When Do You Open Up Your Seasonal Cabin?

[10,000 Casts]

We bought a small seasonal cabin on blocks on the south shore of Big Bay last fall. So for you veteran cabin owners, when do you open usually get your cabin open for the season?

[delcecchi]

Depends on the year.  Typically early May.   Some years you can get away with earlier....

[leech~~]

Also depends on if your married or not, or want to stay that way!  

At my buddies old place since he had an out house we would just bring water and start using it when we could get the heat up with a fire place and a few elc, heaters as to not die. Then we were good!

[PSU]

Depends on the year and since we are on an island, it really depends on ice and/or when the dock company can drop our dock. Usually early May

[Paradice]

Soon as I can get my car in the yard.  I don't have water though, so temps don't matter.  Even if it's cold and sloppy yet, I can still hang out inside and grill outside.  

[gunner55]

We're not seasonal anymore but it's been within a week of the Opener before the ice has been out, 3 out of the last 4 years here.

[SkunkedAgain]

As soon as humanely possible. We have a seasonal cabin that we use year-round, an no road access. Therefore like PSU, we are bound by the ice-out to determine our first open water trip. If I had road access, it would likely be determined by other factors such as snow on the driveway, etc.

 

If you have plumbing pipes, that is another concern. We haul in our water so I don't have to worry about pipes bursting. About six years ago, I did hook up my lake pump at opener at left it filled with water. When I came back for Memorial Day, the iron housing had cracked due to water freezing.

 

My general advice is to not avoid the in-between times. They are often the best. Less people are around, you get to see the land and the lake change, when the ice goes out you get to see eagles and other scavengers pick up all the floating winter-kill fish, green starts popping up everywhere, etc. It's a fun time to be in the woods and around the lake. Canoeing through ice or boating through black ice is always a hoot as well!

[delcecchi]

One of the greatest times I had was when me and my buddy came up in april and got there right after ice out.   Drove around in my 14 foot boat with a 7.5 motor.   We got about 4 inches of snow while out on the lake.   A flock of about 50 loons was in the bay on Vermilion.   

 

Totally an amazing experience.   His daughter had just been treated for hemolytic anemia and we took this as a road trip. 

[partyonpine]

Being out on Pine as soon as we hear the ice is out we go out drop the docks and shove the hoists in.  My dad is a 71 year old stubborn German and we will not be paying for that until he is 6 feet under.  I offer to but still goes against everything he stands for.  We bought a motorized one a few years ago and he broke down and pays for that one to go in.

 

[Fish Head]

I open mine right around the time the ice goes out.  I can't wait!

[delcecchi]

Typically some time in early May, although sometimes we wait a week or two, since waterlines are only down about 3 inches.   So, want to avoid any chance of extended cold.