Canoe Outfitting and More
It seems no matter what month it is we are always busy. Oviously there are varying degrees of busy and I have no clue what I did before I had kids that I thought I was busy then. June is one of those months where our feet hit the ground and we’re running every minute of every day.
Everything happens in June. We’re never quite done with all of the projects we wanted to complete prior to opening so we spend time in June trying to finish those projects. Whether it’s repairing a canoe, seam sealing a tent, perfoming some maintenance on a vehicle or trailer there’s always something we didn’t have time to get to that still needs to be done.
Then there’s the projects we save until June when we have staff or when the temperature warms up enough. There’s painting to be done, flowers to plant, boats to put in and many other tasks that were written on June’s to do list including training the new staff.
Then the juggling act begins. We have a number of people who need our attention in June. There’s guests staying in our cabins who need gas or bait, there’s the homeowners who are returning for the summer who need propane or fishing licenses and of course we have the canoe parties that need equipment or a tow across Saganaga.
The phone is far from quiet in June. It rings quite often since guests are still planning trips and making reservations for July and August. There’s inquiries to send out, reservations to process and permits to reserve.
Then there’s our other lives. The Gunflint Trail Volunteer Fire Department, PTA, the committees we serve on and being parents. It’s a busy time of the year for the kids too. There are field trips to go on, class plays to attend, award ceremonies, field days, ball games and more. We can’t forget Josh’s birthday on the 7th or planning his birthday party. The kid’s last day of school is the 11th and Mike’s sister has her wedding planned for the 13th.
As if being a canoe outfitter wasn’t exhausting enough. How to fit "more" in is the question and the answer isn’t easily found. The days go by quickly and before you know it the sky is dark and it’s midnight. It’s almost impossible to beat the sun up these days but one must try if you have to get something done before the frenzy starts again.
There’s always "more" to do; laundry, dishes to wash, things to put away and e-mails to answer. There’s the saying about making hay when the sun shines, the farmer syndrome. I think canoe outfitting is alot like farming because there’s always something you could be doing. That reminds me, I better get going, places to go, people to see and more, always more.