Biking in Bemidji and other fun stuff...

Biking in Bemidji and other fun stuff... Cass Lake, MN

Cass Lake, MN

Oh my goodness! Another gorgeous day! We can't remember a week in recent memory in Minnesota when our weather has been so perfect for so long. Still...we're gonna' have to complain just a teensy, tiny little bit...the fishing is terrible!!

We headed out to the north side of Cedar Island with Jared & Seth, where we heard others were catching fish. Didn't get a bite. So we scooted over to the Kettle area, just west of Strawberry bar. Again no bites for the longest time. Finally, we got a few bites, and caught a couple of fish, but still, ended up with only ONE keeper after about 2 1/2 hours of fishing!

So on to other amusements. It took us about 3 hours, but we managed to get ourselves ready for an afternoon/evening in Bemidji. We loaded up the bikes, helmets, sunblock, change of clothes, books to read in the car, iphones/ipods & headphones, water bottles...we remembered everything! We went to Ruttger's Birchmont Lodge to rent some bikes, since we only had 3 decent ones, and started out on our ride. We knew everyone wouldn't make it all the way around Lake Bemidji (an 18-mile ride), but thought we'd go into the State Park for awhile and then turn around when necessary. That point came at about 4 miles into the ride. Tom suggested we take a little side path down to see "Sunview Pond Overlook." Luckily we all had mountain bikes, as the path was grassy and very muddy in spots. By the time we got to the pond, I had already come up with a new name for the spot: "Mosquitoview Pond Overlook." I also realized the one thing we had forgotten to pack: Bug Spray!!

By the time we got back to the main trail, Seth (who we discovered has a mosquito phobia) & Chloe were ready to head back. Leah & Jared wanted to go on. So Tom & I split up, each taking two kids. I headed back to the car and Ruttger's lodge to turn in the rentals. We rode 8 miles on our little jaunt. It was very beautiful, and fun, except for the bugs. Tom & the other two rode farther around the lake, and we picked them up at the Paul Bunyan/Babe stautues. They had gone a total of 12 miles, and also enjoyed some great scenery along the lake.

After a quick trip to Gander Mountain to get some fishing supplies, we headed back to Ruttger's lodge for dinner. I had noticed a neat outdoor deck/restaurant earlier when we were there, that looked like a great place to relax together. It was perfect. The temperature was great, sitting on the lake was charming, and the whole family was in good spirits from the bike ride. We had lots of laughs together as we enjoyed our food and drinks.