December 19, 2005: Happy Holidays to all! We have a couple of very exciting announcements to make today, first Jodi is expecting our first born in early June!!! We’re glad we waited as long as we did, but now we’re very excited to start this new challenge and enjoy parenthood. Unfortunately, Jodi won’t be able to be at the lodge this summer, but she’ll still try to help me out if and when she gets some spare time away from the baby. On to the second announcement, I’ve hired an assistant manager to help me run the camp. Kelly Ross and I worked together on our Moose Hunt a couple of years ago where Kelly and his wife were the best part of that hunt. Kelly and I are working towards setting up a deal for him to run the Moose hunts again and maybe even some spring bear before the fishermen arrive. Kelly’s extensive experience in the business and great attitude will be enjoyed by all this season. A big part of Kelly’s responsibility will be ensuring that the outpost camps will be well maintained and kept clean. Also, having Kelly will allow me to sneak out to see my first child born, and hopefully get another couple of short visits later in the season.
Third, our purchase of Bolton Lake should be finalized some time early in the new year! It’s looking like it will be a great but very different 2006 season! We were just about completely sold out of June dates, but we’ve had a couple of recent cancellations and groups that have changed dates to come later in the season. I hope to fill June 18 – 22 with a couple of 4 person groups or even a big 8 person group and June 22 – 29 with another group of 8. This later trip could be broken up into a 3 or 4 day trip. Come visit us at the shows or call before we get there as we’re going to offer a few specials to fill these spots.