Ice Data

Lou Schultz and his friend, Vern Campbell, have been working on statistics for the lake freezing and thawing each year.  According to their graphs, so far, they are able to state, "We see the average date for the lake to freeze over totally is December 11th and we can predict the lake will freeze some time between November 13th and January 8th.  In only three years out of a thousand can we expect it to freeze outside of these limits calculated from the data.  It appears to be a very stable process."

Remember if you have or find any ice-in or ice-out information/observations from before 1989 we can use that data to help this process.  So, look for old diaries or calendars and please email us the dates when the ice came in and/or the ice went out for those years if you are fortunate enough to find them.  Thanks for any help.

Winter (Snow) has finally come to Long Lake

Thursday evening we finally had some snow that looks like it could stick around.  This morning the lake was calm and filled with ducks and geese feeding by the shore line.  I was rather lazy...so these are taken from the front window.  I like staying warm!

New Post on the History Page

Sharon Natzel and I (C.C. White) read through the minutes of the Pine Haven Lake Shore Property Owners Association this last week.  The organization was active from the 1950's through the 1960's and maybe into the 1970's.  (If anyone has more information please get in touch with me.)  Pine Haven was the area on the west side of Long Lake from Hubbard to just north of what is now Chippewa Loop.

We have one book of minutes from the organization.  Some of the documents are as early as 1954 and others as late as 1962.  It was great fun to read through these minutes and letters.  The group designed their own letter head.  Many of the issues are the same as today - public access, stocking of fish, tax rates, speakers from conservation departments, unpaid dues from members, pay bills, organize potlucks, etc.  One issue they often addressed was electricity.  Most of the Pine Haven area didn't get electric service until after 1955.  According to the minutes most considered the rates way too high.

It was also fun to see the list of members and officers from this group.  For example, in 1958 they had about 48 households as members and these were the officers:

       President:  John B. Tam
       Vice President:  Coyne Oldham
       Secretary -Treasurer:  Edwin Allen
       Executive Committee:  Paul Becker, Ralph Maybee

The association would meet at the Pine Have Christian Assembly Camp for their summer meeting.  This was usually a potluck with some kind of entertainment and then the business meeting.  Whole families attended these meetings.  I remember attending several as a kid and remember when Rick Carter and Bob Hall played guitar and sang for the group.  In the winter they often met at Birdland Shelter House in Des Moines, IA.  Most members were from Des Moines or near there. 

Sharon scanned four of the most typical and interesting of the minutes and I have placed links to them on our history page.  Click on the history tab at the top to check them out. 

Newsletter and More

Our fall newsletter has been posted and you can find the link on the "Board Communications" page.

Then click over to our history page to find Gerry Budget's 100 year history of Long Lake.

These are the photos Nancy Baer mentioned in her Newsletter article, Notes from Nancy's Deck.

Veteran's Day, November 11, 2012

World War I (known at the time as “The Great War”) officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles outside the town of Versailles, France. However, fighting ceased seven months earlier when an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.”

For a more complete history:  Dept. of Veterans Affairs "History of Veteran's Day"

Happy November!

Three things we would like to remind you about on this first of the weekends in November of 2012:

• Tomorrow, November 3rd, is the start of the firearms opener for the 2012 deer hunting season.  The latest weather report looks like we could get just the kind of snow hunters like for tracking.  The Minnesota DNR anticipates a good deer harvest this year as indicated in their recent press release:  DNR Anticipates Good Deer Hunting Season


• Tomorrow evening at 6pm is Long Lake's "Zorbaz Night" for November.  Maybe some will have stories of the hunt to share, but hunter or not, we encourage you to join your Long Lake neighbors at this relaxed gathering.  Zhateau Zorbaz is located just north of Dorset on Co. Hwy. 7.  Events like this are posted on our calendar:  LLAA Calendar [Clicking on the event brings up details and a map.]


• The third reminder is that Daylight Saving Time ends at 2am on November 4th.  So before you go to bed on Saturday night, be sure to turn your clock back one hour.