Discovering Grand View Lodge - 4.23.2015 to 4.26.2015

In late April, the MN Ainslie Clan took a drive to the north to stay at one of the many cabins at the Grand View Lodge resort near Nisswa, MN. Winter had completely lost its grip at that point and there had been some days of very warm weather. The nights were cold, the days were chilly, but compared to what it had been for so long ... it was beautiful outside. (Of course, there was a long, cold May still ahead of us but we didn't know that then).

The resort was great (and it was great exploring it in the off season). It is about a 2 hour 45 minute drive from home (far enough to be "away" but not too far away) and the resort has been operating (and growing exponentially) for over 100 years. We had our own cabin on Roy Lake (across the road and on another lake from the main resort lodge) and would happily go back to the same spot.

Though it was very early and the conditions weren't all that favorable for it, we fished off the dock two or three times over our stay (for 30 - 45 minutes total) and Owen caught the first fish of 2015 on a piece of Twizzler licorice under a bobber. It was a healthy 13.5" bass! That's a good omen.

We ate breakfast every morning at the lodge, hit the town of Nisswa (to see it and visit the candy store), played on a playground by the beach, visited the game room, ate some dinners at restaurants in the area, watched movies in our cabin, and just generally had a good time. Oh yeah! We swam. A LOT. The lodge has a nice kid friendly pool with an indoor water slide and after initially being intimidated by it, the boys were soon insatiable. Slide, slide, slide, slide, slide!!!

The trip was a great escape for us. We are already thinking about what we'll do when we go back next time.

Here's a selection of pics to remember our first visit to GVL: