Cottage Life

One fine end of a week - we invited Noah and Broden to celebrate their Birthdays, along with Grandpa's Doug's - at a cottage on Hamlin Lake by Ludington.   We found it online and just gave it a shot!  It was fantastic.

The boathouse on the lakeside of the cottage was built in 1912 for longboats that ran with Model T engines.....The cottage portion behind it was built in 1941

 It has recently been updated...quite nicely

The floors are the original floors sanded and refinished old pine

There is a fire pit  - wood provided

 we brought the forks and the meat!....and marshmallows for smores!

 We rented the row boat to get out for fishing...and to play in while tied to the dock

And a great chance to learn how to row a boat!

 But fishing from the dock was productive as well

And how cool is that there is a stairway to the water....it was still a little too chilly for swimming

 So then we just fished

Or sat in the sun and read.

Or fished.

 Fishing from the Boat was very productive!

That bass was caught while rigged for bluegill....we got 3 of them in that way

Broden lost a big one at the boat!...".It hurt his wrist to reel"

 We prayed for fish...a we got em...

(they did not pose for this picture - it's just the way it came out)

 Here are the stats

48 keepers in the boat - in two days and a half of fishing

97 worms were utilized - only one left over.

And while 50% worm usage is a great return rate...there were several times one worm could catch 3 or 4 fish!....we did not count the ones that got away...they were tricksie!

Even a great cleaning station!

These were some of the last fish caught...Broden caught the great speckled bass!

This picture was in the morning after as the rain storm kept us from cleaning the night before.

All that fishing just tuckers us out...but not too tired. ...The Stories of Homer Price are classics from the 40's - the book was the same one Doug had when he was about 3rd grade - we found this copy on a garage sale.  The doughnut machine is the favorite!  I mean really,  endless doughnuts is any boys sweet dreams.

Sweet Dreams!