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17th Annual Journey’s Marathon
On another blustery morning (yes, there were snowflakes in the air) the 17th annual Journey’s Marathon begins at White Birch Village. We are honored to host the starting line for the full marathon. Be sure to check out our Facebook page for some video clips.
6:50 AM and the place is deserted. Not for long though, by 7:30 there will be over 200 people around.
We host the starting line in the Rec Building. Nice weather empty……..cold, blustery weather means a full room!
Cars lined up all the way around the corner.
Getting in place for the start of the race.
The Boulder Chamber helps with the starting line, so it’s only appropriate that their banner is proudly displayed.
Getting some pre-opening advertising! We thought it was appropriate to hang this sign on the site of the original Aqualand. Wishing Susie and Dick the best of luck when they open the end of the month!
And the clean up begins
Now that most of the snow is gone, yes there are still piles of snow lurking about, the spring cleanup has begun. With the spring ice storms we had there are trees and limbs down everywhere. And the squirrels have been very busy nipping the ends of the pine trees off. The burn pile is growing!
Charlie goes on an adventure
Charlie decided that his adventure wasn’t over yet. After falling through the ice, and before we could get a boat in the water to retrieve him, he decided to go floating around the lake. It proves that the life jackets work! Charlie, chair and all, enjoyed a romp floating around the lake before John retrieved him this morning. He ended up over in the north bay.
This is the shoreline Charlie ended up on
John retrieving Charlie
Charlie’s ride in the canoe
Thanks for the ride, John
Drying out before he goes into seclusion for the summer
Loons Arrive
The ice completely left the lake by yesterday afternoon and by last night we heard the cry of the loons. Mother Nature is amazing to watch. Each year I am amazed that the loons are here within hours of the ice going out. Hearing the cry of loon is the true sign of spring in the Northwoods!
Charlie finally sinks!
Sometime in the wee morning hours Charlie took the final plunge into the cold waters of White Birch Lake. As you will see he is still somewhat being held up by ice, but we are officially calling May 6th as the day he took the plunge. Congratulations to Lynn Heeringa who had the foresight to choose May 7th. Lynn was out only May guess. Way to go Lynn! Lynn’s brother, Randy won the second year of the contest. They are keeping it in the family. 🙂
Charlie is still be supported by some underwater ice.
Charlie is flanked by remnants of this winters ice fishing trails.
Charlie Update
Poor Charlie! He really is ready to come in from the cold. He’s finally saying…..enough winter already! Even though we lucked out today and didn’t get the foot of snow they did west of us; we still got the freezing temperatures (which locked the lake up again), a dusting of snow and freezing rain. Poor Charlie has been frozen in the horizontal position for several days now. We are out-of-town this weekend, but have someone watching Charlie for us. I never thought I would have to find a “Charlie watcher” for the first weekend in May!
Great Water Levels
With this years spring melt our water levels look great. Let’s hope we get a good rainfall this spring and into the summer to keep the water levels looking this good. On another note…..Charlie is still hanging on.
There’s a little less beach this spring with the high water.
Last fall all of the dock sections were completely on sand.
If you look closely at the water you’ll see the rock edge of the creek.
Yipee!!! Rushing Water!
Last fall this part of the creek was just a trickle of water.
As you can see there is still a good amount of snow to melt.
Charlie Update
With the last two days reaching 70 degrees Charlie is really starting to lean! The final three days that have guesses for Charlie’s demise are: April 29, 30 and May 7. Who will be the winner? Stay tuned as it will most likely be this week!
The shore line opened up today. Yesterday there were several people still ice fishing on the lake. John talked with them and they said there was still two feet of ice on the lake. They were fishing on the weed bed between the island and the point. John said he broke through the ice not too far from Charlie.
Let it Melt, Let it Melt, Let it Melt
Yeah! We finally made it to the 50 degree mark on the thermometer. This is the first time since last fall. We broke a record for the latest 50 degree spring temps from the 1930’s! And the date in the 1930’s was early April. It’s a wonderful sound listening to all the melting snow. It will certainly help with spring cleaning which starts on Monday! Hopefully the 60 degree temps this weekend will help melt some of the snowbanks, but I think they are here to stay for a while.
Yipee!
The chipmunks are enjoying the spring weather. Time for me to get the peanuts as this little guy was already begging.
Charlie is getting in the act for spring also….he’s beginning to lean!
Picnics at the Beach
Were you around when we did potluck picnics at the beach during the 1980’s and 1990’s? The sun would be HOT and the flies abundant! See if you can find a picture of yourself.
