Ever since Elmer and Gertrude Scheibel first opened up the place as a northwoods resort back in 1937, Indian Trail Resort has played host to countless numbers of fishermen and vacationers who have not only taken home with them plenty of fish, but also many special memories over the years.  Many say that our resort has long possessed a unique ambiance that invariably draws its visitors back year after year.

The peaceful serenity of the Flowage has always entranced its visitors.

Perhaps it’s the Flowage’s breathtaking scenery and peaceful setting; perhaps it’s the great fishing opportunities; perhaps it’s the special people who make it so; and perhaps–just maybe–this distinct, magical atmosphere that Indian Trail Resort has long been famous for is due in part to the spirit of this place’s first and perhaps most permanent occupant… an Anishinaabe (Ojibwa) Indian man named Chiz-ui-aw.

The Legend of Chiz-ui-aw

Even though Chiz-ui-aw has been gone now for more than ninety years, a number of Indian Trail’s faithful guests have felt that Chiz-ui-aw has been continually watching over his old homestead and subtly making his presence known, often in a benevolent way… but sometimes with a touch of mischievousness.  For decades, the regulars at Indian Trail have been spinning tales about Chiz-ui-aw, almost painting him as some kind of mythical figure.  Whether these were just stories concocted by past visitors or they contain elements of truth, one thing is for sure… the legend of Chiz-ui-aw lives on and he is frequently the topic of conversation in the “Little Red Bar”.

It should be remembered, however, that Chiz-ui-aw isn’t a fictitious character, rather he was a real man who settled upon this land long ago, long before there were any resorts in the region and at a time when the area’s great white pine forests had yet to be harvested.

Most likely born during the early 1850s to Chingwanakodam and Bemosadum, Chiz-ui-aw could be considered a member of Ojibwa “royalty.”  Both his mother’s father (Gwewezensish) and her brother (O-zhaw-waw-sco-ge-zhick) were Indian chiefs.  In fact, O-zhaw-waw-sco-ge-zhick, also known as Chief Bluesky, signed the Treaty of 1854 as Second Chief of the Lac Court O’Reilles Band of the Chippewa (Ojibwa) Indians.  In the tribal genealogy records, Chiz-ui-aw is also referred to as Chizaian or “Indian Pete.”

Chiz-ui-aw's original homestead cabin, pictured right,
and the laundry (ice) house, next to it.

In May of 1881, as a result of the Allotment Act, the federal government granted some eighty-seven acres of land to Chiz-ui-aw.  It was around that time when he built, out of hand-hewn timbers, his sturdy, sixteen by twenty foot log cabin (now part of the main lodge at Indian Trail Resort) along the southeast shores of Pokegama Lake, also referred to as Slim Lake by some of the early map makers of that era.  This was long before the famed Chippewa Flowage had been created.

About a quarter mile to the northeast of Chiz-ui-aw’s cabin, located up on the high ground, lived his half-brother, Ojawashkogijig, an Indian man who some also referred to as “Injun Jim.” There, Ojawashkogijig had a farm and lived in a slightly more sizeable cabin that overlooked the old Trading Post, located just a quarter mile to the north.  Chiz-ui-aw also had two half sisters (Gijigokwe and Nigania) and another half brother (Ogabegijig, also known as “Yankee Joe”).  “Yankee Joe”, who died in 1913, lived near where the creek that is today known as Yankee Joe Creek empties into the Chippewa River.  “Yankee Joe” was said to have fought for the North during the Civil War, hence his nickname.

Nestled between Lake Pokegama and the big bend of the West Fork of the Chippewa River, the Trading Post–originally an ancient Indian village called Pa-qua-uah-wong–was one of the area’s earlier settlements.  By the time Chiz-ui-aw had built his cabin, the Trading Post was beginning to become a hub of activity as logging gained momentum in the area.  After his wife, Bizanigijigokwe, had died in 1880, Chiz-ui-aw was left with one daughter, Neanakwadokwe.  For more than forty years Chiz-ui-aw lived at his homestead cabin on Pokegama Lake, witnessing great changes in his surroundings through the coming years.

By the 1920s, logging had stripped the Wisconsin northwoods of much of its timber and most families had established small subsistence farms. With the boom years of the lumbering days long past, activity in the Trading Post had settled down.  Many of the old stopping places that the loggers used to stay at began to cater more to fishermen and other outdoor enthusiasts.  These places evolved into some of the area’s first resorts.

However, Chiz-ui-aw never did live to see it because, not too long before the Flowage had been formed, on November 1, 1922, Chiz-ui-aw drowned out in front of his cabin.  Perhaps he was out trapping, hunting, or fishing at the time.  Or perhaps he was just out paddling around to survey his home waters and taking in all of its peaceful splendor before “progress” would change it all forever.  Shortly after Chiz-ui-aw’s death, the waters of Pokegama froze with the coming winter… never to be seen again in their original state.  By the time the spring thaws came the following April, the flood had already begun and the new flowage was born and growing.  In essence, in what can be considered a poetic death, both Chiz-ui-aw and the waters he had known for so long ended up dying together… as if they were one.

It must be said that the resulting Chippewa Flowage is no less serene; it’s just different than it was back in Chiz-ui-aw’s time.  In fact, because many decades have allowed a beautiful second growth to reforest what the loggers had taken away more than a century ago, today the Chippewa Flowage stands as one of the most scenic and pristine bodies of water in the country.  This largely unspoiled wilderness has but slight development and is loaded with all types of fish and game: offering excellent crappie and walleye fishing, great bass fishing, and some of the finest musky fishing in the world.

There was much standing timber in the Flowage years ago.

In retrospect, while sitting right here in the heart of Chiz-ui-aw’s cabin as I am writing this history, I can’t help but think of him and hope ... “that even Chiz-ui-aw would approve of how we have caretaken this land.”

Before Chiz-ui-aw’s descendants inherited this land, his cabin was left abandoned for a time.  It has been said that some visitors to the cabin at that time witnessed movements that they believed were made by Chiz-ui-aw’s ghost.  From that day on, the legend was cast that Chiz-ui-aw’s spirit was watching over his old place.

The Birth of Indian Trail Resort  (the Scheibels)

After changing hands a few times, in May of 1937, Chiz-ui-aw’s homestead was purchased by Elmer and Gertrude Scheibel of Beloit, Wisconsin.  Scheibel, who grew up out West, originally wanted to be a cowboy and live in Wyoming.  When World War I began, however, Elmer joined the Navy and served as a cook on a troop ship.  After the war, Elmer opened up Scheibel’s Market where he gained much experience as a meat cutter.

The original owners of Indian Trail Resort, Elmer and Gertrude Scheibel, pictured around 1940 with their daughter Jeannine, standing outside the entry to the original tavern, which later became the resort's dining room.

Tough times brought on by the Depression, caused the Scheibel’s to leave Beloit and make the big move to the remote northwoods, near New Post, Wisconsin, to purchase an old Indian homestead on eighty-seven acres of land and turn it into a resort.

Because there was no road to the place, the Scheibel’s had to use Billy DeBrot’s Indian Post Resort (located about a mile and a half away) as their jumping off point, taking a boat across the lake to get to their property.  Upon entering Chiz-ui-aw’s cabin for the first time, Elmer and Gertrude found it to have a mud floor and only one room.  Although Chiz-ui-aw had been dead for fifteen years by then, there were still many of his herbs and a lot of tall, beautiful wild flowers growing outside the cabin.  Chiz-ui-aw, a medicine man of sorts who was known as “Indian Pete” to the Scheibels, used these plants for various remedies and was known to make a kind of tea out of the sumac plants that were growing nearby.

One of Indian Trail's original cabins, built around 1937.

With Chiz-ui-aw’s original log cabin being as much as fifty-six years old but still acting as a sound structure, Scheibel divided the one-room cabin into two separate rooms and built a large windowed porch onto the lake side of the cabin.  This not only expanded their living quarters, but also would serve as the perfect spot to establish a tavern for his guests during the summer months. 

Another important task that Elmer immediately saw to was to dig a well so that his family could have fresh drinking water.  Being subjected to such Spartan living conditions was quite a culture shock for Gertrude Scheibel, who was accustomed to having all the modern conveniences in her home.  With their only water supply coming from a large, hand pump at the well outside their cabin, Gertrude had to learn how to “take a bath out of a teacup” as she put it.   

With the help of a Swedish carpenter named Oscar Hanson who lived across the lake, Scheibel then built three two-bedroom cabins, complete with large screened-in porches overlooking the lake, about fifty feet from the water’s edge.  Because there was still no road into the place at the time, all of the lumber that was used in the construction of the cabins had to be floated in across the lake, from Billy DeBrot’s resort.  Built up on concrete pillars to compensate for the hilly terrain of the grounds, these now seventy year old cottages are remarkably well preserved because sufficient air circulation underneath them has prevented any real deterioration from ever occurring.  Because most of the land along the lake had been clear cut, Elmer worked hard planting trees along the lakeshore of the resort. 

Because there still was no road into their place during that first year, there wasn’t much business that season.  In order to give the tourists a more convenient access to the resort, Scheibel decided that he needed to get a road put in to his place.  Because he couldn’t get much cooperation from the local township to put in a road, Scheibel took it upon himself to survey the route of the new road, cut the trees, and hired some local INDIANS to drag more than a mile long TRAIL through the woods from Helsing Road to his new RESORT… hence the name INDIAN TRAIL RESORT.  Henry LaRush was one of a number of local Indians who helped Scheibel blaze the trail to his resort.    

As with most northwoods camps at the time, instead of having refrigerators, the cabins had ice boxes that had to be kept stocked every day with fresh blocks of ice.  The ice was stored in an ice house, located in a small, two-story building that Elmer had built right next to the main lodge.  The cabins each had their own outhouses and were heated by wood stoves, so keeping a ready supply of wood was also one of the many daily resort chores.

There was no electricity here until the late 1940s so a generator, housed in a small shed near the main lodge, was installed to satisfy only the resort’s most basic electrical needs.  Even so, much of the lighting for the cabins was still being provided by lanterns and water for the cabins was taken right out of the lake with pails.

The Scheibel’s only daughter, Jeannine, was around eight years old when her parents established the resort.  Reminiscing about her unique life and adventures at the resort, Jeannine said, “It was one of the greatest loves I’ve ever had.”  Having countless fond memories about the resort, Jeannine recalled:

 “There were many good times that were had at the bar on our porch when the lumberjacks would come down out of the woods.  One of them even had an accordion and would play music for the group.  The bar’s front had a beautifully arranged log design with a specially carved, diamond shaped, log in the center.  Behind the bar were shelves where we would stock groceries for our guests.  I used to sell live bait out of a dugout area that was located underneath the porch (bar).

Fishing was very popular back then; the guests couldn’t get enough of it.  There was some great walleyed pike fishing; the crappie were huge; and many big muskies were caught.  My father guided quite a lot and we used Tony Crow, an able Indian guide, as our resort’s leading guide.

Back then, money had less importance and people often bartered to transact business.  Because my father was known to be a skilled meat cutter, it was common for the Indians to kill a deer and drag it all the way across the lake on the ice just to have him butcher it.  Naturally, our family would be given a portion of the meat for his work.  The Indians often gave us wild rice and wild blueberries, which we greatly appreciated.

One time, after some Indians had killed a deer off reservation, near the main road, and were dragging it home, they were startled when they noticed a big limousine come speeding up.  At first being worried that it was the authorities, the Indians remained apprehensive when some of Al Capone’s men got out of the car and inquired about the deer.  The men ended up buying the deer from the Indians and having my father butcher it for them.  They even invited my parents over to Al Capone’s hideout; however, because I was just a young girl, I wasn’t allowed to go.  It was the only time I was ever excluded from something.

I went to school in a one room school house in New Post, where students through the eighth grade were taught by one teacher.  There was a big stove in there to keep us warm during the cold, winter months.  All of the children really helped each other out at the school, with the older children always helping out the younger ones.

I had many good friends in New Post and we enjoyed many adventures outside.  I can remember how one of my friends, Henry LaRush’s son, would always go barefoot, and because I wanted to prove that I was just as tough as him, I decided to go barefoot all the time too.  I used to like to explore the old, abandoned Indian home (owned by Chiz-ui-aw’s half brother, Injun’ Jim) that was located between our last cabin and the creek to the east.  The cabin was fully intact and had a big, beautiful bed inside that the animals had ravished over time.

I would also row over to the old Catholic Church on the island across the lake and go inside and explore it.  It was a large, white sided building, decorated beautifully with ornate wallpaper that depicted the lamb and the cross.  Outside the church were grave stones all over, including many off shore under the water.  The Indian kids would often go diving there to try to read the names on the tombstones.

One of the scarier times that I remember occurred during the summer of 1939, when a fugitive killer (Ray Olson) was at large in the woods around the Flowage for a week or so.  I can remember lying awake on my cot at night, starring out my window at the stars and feeling like the fugitive was out there… looking in my very window.  I later learned that the man was tracked down by a large posse and shot repeatedly as he was trying to escape.  I think the mood of the citizens had gotten out of hand by that time, the way things had turned out.

We had quite a few relatives and as soon as they found out we had a resort, they decided that this would be a good place to stay.  So they kept us pretty busy.  One time when many of them were there, it was during August of 1941, I can remember there being a giant storm and a big flood.  It rained and rained and rained until more than thirteen inches of rain had fallen and the lake had risen two feet in one day.  It caused a huge washout of sand on the hill, blocking the road that my father had blazed and causing everyone to remain stranded at the resort for over a week.”

During World War II, business slowed at the resort so Elmer Scheibel was forced to log off much of the back acreage of his property, selling lumber for the war effort to make ends meet.  For this task, Elmer rented a horse from a man in Radisson and kept the horse in a shed that he had built up on the hill above his cabins, near where he maintained a garbage dump.  He would use the horse to drag the logs out to the road, where they could be hoisted onto a truck and hauled away.  Although Elmer fell in love with that old swayback horse that he had, it hurt him to have to cut down the “perfect pine” that was growing on his land.

Once Jeannine Scheibel was of high school age, the family had a decision to make.  If they were to stay on and live at the resort, Jeannine would have to be sent away to a boarding school to continue her education.  They didn’t want that for her, so the Scheibel’s regrettably decided to put the resort up for sale.

It was at that time when a man named Edward Bosch, who ran a Pontiac dealership in Hales Corners, Wisconsin, approached the Scheibels to see if they would sell him the west half of their property so that he could build a summer place on the lake.  Not wanting to sell only half the place, Scheibel told Bosch that he would have to purchase the whole place if he wanted that land.  Not really wanting to get into the resort business, Bosch didn’t want that land to slip through his fingers however… so he ended up buying Indian Trail Resort in June of 1944.

Making Cabin #1 his temporary home during that summer, Bosch then had Don and Mary Hendee manage the resort–with an arrangement for them to buy out the resort at the end of the season–while he built a beautiful, log cabin overlooking the Flowage.  Keeping the western half of the parcel for himself, Ed Bosch then sold the Hendees the resort half of the property that fall.

(The Hendees)

It was in September of 1944 when Don and Mary Hendee bought Indian Trail Resort.  Don, who worked in the Freeman Shoe Factory in Beloit, Wisconsin, was in poor health so he decided to move up to the serenity of the northwoods to escape the hustle and bustle of city life.

It was during the fall of 1945 when Don Hendee, his brother, Arnold (who had just gotten out of the service following the close of World War II), a relative named Al Loomis, and two local Indians named George Thayer and Clyde Miller built the “Little Red Bar.”  They did so by tunneling underneath both the porch that (up until that time) had served as the tavern and Chiz-ui-aw’s original cabin.  Clyde Miller dug most of it out with a horse and a plow blade and the rest was done by hand, with shovels.  Thick log beams were installed to support both the porch and Chiz-ui-aw’s cabin and the Red Bar’s walls were constructed with large stones that were cemented together by Loomis.  After Loomis and company constructed a large, walkout, pipestone patio overlooking the Flowage, the project was completed… and the “Little Red Bar” was born.

The old porch tavern then became a dining room.  Around 1946, the Hendees built their fourth rental cottage, a two-bedroom Log Cabin that also had a roomy screened in porch overlooking the lake.  The beautifully varnished, dark stained logs on the inside of the Log Cabin truly make this cottage unique and, to this day, it stands as one of the first cottages to be requested.

Cabins #1 and #2 at Indian Trail in 1948.

The resort also had a small, one-bedroom cabin that was located between Cabin #1 and Cabin #2.  Originally, this cabin served as an occasional sleeping quarters for the Indians who worked at Indian Trail; however, sometime in the 1940s it was moved up closer to the road and then remodeled by Loomis so it could be used as an additional rental unit.  It came to be known as the Honeymoon Cabin until it ceased being rented out in the 1960s.

Don Hendee holding a big musky from the 1949 era by a shed that use to be located where the Bunkhouse is currently.

Bob Loomis remembers all too well the old ice house at the resort because this was where his sleeping quarters was… in the loft area directly above where the ice was stored.  Naturally, even during the hottest summer days it was always cool up there.

Even though Bob had the loft to himself during his summers at the resort, he sometimes felt like he wasn’t completely alone up there.  For late at night, he would sometimes hear strange noises and sounds in that old ice house.  Although he had never personally seen any aberrations while he was there, Bob was well aware of the stories of the old Indian (Chiz-ui-aw) that used to live on the premises and had wondered if that couldn’t have been who it was.  Not really worried though, Bob knew that Chiz-ui-aw was known to be a good ghost and just reasoned that, “If it was indeed Chiz-ui-aw, he must have been just watching over the place”.

Don and Mary Hendee in the bar in the 1940's.

As choreboy, Bob Loomis’s duties included keeping the resort’s ice boxes stocked with fresh ice, doing a variety of outdoor work, guiding (the Indian guides had taught him everything he knew), and getting up at five or six in the morning to fire up the lodge kitchen’s eight-burner, wood cooking stove.  George Thayer’s wife, Margaret, served as Indian Trail’s cook, preparing breakfast, lunch, and dinner to be served in the dining room.  For years the Thayer’s worked at Indian Trail, with George guiding and helping with resort maintenance and Margaret cooking until 1959.

Bob’s grandfather, Al Loomis–a retired Beloit fireman, contractor, and carpenter–lived at the resort during the Hendee’s first few summers there and was responsible for most of the major improvements during those years.  Don rounded up all the materials and the help… and Al did the work.  Much of the time the resort was filled just by relatives of the Hendee and Loomis clan, and sometimes it was so busy at the resort that people would have to sleep on the cabin floors and the overflow pitched tents and slept outside… under the stars.

During the fall of 1949, Don Hendee and local workers Chick DeBrot and John Bennett began to notice a familiar boat spending an inordinate amount of time fishing across the lake, near where the old Trading Post used to be.  The same boat kept fishing the same area, every day, several times a day, during the first three weeks of October.  The weather was exceptionally warm during most of that period; however, on October 20th, the weather made a turn for the worse.  Never-the-less, even though it was cold, windy, and nasty, just like clockwork, that same boat was again out there fishing.  But this time they decided to take a break and stop in at the Little Red Bar.  In walked Louie Spray with his two fishing companions, George Quentmeyer and Ted Haag.  After warming up, the trio went back out there and resumed fishing.

Louie Spray and companions getting ready to go out fishing in 1949.

Spray was fishing near Graveyard Point when Hendee, DeBrot, and Bennett heard a commotion and a lot of hollering over there.  A couple of gunshots alerted them to the fact that Spray had just taken a decent musky out there.  The next time Spray came by, he confided in Hendee and asked, “Did you hear some shooting out there the other day?  Well, I got the big one there.”  That BIG ONE happened to be the world record muskie of 69 pounds 11 ounces!

(The Hornewers)

In 1952, Ed and Elsie Hornewer and Axel and Grace Christensen purchased the resort.  Because their husbands kept their jobs in Chicago and were committed to working there during the week, for the most part, the resort was run by the two sisters, Elsie and Grace.  On the very first day that Elsie and her family moved into the resort, Elsie recalled that she noticed three Indians standing outside her porch.  Being from Chicago and never having seen an Indian before, Elsie got scared, thinking that these three “characters” must have been up to no good.  However, she quickly discovered that they were frequent workers for the resort and they had just come to introduce themselves and see if there was any work available.

Elsie Hornewer, owner of Indian Trail from 1952 thru 1962,
behind the bar in the 50s.

Elsie soon warmed up to the trio (Earl “Chicken” DeBrot, Henry “Turkey” Potack, and John Bennett), giving them a variety of odd jobs over the years and becoming great friends with each of the men.  They always kept a close eye on the resort for Elsie–especially when it was closed for the season–and they were always well taken care of for their services, being paid in money, groceries, and, on occasion, even liquor.  And when it came time for Elsie to buy a new fleet of wooden Badger boats for the resort, she gave “Turkey” Potack the pick of taking one of the older boats for himself.  After that, Elsie always said that he was so proud to own his own boat.

Elsie and Grace’s first big addition to the resort was in 1953, when they had a new three-bedroom cottage built.  The roads were so poor that the lumber they needed to build that cabin with had to be both hauled and floated in by boat.  Charley Wolfe, a local Indian from New Post who often guided for the resort, helped to build this cabin.

In 1958, Grace and Axel wanted out of the resort so they sold their interest in the place to Ray and Evelyn Hornewer.  However, that didn’t work out so after that season, Grace ended up getting the resort back.  For some reason she didn’t want to sell her half of the resort to her sister Elsie so she “gave” it to Jim Schoettle, a young man who had been helping out at Indian Trail for a number of years, telling Jim that he could pay her when he gets the money.

Knowing how much she loved running the resort, Jim was hesitant to accept the offer but Elsie, who not only needed the help but thought the world of Jim, told him, “You take it; I couldn’t imagine having a better partner.”  So from 1959 thru 1962, Elsie and Jim Schoettle ran the resort together.

That year, Jeanne Christopherson worked with Elsie, cleaning cabins and assisting her in the kitchen and dining room during mealtime.  Prior to this, Elsie had a number of Indian girls (Rose Thayer, Connie Tainter, Sirella LaRush, and Deanna DeBrot) work for her as kitchen and dining room help.  Just like her father, “Chicken” DeBrot, Deanna become somewhat of a fixture at the resort: cleaning cabins, tending bar, and even baby sitting when needed.

Indian Trail in the early 1960s.

The standing joke with his customers who wanted a drink was that they would have to wake him up to get a drink.   

Howie Hornewer, behind the bar, owned Indian Trail from 1963 thru 1967.

In 1964, after “Turkey” brushed out the thickets just beyond the resort’s last rental cottage, the Hornewers added an additional rental unit to that site: a large, modern mobile home.  Even so, with five cottages, the Bunkhouse, and the new Mobile Home still sometimes being inadequate to meet the demand of all those who wanted to come up and stay at Indian Trail, Howie and Wanda began allowing some of their regular guests to park small travel trailers along the road between the parking lot and the old honeymoon cabin.  By 1967, the five trailers that were scattered about were beginning to crowd things, so Howie then cleared out some land up the hill above the cabins and opened a small trailer court, which now has twenty-three trailers.

While continuing to serve full American plan meals in their dining room, the kitchen at Indian Trail remained a very busy place for Wanda each day during meal times.  During the mid to late 1960s, a teenage girl from Poland called “Boosha” boarded at the resort and baby sat for Wanda, later going on to working in the kitchen and also taking care of domestic (cabin cleaning) duties.

The main lodge and Bunkhouse at Indian Trail in the early 60s.

(The Wilmsens)

After five years of running the resort without Howie being able to be there full time, the Hornewers decided to sell the resort.  After finding out that Indian Trail was for sale while they were there on their summer vacation in 1967, Ron and Pat Dettloff considered buying the place but declined because they weren’t yet ready to make such a move.  However, Pat’s brother, Lee Wilmsen, who was also on vacation with them, was ready for such a change.  So late in 1967, Lee Wilmsen bought Indian Trail Resort and operated it for the next four seasons.

Lee Wilmsen owned Indian Trail from 1967 thru 1971.

Lee, who was recently divorced and had four young boys, quit his job at the Campbell Soup Company in Chicago, sold his house, and–along with his parents (Peter and Pauline Wilmsen)–moved up to the resort in April of 1968.  Peter, the congenial fatherly figure who was very much the counterpart to old Steve Hornewer, took charge of collecting, sorting, and burning the resort garbage; mopped the cabin floors; cleaned out the outhouses; bar tended during the afternoons; and also acted as Lee’s ever present project consultant and “assistant handyman.”  An easy going kind of guy, Pete once disappeared after being sent to clean a cabin.   He was found on a cabin porch relaxing in an easy chair, fast asleep with a beer in his hand, as the peaceful sounds of the waves had put him into his own little dreamworld.

Lee and some of his regular patrons often had some kind of wager or contest going between themselves when it came to playing the antique bowling game in the bar.  One particular night, they were playing for 6-packs of beer and one of the guests (Dick Hansen) confidently bragged that he was going to clean Lee out of his entire stock.  Although he didn’t think it was possible, sure enough, Lee ended up losing every 6-pack in the place to his guest.  Lee had to haul out every 6-pack of beer he had and stack it right there in the middle of the bar floor to pay his “gambling debt.”

Just then, a thirsty, late night patron came in asking for a 6-pack of beer and Lee had to sheepishly direct him to purchase the beer from his guest.  After Hansen reveled in his victory for awhile, he graciously returned all the beer to Lee (who needed it to stay in business) and settled on a lobster dinner as a consolation prize.

Lee started one of the Indian Trail’s most important traditions during his first season at the resort when, in 1968, he installed the musky siren on a tree high above the patio.  From that point on, every time a person would come in with a musky, this air raid siren would be sounded to alert not only everyone at the resort but also anyone on the lake within a three mile radius.  Years ago, before catch and release started, any musky brought in would be prominently displayed in the bar, hanging from the official weigh in scale.  It always was quite exciting for the guests to come in and see how big the musky was.

Combined with the musky men who had already been cottage regulars, Frenchy and the additional fishermen who put trailers in at Indian Trail made for a solid contingent of musky anglers.  Even so, Frenchy–who was on the top of his game at the time–remained the dominant musky producer at the resort for the next six years.

While time has had a way of marching on over the years, the gang at the “Trails” always made sure that the old days and Chiz-ui-aw would not be forgotten.

Over 50 years ago, Jackie Hollen, one of the resort’s Indian guides, began honoring Chiz-ui-aw by tossing him offerings of candy or even pennies off the dock… in hopes that Chiz-ui-aw would reciprocate by allowing him a good day’s fishing. Yes, scores of superstitious fishermen have since continued the tradition and often seek Chiz-ui-aw’s guidance.

Evidently continuing to watch over the folks at Indian Trail, some believe that it was Chiz-ui-aw who intervened when Pete Petrouske nearly killed himself in what could have been a serious boating accident at the resort’s main dock. Petrouske, speeding in with his boat, suddenly had the throttle of his motor stick at full speed as he was approaching his dock slip.  At the last minute, he somehow managed to turn his boat to avoid crashing into the dock; however, he then found himself heading straight towards a small bridge (with barely two feet of clearance beneath it) that connects to the floating dock.

At the last second, Pete ducked his head to avoid decapitation as his boat shot under the bridge.  Upon emerging from the other side of the bridge, Petrouske’s boat then careened off the rear end of Frenchy LaMay’s boat just as he and his cousin, Warren Schreiber, were backing out to go fishing.

The main project that Lee tackled at the resort was to build a large, three car garage in the main parking area in 1970.  It was around that time when Pauline had a mild heart attack, an occurrence that necessitated cutting down on the grueling kitchen detail that was a big part of her duties.  Lunches were eliminated and dinner service was cut back to primarily include just the Bunkhouse patrons who had no cooking facilities to use.

With his parent’s involvement in the resort becoming more limited with each year, following the 1971 season, Lee decided it was time to sell and move onto a meat business venture that he had been thinking about for some time.

(The Dettloffs)

It seemed as though new musky records were set each year at Indian Trail. Ron and Pat ran the resort together until 1984, when they divorced amicably, and their son, John, bought into the resort.  During those years, John developed into one of the most successful musky fishermen on the Flowage, carrying the torch of promoting the love of the sport even further than the musky men who preceded him had done.

The “Little Red Bar” continues as the social center and the place where the fishermen can either plan their next day’s strategy or just swap stories.  Here, they still fight fish that were caught or lost more than 50 years ago.  John, a dedicated musky fisherman, has always been quick to share a story or two with his patrons.

However, sometimes the stories are put on hold for a while, like when a happy guest comes in with another great catch or maybe when a mysterious (but familiar) visitor makes a surprise appearance.  Such an event occurred back in 1984, when, in mid-story, John was interrupted by a mysterious wind that, even from the wrong direction, still managed to blow the heavy, log door of the bar open… and then bang it shut.  The place became as silent as a cemetery for a few moments until John offered a quick explanation to the bewildered fishermen. “That was just Chiz-ui-aw.  He wanted to come in and visit.”

A prime example of how much influence that Chiz-ui-aw can have on a person’s fishing success is illustrated by the saga of Al Denninger, a serious musky angler and fishing guide.  At first, whenever Denninger heard the gang at the “Little Red Bar” talk about how making an offering to Chiz-ui-aw could increase their odds of catching fish, Al scoffed at the thought.  Refusing to make any offerings to Chiz-ui-aw, Al ended up being plagued by a five year dry streak in which he couldn’t catch even one musky over 20#.

John Dettloff helping Al Denninger lift his 40#er in 1984.

Finally, in September of 1984, after much continued bad luck with his fishing, Al relented and tossed a penny or two into the water for Chiz-ui-aw, sincerely hoping that it would help him catch a nice musky.  Low and behold, on that very day, Al ended up catching a 40# plus musky!  Naturally, that made a believer out of Denninger.

In 1986, Pat built a beautiful log home overlooking the resort’s spacious beach and, in 1988, began renting out its lower level as the resort’s deluxe Beachfront Apartment and seventh rental “cottage”.  In 1988, John married Paulette and–along with Pat–ran the resort together for the next ten years.  A new kitchen was one of the first orders of business for the two and, upon remodeling it in 1989, it was discovered that Chiz-ui-aw’s original cabin lay hidden beneath its walls and was still completely intact. In 1999, John and Paulette divorced.

During the spring of 2000, John discovered that–because of the age of the building–the entire front of the bar had actually collapsed somewhat beneath the weight of the dining room up above it.  Upon tearing the siding off the front of the bar, he learned that all of the vertical supports had rotted.  In what became his most challenging restoration project at the resort, the bar was closed for the whole month of May that year while John focused on this challenge.

Prior to dismantling not only the front end of the bar building but also the entire pipestone patio–which had been breaking up with the repeated frosts over the years–John took many photos and precise measurements of how everything was originally put together so that he could accurately restore it.  Because the Little Red Bar and the patio have always been an important part of the character at Indian Trail, John immersed himself in the project.

After re-supporting the dining room with steel supports that John had built into the outer wall of the bar, he then reconstructed the outer stone wall portion to its original dimensions, installed new windows in their original configuration, and he even made an exact replica of the heavy, log bar door.  Because he had photographed and numbered all of the beautifully varnished, log boards that were on the inside of the outer wall of the bar, John was able to reassemble them in place so that nobody even knew that the bar had been redone.

When it came time to rebuilding the pipestone patio, John had taken the hundreds of stones that it was made from and cleaned each of them off, relaying them all in their original pattern.  As a final touch to “age” the concrete on the patio, John had a special mix of concrete made up, which contained more aggregate, and at the precise time in the drying process hosed off the surface cream to expose what looked to be an aged base of concrete.  Two local Indian boys worked very hard, wheeling all of the wet concrete down the hill from the road to the patio… one wheel barrow at a time.  For the patio reconstruction project, John called upon Lance Boyle, a Hayward mason and former high school acquaintance, to help him out.

It was at that time when John began dating Lance’s sister Brenda, who also went to high school with John, and it wasn’t long before the two became inseparable.  After John introduced Brenda to the Flowage and his unique world at Indian Trail, Brenda quickly became part of the resort.  Brenda was touched deeply by John’s respect for the serene beauty of the flowage, his passion and dedication to the resort lifestyle, his personal care that he shows his guests, and his intense love of the sport of musky fishing.

In July of 2002, John and Brenda were married at the site of the old Indian Mission Church on Church Island, located just across the lake from the resort.  Because Brenda possesses the same deep love for the Flowage, the outdoors, and the resort life that John has, the pair is committed to ensuring that Indian Trail's character and charm will never fade.

One important task that John and Brenda immediately saw to was the refurbishment of the Bunkhouse.  In addition to doing a complete repaint of all the rooms and installing fresh carpeting, they also put in a roomy shower and updated the front sitting room by adding a refrigerator and microwave for the convenience of their guests.  Also, because John and Brenda know how important a good night’s sleep is, new mattresses were put into whatever rooms needed them.  Going even a step further, they named each of the rooms after one of the old musky men from yesterday, with each room paying tribute to a different angler.  So right down to the brass numbers on the doors of the rooms, the Bunkhouse at Indian Trail promises to serve as a very quaint and inexpensive place of lodging for guests.

One reconstruction job in particular that John and Brenda really enjoyed sinking their teeth into took place in 2006, when they rebuilt the stone patio wall that winds its way down towards the lake.  Over the years, part of that wall had broken apart and it needed to be restored.  Because Brenda used to work with her brother and father–who were both masons–when she was younger, she has experience working with concrete and isn’t one to mind “getting her hands dirty.”

A new tradition that was added to the resort in 2006 was the installation of the musky bell just outside the “Little Red Bar.”  While retaining the musky siren for the few musky catches that are now kept and brought in, John and Brenda felt it was important to acknowledge all of the released musky catches that their guests were reporting by having them proudly ring the musky bell every time they would catch a musky.  Naturally, if someone decides to bring in a trophy musky–or, better yet, a new worlds record musky–we will be proud to ring the musky siren on anyone’s behalf… to let the world know about the memorable event.

Other than adding a few more trailers to the trailer court in recent years, there have been no major additions to Indian Trail during the past 23 years.  This is by design, for John and Brenda feel that, in order to best preserve the quaint ambiance that has always been unique to Indian Trail, their primary focus will be the continued ongoing restoration and preservation of Indian Trail Resort.

John and Brenda feel passionate about offering their guests a true northwoods family/fishing resort experience… much in the tradition of the classic resorts of a mostly bygone era.  They feel it’s important to provide their guests with a sanctuary to escape to from the modern world, a magical place that reminds one of simpler times, and a place that will never run short of creating special memories.

John and Brenda Dettloff, 2006.

John & Brenda Dettloff encourage couples to "take their relationship to the next level" and enjoy the wonderful sport of fishing together.

Late in 2007, John and Brenda bought out the remaining portion of the original resort and Pat took a much deserved retirement that will enable her to spend more time fishing and enjoying the lake.

This year, in 202., Indian Trail Resort proudly begins its 87th year in business and the 56th year for the Dettloff family. John and Brenda are here to serve you and make your vacation as pleasurable and memorable as possible.