There’s a lot of working out going on up in Bootjack this year. Nick and Chris have been sparring, and I guess its brought out the competitive spirit. The sprinters line up and they’re off! I love the way Nick runs with the guys until the end smiling and looking around. The second heat is a chance for Gordon to show his real speed. Seems he has to take his shoes off to really get moving. ...
A little blue heron and fishing action down at the dock this morning. Gracie seems intrigued by the rock bass. We all head down to Ishpeming to visit Scott, Bridget, and Annabel for the day. It isn’t too far from Bootjack and it’s been a long time since we’ve seen them. Lunch and playtime keep everyone entertained. I’m glad they liked the pretzel necklace idea. The adults catch up out on the deck, while the kids and Gracie enjoy running around by the lake. We went for a nice walk in the woods. Gabe squeezed in some more fishing time on another lake with Bridget’s brother. ...
The fish aren’t biting great this year, but Gabe finally caught a nice 26.5 inch 4 pound walleye. Charlie passes on the great fish cleaning and filleting secrets. Gabe is the new go-to guy for cleaning fish.
here’s always pair of nesting bald eagles just down the lake. You can expect quite a few photos this year of the eagles as they always seem ready to pose for a shot. A few of the typical Bootjack suspects, and one new dog. Gracie is really enjoying the place. She’s quite the lake dog now. Gabe and Monica just got their boating license, so there are a lot of fishing trips out on the aluminum boat this year. The pilings out by the Sturgeon River mouth usually has some nice fish, and sometimes a few ducks floating by. ...
Gabe always has the biggest smile with either a big fish, or a nice toad of any size. The small ones are tony toads, medium are two ton toads, and the big guys are ten ton toads. Welcome to the Bootjack family Mr. Toad.
A few buffalo in the morning before leaving South Dakota. Not a lot to see in Minnesota. I guess the crew is getting anxious to finally get to Michigan. A quick stop in Ashland, Wisconsin just past the Apostle Islands. A good chance for Gracie to stretch her legs. Looks like a little ear stretching was going on also.
Our travelers next stop is Devils Tower in Wyoming. Somehow I suspect the photo loses some of the imposing presence of the real thing. I can’t help but hear those sequence of tones before a close encounter. That’s one doggy whose logged a few miles. Nick really enjoyed the prairie dogs. Especially the barking guy spreading out in front of his hole. Then it’s time to visit a few old presidents that actually made people proud over at Mount Rushmore. ...
The next stop is one of my favorite areas, Grand Teton national park. It was quite a few years ago when Charlotte, Lynn, and I went backpacking up in these mountains. They’re still just as amazing as I remember, though these recent photos do a much better job of capturing just how beautiful it really is. One of these days I need to head back there with Charlotte. Is that a moose I see? ...
Charlotte, Nick, Monica, and our dog Gracie are taking the long road to Michigan this year. Gabe already flew there with his aunt Val and some of his cousins, and I’ll be flying out to join them in a couple of weeks. Charlotte thought a nice road trip would make for a chance to take the dog and to visit some great sites along the way. First stop is Twin Falls, Idaho and the site of Evel Knievel’s famous Snake River jump site. ...
The last time I was up here was with Gabe for our backpacking trip about a year ago. Charlotte’s been looking forward to trying out some of the trails one day, and that day is today. We did the full loop in about three hours, and my legs are pretty tired. Some spectacular views that really brought back a few of the backpacking memories. There were quite a few people rock climbing the numerous cool rocks. As far as cool rocks though, nothing compares to the Moon Rocks in Boony Doon. ...