A Night at the Lodge, Progress Updates & A Surprise on the Horizon
Sometimes the best reset is simply getting away for a night — even when “away” is one of our own vacation rentals. We spent the night at Sandy Lake Lodge this weekend, and wow… what a reminder of why we love this place. The lake was frozen over in a way we rarely see in the U.P. — solid, smooth, and untouched by snow. Not safe to walk on yet, but incredible to see. Sunrise over a sheet of glass-ice? Hard to beat.
We settled in at the Lodge, fired up the sauna (a luxury that hits different on a cold night), enjoyed great conversation with friends while celebrating a birthday at “Church in the Valley” with some live music, and soaked up the quiet on Saturday mornign. Running a mobile office from the second-floor dining table overlooking the lake is always a blessing — even on a 26 degree day. And as always, staying in our own rentals brings out the improvement list:
the stairway chandelier bulbs need replacing, the upstairs runs hot while the downstairs runs cool (we’re already troubleshooting that), the dead lakeside tree needs to come out, the Keurig needs an accessory stand to organize coffee, tea, hot chocolate & creamers, and the downstairs light switches need labels. These stays are invaluable — every visit helps us make the guest experience even better.
Deer season has been slow, but it’s always exciting to see what wanders by — especially when a freezer tag is still waiting to be filled. Only one of our hunting groups shared that they had been lucky with a 6 point.
On the operations side of things, the slower season is where we shine. Whispering Pines #3 painting is finished, it gets its final carpet installed Monday, and then we move right into building furniture and fully furnishing the apartment for our traveling professionals. Two apartments are turning over and getting new life, and we’re stocking rentals in between showings and sales calls. Even with the downtime, there’s never really downtime.
Monday is a big day — we finalize the refinance of Sandy Hollow Vacation Home, which opens the door to sprint forward on our next surprise… a pretty exciting new venture we can’t wait to share later this week. We won’t spoil it yet, but just know it adds to our vacation rental portfolio and branches us into a new direction at the same time.
It’s a busy life, but it’s a good one — and this season, we’re trying to balance productivity with presence. Friends, fires, property updates, wildlife, and winter on the way. Adventure on, Venturers. Always forward.
What’s your favorite kind of winter adventure? Snowmobiling, deer camp, ice fishing, skiing, or just cozying up somewhere warm? Comment below!
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