Kab Old Timers

[guts]

Well I hate to admit it, but I remember coming up here as a youngster, in either 1952 or 1953. My folks always stayed on Pine Island resort, you were brought there by boat out of Esslingers or Clines resort.

I'll never forget Clines restaraunt/bar. The mens room had what was an obvivious nude pin-up covered up from the chest down with a piece of plywood on a top hinge.
As most curious young lads would do, I lifted up the plywood to see the best part of the pin-up, I didn't know that when the plywood was raised, it set off a buzzer in the bar, so that everyone in the bar would know you peeked at the pix. As a 10 year old, it was quite embarassing.

On Pine Island, they had an old mare they would use for hauling ice blocks in the winter, we would bareback ride her around the island. Lastly, I use to catch holy hell for going into the ice house and crawling around on the ice blocks, knocking off the sawdust.

Fishing was outstanding back then, I use to lose lots of fish with the old no drag casting reels, and speeding around wasn't a problem with our 7 1/2 hp Champion. Fun back then wasn't it? guts <{{{{><

[Ole1855]

Lovewirehairs,

I don't go back quite that far but I've got a good story for you. My Uncle Sidney died when I was 17, he was 75 when he died, that was 37 years ago which would make him 105 today. He owned 500 acres and 1/2 mile of lake shore on Crane lake back in the late 20's into the 30's. About 10 years ago my Aunt who was 25 years younger than my Uncle died, in the process of cleaning her house out, I found several large boxes with pictures and writings from my Uncle all revolving around Crane Lake, Namakan, Kabetogama, Ash River and Rainy Lake. There are picures of northerns that would scare you, many, many well over 20 #'s. One thing that really stood out was a story and picture of a guy that took his boat over Kettle Falls before they had a dam there. After reading that story, my brother and I took our sons on a fishing trip to Kab. on one day we took a ride from our resort to Kettle Falls Hotel. While there I spot this picture on the wall of the guy that took his boat over the falls, crazy!!!! In the story that my Uncle wrote he made a comment to the effect that this guy's wife got really PO'd at him, my Uncles response was, "Cripes a guy can't even go out, have a few drinks and have some fun and the wife get's mad". Some day I would love to sit down and go through those boxes and organize the stories and pictures, I'm sure there is a whole book full of stories that could be written. Well I guess I've gotten long winded enough.

Ole

[This message has been edited by Ole1855 (edited 02-16-2004).]

[lovewirehairs]

Just happened on this site by accident, and it brought back some great memories. I've fished on Kab, off and on for 50 years. It used to be the family summer vacation when I was a kid and I did the same with my family years later. When my folks and I first started going up we used to stay at Gumingo's Lost Acres (the name has since changed). Old Red and Thelma were quite a pair! Fishing was always great. I stopped going back about a dozen years ago when I "discovred" the east end of Rainy Lake. My sons and I would camp on Fish Camp Island and for a few years we had the whole east end to ourselves, you hardly saw a boat the whole day. Fishing was absolutely incredible. Then, of course, word got out and the boats were everywhere. It's still a great place though.

Anybody out there go back that far? Any old stories to tell?

[Hockey Guy]

I would love to see those pictures!! I have seen some unbelievable pictures from those days. Guys with stringers full of Walleye so huge you would swear they were Northerns! I live in the Twin Cities but have been going to Kab/Nam for 28 years now. I get up there anywhere from 3-8 times per year. I remember the good old days in the late 70's when I guy could catch some 15-20 pound Northerns. I think all the spearing has pretty much ruined that for those of us that like to angle for Northerns. We used to stay at a number of different resorts, but the one I have the fondest memories of is Whispering Pines. Anyone remember that place? It breaks my heart to see it turned into the ranger station or whatever it is now.

[guts]

Hockey guy, I stayed there afew different times including their last year. A very nice location for a resort for good Kab and Nam access.
The final year they were open, I was doing a stretch of employment in Ill. before transferring back here and I brought up a 28" Regal, more for pleasure than fishing obvivious. Driving down the road to Wispering Pines and launching the boat down that ramp was a scary feat. They were nice enough to pull the boat out for me with there tractor. My vechile was a I think a 1986 Full size chev wagon. No match for that boat coming up the hill from the ramp.

Believe it or not we did very well fishing from that tub between the Chase Is. on the sand bar. About 4-6' water. A great place it was. guts <]]]]]]]><

[Animal]

I'm not an old timer on Kab having only lived in northern MN for 23 years. I started fishing Kab and Namakan in the early 80's and camped with my kids several times each year. I still get there about 15 days a year.

My next door neighbor is now 86 and he and I talk about Kab frequently. He began visiting his uncle’s cabin as a child. That would be in the late 1920's. He tells me stories that it would take most of the day to go from just north of Duluth to Ray. The cabin was located on the east end of the lake and no one was ever concerned about catching fish. He tells me that he and his dad would go fishing in the morning before they left for Duluth to catch some take home fish. They were never disappointed. They would row a boat out to an island which they called the "fish spot".

He's said that he after his teenaged years he would not travel back to Kab until the late 40's because WW II came along, then he got married and went to work. The cabin had also changed hands. He often speaks that in the late 40's he helped build a campground on the far eastern end of the lake. I wonder if this might be Woodenfrog.

He still has some of the old glass rods and the level wind reels that he used back then. He has the 1950s 5HP Johnson Seahorse that he bought new and his old aluminums boat that is made out of at least 1/4 inch aluminum. You couldn’t kick a dent in it. He would lift it on top of he truck by himself. I am sure that this was no small feat. He also made his first pickup camper.

As the years went by he traveled to many different lakes and had many different campers and eventually a big class A RV. Sorry to say he sold it last year when his wife couldn’t get around the campgrounds any longer. I've offered to take him back up several times, but he seems content to have had his day and let me "battle the crowds' as he puts it.