Got back last night from Shrew Haven, our hunting camp in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
Thanks to the hard working crew of Tim, Eric, Greg, Ray, Ken and myself we gave the old cabin a new look. Here's what was accomplished in 3 days of hard work.
#1: New shutters for the windows.
#2: Railings on the front porch.
#3: An 8 X 24' deck on the back side of the cabin.
#4: A new back door coming out on the deck.
#5: Yard clean up and new fire pit.
Last year at this time we scraped the old tamarack logs down to the bare wood, put new caulk between the logs and a coat of sealer on the cabin.
Shrew Haven was built in 1936, the year I was born.
Before
(http://www.shrewbows.com/rons_linkpics/Before.JPG)
After
(http://www.shrewbows.com/rons_linkpics/After.JPG)
The deck facing Armstrong Creek
(http://www.shrewbows.com/rons_linkpics/Deck.JPG)
(http://www.shrewbows.com/rons_linkpics/ShrewHaven2.JPG)
Hunting camp is going to be even better this fall. Now if we just could get Cable TV... :biglaugh:
Did you get matching linens and window treatments? :p
Seriously, very nice upgrades!
Looking good Ron. Glad to see you putting that band of misfits to good work!! :thumbsup:
Porch looks great...will make it seem a bit bigger too.
The new shutters are for keeping out the bears. :scared:
I drew a bear permit for this fall so Red Bird and I will be back up there the 1st of October to hunt for deer and bear. :archer:
(http://www.shrewbows.com/rons_linkpics/ShrewHaven3.JPG)
Can't beat that. Nice job. Nothing like a great camp to hang out and have great times.
Congrats on the bear tag Ron!! Good luck. :thumbsup:
If you don't believe me about the bears, check out this picture, on the right corner of the cabin, you can see a light colored spot. That's where a bear bit a chunk out of a log and also left claw marks on the side of the cabin. Marking his territory.
If things go according to plan he will soon be "inside" the cabin,...on the floor in the form of a rug. :biglaugh:
(http://www.shrewbows.com/rons_linkpics/After.JPG)
Great looking camp, with decades of history and memorys! And with so many more to be made. :thumbsup: May the luck be with you and watching over you.
Brent
Very nice Ron. Shrew Haven looks like it will keep being a place to make memories for some time to come.
Great job on the cabin. Why cable Ron? try direcTV.
Man with good friends and a few bottles of Basil Hayden's who needs TV!!
Looking good Ron :thumbsup:
You just added the finishing touch! The sweetest thing, to me, is to have a dry spot under a tin roof, where I can sip my coffee and stare into the drifting mists of past, present and future hunts.
Tapping raindrops, the rattle of sleet, the deep-breathing hush of the snow, the roof creates a quiet little bubble in the wild that lets me sit and experience, and dream, without the distraction of being pelted by the elements.
I am now officially envious.
Killdeer :thumbsup:
Once again Miss Killdeer's prose transports me to the place that she describes.I can here the raindrops falling as I read her words.Mr.Ron,your little corner of the world looks to be as fine a place to spend the season as any I have ever seen.The memories and friends you have accumulated there are a treasure beyond compare.
Thanks Killy, you'd be welcome in our camp anytime. I think you'd get along real well with Cindy, one of our good friends that visits our camp quite often with her husband Randy (Gus).
I recall one night when a few of us were sitting around the campfire outside the cabin. It was a still night and we were enjoying some good conversation when suddenly a pack of wolves started serenading us. For a full 20 or 30 minutes we listened as the wolves gave voice. We surmised they were chasing a deer and as they actually came closer to our camp in a semi circle, the pitch suddenly changed to excited yelps and barks when they made a kill.
It was a very rare and moving experience and no one was more moved than Cindy.
A place like Shrewhaven is even more special when shared with good friends.
http://www.shrewbows.com/shrewhavenlodge.html
Ron - sure looks alot different than it did Friday afternoon. Just an observation , but how come Tim is either sitting down or leaning against a post in all the photos?
Will have more info on the bear bait this afternoon. Cindy's bait was cleaned up right to the dirt,now she is getting excited.
We hit the woods pretty hard up there, so I always look forward to at least one morning of rain or bitter cold to sit in the cabin and drink coffee. The deck on back, over looking Armstrong Creek will make 'camp loafing" even more tempting this fall!
Ron, If I remember correctly Shrewhaven is not too far from my camp near Iron Mountain. Lots of Bear in the area. We have been hunting up there since 1992.
Okay Ron....good job. When can you expect me?
Looks good Ron, I just hope the free labor was free :bigsmyl:
What more could a guy want. Looks and sounds like a legendary spot. :thumbsup:
Looks good Mr. Ron, all ya need now is a big roll of shoot-thru netting to close that thing in, black flies and skeeters ya know.
Eric
Dang, that boy in the gray tshirt and red/black cap looks like he's put on a few pounds. :eek: I thought chex mix was low calorie food. :thumbsup:
I'm with Killy about the front porch. A Little rain on the tin roof, good conversation with friends, enjoying the outdoors but not quite in it. You are all blessed to have such a great hunting camp. We don't see much of that around here. Good luck with the bear Ron.
Nice piece of heaven. I would like to see a pic of the bear if you get one. Good luck,sit back and enjoy a cigar.
A quick little poem inspired by the pictures.
"
The camp sits on some land Up North
It never bothered us to drive all that way, back and forth
My father built the cabin back before I was born
With his brother and his cousin and a Yooper named Bjorn
It's sturdy and shuttered against bears and the storms
They The Great White North considers the norm
I killed my first deer there when I was 13
He was a fork horn 3 year old that was sleek and lean
I dressed him myself and drug all the way back to camp
I showed him off to my dad and brother in the light of the coleman lamps
I miss the old place more with each passing season
I guess that nostalgia is the biggest reason
So if you have a cabin even on a small piece of land
Cherish it and use it anytime that you can
Ron, since you left your 4x4's long on the back porch, is a porch roof going to be #1 on your list for next year?
Greg, A roof is in the future as well as a small room off the left hand side of the porch where the new door currently is (door will get moved to the outside of new room). Also, there's been discussion of driving a hand well so that we don't have to keep making runs to town for water.
Great poem Curtis :thumbsup:
Sounds great Ron, especially the bear hunt. Looking forward to seeing pics. Seems to me that a new bear rug would be just the ticket to go along with the improvements. You got to keep those bears in their place :D you know.
RayMO
Makes me wish I had a place like that.
- The Ballad of Shrew Hollow -
Down in Shrew hollow by old Armstrong creek
sits a little log cabin with wood floors that
squeak
In the evening the soft glow of gas lights are there...
while outside there are Whitetails, Gray Wolves and Black bear
Up on the oak ridge the acorns are falling
the bucks they are grunting, the does they are calling
so we slip in our stand and we wait for a buck
If the wind is just right, all we'll need is some luck
Now come hang up your buck on our deer hanging rail
then sit by the fire and tell us your tale
For the stories of hunting is why we come here
To hear the stories and to hunt for the great Whitail deer.
Thanks, that is awesome Ron :thumbsup:
Brent
Awesome ballad Sir Ron of ShrewHaven :thumbsup:
Driving a well?!! No way. Thats the only way I keep my wieght on an even keel up there.....hauling water and wood counteracts all your good cooking, Ray!!!!
The Ballad of Shrew Hollow Now that's a cool poem
good looking cabin Ron happy hunting this fall.
It's actually a song.
We had some fun with G Fred when he came up to hunt at Shrew Haven by making up a verse just for him.
"Down in Shrew Hollow by old Armstrong Creek
Old G Fred Asbell came hunting one week
He stalked and he still hunted while he was here
but old G Fred Asbell went home with no deer
He had his chance but his shot it went low
Maybe it was that old Black Widow bow
If he'd had a Super Shrew when his chance came
Old G Fred would have lived up to his name"
:biglaugh:
Not sure if he seen the humor, BUT I DO!! :biglaugh: :biglaugh:
Ron,Thats a good one. But I have to agree with you.
Ron, I have admired your camp for years now my question is what do I have to do to get invited to this magical place you have? Flint
Hello Ron, that is quite a place. Although places like that usually are in my dreams ;) Craig
A little piece of heaven, right here on earth.
Good luck with a bear Ron.
Flint,
Some dream of winning the big lottery with all that $$$.... Others dream of a weekend at ShrewHaven..... Chances are about the same. That's what makes it special !
I think that if I was given the option I would take the weekend over the $$$ any day of the week and twice on Sunday ! :campfire:
nocams
That lottery thing got me thinking...
I'd take the cash...
Visiting with Ron, his friends, and all of the stories that go with Shrewhaven: they belong to those folks and THAT place...
I'd use the cash to start another.
It is my humble belief that: we should all find a spot, try to make it better, and share as many and WITH as many as we can.
Killie has her little spot with tents and shuttling friends...
Terry has a spot, and he shares with all of us, here.....
Cool place and prose, Ron!
p.s. Sorry, G. Fred. That is good to know. It's not just we rookie's that have bad days... :thumbsup:
That is wonderful. Hats off to all.
Awesome Ron. Nothing beats hunting camp, except maybe the looking forward to it and the savoring after...
todd
Ron,
I was reading your post and realized we must have passed each other "up north" last week. I was at a camp my wife's family owns 8/24 thru 8/27. Their camp is on Blue Lake off of CR 424 west of Alpha. The creek that runs south out of Blue lake is West Armstrong Creek according to my GPS. How close is that to Shrew Haven?
Your camp looks good.
Ivan
Ivan, we've got to be pretty close. Shrew Haven is south and a little west of Alpha. It sits right on Armstrong Creek. We're about 200 yd's from where the Armstrong flows into the Brule River. On a quiet night you can hear the flow of the Brule as it ripples along at 3mph from the porch of the cabin.
We are close then. Looking at the map you can only be about 4 or so miles SSE. This was my first trip up and I am already looking forward to going back. I can see now why I read so much about "Shrew Haven".
Maybe I will get a chance to take my new Shrew up next fall and put it to work. Only 10 more months to go.
Ivan
Ron, I think its safe to say your an inspiration to all Tradgangers :campfire: Thanks for sharing!! I really look forward to this seasons tales, hope I can contribute as well. -Greg