice on which way to turn the wheels to back the trailer down the ramp. Eventually Don got the trailer into the water, fairly straight, where it was ready for the boat. With the wind blowing as hard as it was, I was worried that the boat would slam into the dock during the docking procedure so I stuck around to offer any necessary assistance.

I suggested that Don get into the water and hook the tow strap onto the boat while T.J., a member of Don's family, motor the boat around the dock and into position. They had originally planned to just motor the boat directly onto the trailer, a process that could not only damage the prop (if it hit a rock) but is generally not allowed on Minnesota lakes.

At last, Don and T.J. got the boat onto the trailer, which they then hauled up the ramp and over to their driveway where Don will do the winterizing on the motor himself.

Don mentioned to me that he, T.J. and T.J.'s wife (or girl friend?) did have success fishing for walleye yesterday. According to Don they caught their limit -- four fish per person -- of 12 walleye. Some, however, were as small as 14- and 15-inches. Technically fish that small are legal, but in my book it's kind of unconscious fishing. I have to wonder how many of the fillets from those 12 walleye will end up freezer burned and completely devoid of taste?

Confident that the boat-removal exercise was out of the way with no damage done, I went back into the house to have a late breakfast. Today I need to clean out the gutters on the house, and it's a chore I really don't like doing and so procrastination set in. Finally, at 1:30 p.m., I went outside and gathered the materials necessary for cleaning out the gutters and got to work.

Finally three hours later, at 4:30 p.m., I put away the ladder and other tools; the gutters were clean. Well, as clean as possible. By the time I'd cleaned out four 5-gallon bucket loads of gunk and crap, the strong SW wind blew leaves off the trees and into the gutters. It's a losing battle, and I have to realize that the gutters will never be 'clean' for very long. Yet twice per year I climb up onto the roof and clean them out just the same.

With the messiest and most time consuming of my 'winterizing' chores behind me, I went over to the cabin garage, got the bike out and went for a ride to the Harbor and back. I love that ride and will miss it when I'm back in California.

West Shores Rd. during my bike ride on a cool, windy Autumn afternoon

After my bike ride I went back to the house, cleaned up myself and then cleaned the kitchen. I also prepped the fireplace for a fire after dark. The temperature is supposed to drop to around freezing again tonight and a nice fire will keep the living warm and toasty.

With the sun sinking quickly into the western sky, I donned my sweatshirt and hat, grabbed a Wild Blue and made my way to the end of the dock to watch the sunset. One thing I never tire of up here at the lake is the fantastic sunsets. Every night since my arrival several months ago, I try to make time to watch the sunset. Of course, when I first got here the sun was setting close to 9:00 p.m. or later, and today it was long gone by 6:45 p.m. Once the time changes the sun will set here in the northwoods around 5:00 p.m.

October sunset over Leech Lake

For dinner I had the walleye that I filleted the other night, beer battered, along with Cole slaw and French fries. It was delicious. Then I settled in for the evening with a roaring fire in the fireplace and classical music on MPR. A good end to a long and productive day.

Good night from Leech Lake. Three days and counting.