When we first purchased the lodge in 1988, there was an old trapper that lived on the beach where Gray Owl now stands.  He had wanted to sell us his old yawl, a 20 foot boat that was primarily used on Lake Winnipeg (the 10th largest lake in the world).  These sturdy boats could withstand heavy waves and helped lay the foundation for commercial fishing on Lake Winnipeg.  The boat we acquired sat idle for all these years, resting under some trees near the filleting shack… way past its prime and no longer sea-worthy.
Lorraine had always had a vision of using this boat in a decorative sense.  This spring, she decided to bring that vision to reality.  With alot of elbow grease, the yawl was sanded and repainted.   After it was stengthened and filled with sand and soil, Lorraine got to work and started planting!  She brought dozens upon dozens of flowers, vines, and plants for the inside of the boat.  We have plans to paint sunsets on the outside of the boat, and to restore and add our vintage 60’s Johnson outboard.  The yawl now sits prominently in front of the Boardwalk Chalets, and you can see the flowers every time you walk up from the dock.  Thankyou very much Lorraine, the yawl looks fantastic!

Last night we were hit with our first big thunderstorm of the season.  Just after suppertime, the winds picked up and it started to rain.  After a couple of minutes, the rain turned to hail!  The pieces of ice weren’t that big and didn’t cause any damage.  The rain lulled until sundown, which is when the big storm really hit!  The lightning and thunder were directly overhead and didn’t move for a good three hours.  At one point, there was a bolt of lightning that was so close (don’t worry, it didn’t strike anything on the peninsula) that it caused our generator to shut down.  With it being the first night at Aikens for our staff, everyone was having a meet & greet in the clubroom at the time!  Armed with only one small flashlight, we set out in total darkness to the diesel shed.  Thankfully, it was only a protective measure built in to the generator that caused the shut down… no damage was done.  After a quick reset, we restored power and everyone was able to continue the festivities in Big Molly’s Bar.  It sure made for an interesting first day at Aikens for many of our staff!

The big move-in day has come and gone, and the boys have now completely moved in to their new digs at “Le Canot”!  Although much work remains to be done, the boys have the basic essentials and have begun crafting their own closets, shelves, and whatever else they can think of!

During the move, there was a full-scale pillaging of the camp’s dressers and shelves last night!  In what seemed like a rat race for survival, everyone was scrounging around to retrieve the furniture from their old cabins.  Some of the guys that were left in the dust early ended up finding some gems in seldom used storage areas.  The boys were all very creative with their decorating, and now banners, posters, hockey jerseys, and even an old lighted Club Beer sign were found to put on the wall!  The new cabin will not lack any fun, as they have inherited both the lodge’s electronic dartboard and Pit’s foosball table from Winnipeg!  The main level’s living room was used for the first staff meeting of the year last night and there was plenty of room for everyone!

Here’s an updated picture of Big Molly’s Bar.  You will notice that the vaulted ceilings along with fans have really opened up the bar.  I will update you with a picture of the back of the bar soon… there are just a few minor touches to do before we’re ready to unveil it!

As we continue our construction and get ready for our first guests of the season (May 27th), more and more specialists are arriving to help put the finishing touches on our projects.  Yesterday, 3 guys from Exclusive Carpets in Winnipeg arrived at Aikens in order to put the new flooring down in the bar and in the Canot.  One of the guys, Darcy, had been an employee here at Aikens in the days before we owned it.  After a solid day of work getting all the flooring in for the bar, the three guys headed out with Darcy as their guide.

They did well, and Roger and Phil both caught a couple of fish in the first hour.  That’s when they started ribbing Darcy about how he was the “guide”, and about how he was still skunked!  Well, within a couple of minutes of this, Darcy hooked into a monster that would stun the other two guys!!!  They had been trolling the outskirts of Bear Island in about 20 feet of water.  The laker hit on a big Red Devil spoon.  It took over 20 minutes, but Darcy finally guided this behemoth into the net!  It measured 40″ and had a huge girth.   Congrats Darcy… despite an absence of a couple of decades, it didn’t take you long to reacquire your touch on Aikens Lake!

Aikens is rich in tradition and history. We have our stories of Elsie the ghost and of the old trapper cabins around our lake. Going back even further back in our history you will find many reminders of our native history and of the fur-trade era. Many of you have already seen our pictographs on the rock (pictured on the right), and our impressive display case of artifacts that we’ve found around camp and around the lake. Last week, Colin stumbled upon a beautiful spear head! We are not exactly sure where it came from, but it may have come from the 3rd beach as we have been going there to get the gravel for our cement pads. Colin found it lying on the path near the dock… and obviously it hasn’t been lying in that exact spot all these years.

The spear head almost entirely intact… with only the very tip missing. It is fashioned out of a dark stone and it’s meticulous handiwork have kept the edges sharp over who-knows-how-many years. What a great find, Colin!

We are just over one week away from the grand unveiling of the Canot, and the guys are hard at work getting the place ready!  The plumbing and electrical are all in, and the walls are finished.  Next up comes the painting, then the flooring, then the interior finishing.  Everyone is having a great time working on the cabin because they know that it will be theirs to live in for this season and many more into the future!

Big Molly’s is undergoing the final stages of it’s rebirth this spring!  Last year, we added those fantastic hardwoods, pine finish on the walls, and the wildly popular screened in porch!  This year, we are putting a few extra finishing touches on the bar.  We have vaulted the ceiling and we have new bar and table tops.  The other major upgrade is that we will have a very classy look behind the bar.  Gone is the cluster of all those souvenirs from the past, and replacing it will be mirrors, bottle pyramids, hanging glass racks, pendant lights, wine racks, a new counter top, an improved sound system with satellite radio, and a glass-door fridge.  This will not only look much classier, but it has a more practical design for our bartenders and will help improve service to our most valued asset… you, the customer!

At Aikens, we have never really been here this early.  This year, with all of our construction, we have the opportunity to try some very early fishing techniques.  Boy, are the lakers ever active!  The trout are hitting on tube jigs moreso than on jigging spoons right now.  The depth of choice seems to be in the 52-54 foot range.  Most of the lakers caught have been on Chris’s Corner, although there have been some trout caught in the shallower waters on the front side of the peninsula.  We’ll keep you up to date with our fishing success!

Today was a cold and brisk day.  However, the weather didn’t deter the staff from throwing a line in tonight!  The guides hopped in boats and ran across the lake to go to Stange Bay.  They hit into a great walleye bite and caught many slot fish… along with enough walleye to have a shorelunch for the staff tomorrow!  Among all the fish caught was this beauty 13″ perch!  Turbo was the lucky angler who brought in that fish.  It was his 5th different species of Master Angler (already having caught walleye, pike, lake trout, and whitefish) which qualifies him as a “Manitoba Master Angler Expert”.  He will be receiving his silver badge from Travel Manitoba in the mail soon!

The other two trophies from last night were caught off the dock.  George Bugera, one of our carpenters, landed a 28.25″ beauty!  Pat returned from his trek to Stange Bay just in time to follow up George’s trophy with one of his own… 28″!!!  Unfortunately, we didn’t have any cameras on the dock so we’ll just have to take their word for it (just kidding guys!).  The forecast calls for more cool temps over the next few days… let’s hope the fishing stays hot!