I loaded up and said good bye to Reid and Terry. I was hell bent on getting to Dent to see Gary and Judy. Judy is Deb’s mom. I met them in Cedar Park last year when they were in town visiting Paul and Deb’s family. They were very excited to hear about my trip and were looking forward to me dropping in at their lake home. I arrived in Dent, MN (population 192) before noon. Their home is on Star Lake. They got me settled in grabbed a bite for lunch and we were off for a tour of the lake. It is a large lake, great fishing for walleye, northern pike, black bass and crappie. We scooted across the lake in their pontoon boat. I commented to Gary on how all three of his swinging doors were open as the boat was moving. I wondered if this was for a quick exit in case of an emergency (this will come into play later). We arrived at the Galaxy Bar on Chicken Beach. Gary went around front to see if they were open. He found Ron, the owner running around on his four-wheeler. Now Ron is about eighty years old with glasses on the end of his nose, cut off blue jeans with paint on them, tall white socks and tennis shoes. He was a salty man with few words. Gary asked him if they were open. He said he could be. Gary asked him what time they opened on Sunday. Ron replied, “Noon.” We all looked at our watches. It was 2:00. So Ron unlocked the door, turned on the lights and TV and asked us what we were having. We had a drink and watched the Twins game. I felt special that he opened up the bar for us and we were the only ones in there. Off we went back across the lake to get ready for the “conversation.” Huh? I heard about us having a” conversation” later, so I didn’t ask any questions. You see I found out. (Shhhhhh!) The daily event in Dent was getting bent in Dent. So we loaded up the car and off to downtown Dent we went to have our conversation. Triple Play is the place to have the event and get bent in Dent. We walked in and sat with two couples that were friends of Gary and Jude. Tom & Judy and Dick & Karen. You see, Tom, Dick and Gary are all friends (you can see where this is going). I love finding these little places off of the beaten path, the local joints. After a couple of cocktails we went back to the house for dinner. Now Jude out did herself and served up an outstanding dinner for all seven of us. I truly felt like a part of the social scene in Dent. After Tom, Judy, Dick and Karen left we watched the finale of “Celebrity Apprentice.” Almost all of us watched it. Jude and I got a kick out of watching Gary beat his head against the couch as he fell asleep to a show he has never watched before. I told him to get some rest because those walleye don’t have a chance in the morning. At 6:00, we printed my fishing license and we were off to catch some breakfast. A storm came through during the night and the winds were up and the dark clouds were howling. Gary taught me how to fish in Minnesota. And like all good fishing guides, he allowed me to catch all the fish (he had his hook in the water the same amount of time as me). I caught a crappie, a black bass, a northern pike that we lost under the boat, and then I caught “Walter.” You know Walter. The Walter from “On Golden Pond,” Walter. I have always wanted to catch a fish that had a name! I hooked him and Gary came over with the net. When Gary saw Walter, he got real nervous. He reached out to net him and missed. Panic set in with Gary. He got real serious. He swiped at him again and scooped him up with his tail still hanging out of the net. He was a beast. Gary pulled the net into the middle of the boat. Before he pulled Walter out of the net, Gary said, “Close those emergency exits so he can’t get out!” Gary then proceeded to tell me that people fish a long time and don’t see a walleye this big. This was my first walleye, 8 lbs. & 26". Jude was speechless and reacted with laughter when she saw how big Walter was. When I left at noon, I shared with Gary and Jude that catching the fish wasn’t my favorite part. It was spending time with them in their beautiful home. With two honks of the air horn and a wave, I was off again, toward Marquette, Michigan.
Sunday - Dawson, ND to Dent, MN: 208 miles
Monday - Dent, MN to Marquette, MI: 442 miles (all after 1:00)
Sites: The Lake Home of Gary & Jude Anderson, Walter, 9,000 of the 10,000 lakes, Wisconsin (didn’t see any cheese heads), Lake Superior and the Ottawa National Forest
Emotion for the day: Felt like part of the family
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