THE HUGHES CREW TRADITION

BY TERESA SUTTER

In the summer of 1944, my grandma and grandpa loaded up their car in Peoria, Illinois, “borrowed” some extra gas coupons (as rationing was still going on) and headed over 600 miles north to visit their friend, Bill Urban, a fellow centralIllinoisan, who had recently been deeded a resort on Upper Gull Lake in Nisswa, Minnesota, as a debt payment.

They spent a week fishing, playing cards, enjoying the water and the woods, and reveling in time away from their five children.

At the end of the week, Grandma and Grandpa vowed to return, not realizing then that their descendants wouldn’t miss a summer in Nisswa for the next 80 years.

In 1946, Grandma and Grandpa decided to bring their six kids along on the annual trip to Urban’s Resort, this time staying for three weeks. They loaded up their ’38 Plymouth, spent the night in Black River Falls and arrived in Nisswa two days later.

Thus began the tradition of my mom and her five siblings spending three weeks each summer in Nisswa.

They played on the dock (which all five cabins shared) and on the slide in the lake, caught frogs, worms and minnows, fished and swam in the water for hours, and picked blueberries and raspberries.

My uncle tells the story of sneaking into the icehouse and grabbing chunks of ice to slide down the hill into Upper Gull Lake when Grandma and Grandpa were dancing, gambling and enjoying a night out at Bar Harbor Supper Club.

In the ‘50s, as my mom and her siblings entered their teenage years, they became good friends with many locals such as the

Castners and the Schmidt kids, whose parents were the caretakers of Urban’s Resort.

Not having a boat themselves, my mom and her four sisters spent the first few days finding boys that did! They’d often head down to the clubhouse at Cold Springs Resort to play pool, listen to music, pick up a game of ping pong and enjoy ice cream on a hot summer night while swatting the mosquitoes away.

In the mid-’60s my mom met my dad on a blind date and he happened to own a boat! She convinced him to drive his boat up from Towanda, Illinois, to Nisswa for a week one summer. Dad stayed at Cold Springs Resort with a friend, taking my mom and her siblings out the Gull Lake Chain in his boat for skiing, fishing, swimming and cruising.

Mom and Dad married in ’66 and shortly thereafter, my mom’s sister bought a cabin on Upper Gull. Mom and Dad and my uncle soon followed suit, buying a property on Upper Gull as well.

In the ‘70s and ‘80s, my parents loaded their five kids and an assortment of cats and dogs into the pickup and drove the 600+ miles north to spend the summer in Nisswa!

My siblings and I spent our summer days fishing, swimming, learning to ski from mom - who would take off from the dock - boat riding, chasing waves in our flivver and just having the time of our lives.

Each morning began with a turtling trip to Stoney Brook or Cold Springs to catch turtles for the turtle races. Soon Mom had the idea of renting out turtles to kids at the resorts who didn’t have them and in the late ‘70s, we became the first turtle brokers, renting out turtles for $1 and giving you back 25 cents if you returned the turtle to us at the end of the race.

Grandma never joined us for the turtle races, but always wanted to know which turtles were the best racers!

In the evenings, we’d play cards at the cabin or catfish at the dock while listening to The Power Loon. Mom and Dad would on occasion meet up with her sister and brother and local friends and have a night out at Bar Harbor.

Our older cousins down the lake would drive over in their boat to babysit. We’d boat into Nisswa and dock at the Marina and head to the DQ or A&W for a rootbeer float and mini-golf.

Sometimes if we were lucky, we’d all go to the Big Slide and ride down in the gunnysacks! Of course, no summer trip to Nisswa was complete without a visit to the Paul Bunyan Center where Paul would say your name and wave at you.

We always hoped for a few rainy days so we could head into town and get a grab bag at the Totem Pole or a new pair of Minnetonka moccasins at Zaiser’s during Crazy Days.

Then we’d pick up a Mary Etta’s pie for dessert and head back home to the lake for Bar Harbor’s happy hour and the soup of the day; if we were lucky, it was beer cheese! We’d read the Ripley’s Believe It or Not napkins, fill up on popcorn and play the pull-tabs before riding into Big Gull and swimming at Party Cove.

In the late ‘80s, my parents sold their cabin, but we still traveled to Nisswa each year to stay with our cousins or at Point Narrows resort.

Soon, my siblings and cousins began having kids of their own and in the late ‘90s, the fourth generation began to discover the joys of a Nisswa summer! My niece got to experience first hand the delight of three generations of family members simultaneously shouting at you the proper skiing form from the pontoon boat while you freeze in Lake Margaret begging them to just “hit it!”

After a day on the lake, we’d head into the Chocolate Ox for happy hour and stop by the Pickle Factory to get the new shirt for the summer. We have a quilt with Pickle Factory shirts!

At the end of the summer, as we’d begin the trip back to Illinois, we always stop by the mini-donut stand to get a few more cinnamon sugar treats before the long ride home.

In the mid-2010s my cousin purchased a cabin on Booming Out Bay on Big Gull and the fifth generation will get to experience the beauty, wonder and unbridled happiness that is Nisswa, Minnesota!

Six kids, 23 grandkids and five generations later, we are so grateful to my grandparents for deciding that Missouri would likely be just too hot, and Nisswa, Minnesota, sounded like a much better place to fish.

The wonderful thing about shopping in Nisswa is that there is something for everyone - home decor, clothing, sporting goods, shoes, gifts, cards, books, toys or jewelry. Look for the choices you have in ice cream or candy. You might stop for a haircut or make an appointment to visit the dentist, or perhaps it’s time to investigate purchasing some local real estate. From the American Legion on down to the Dairy Queen, we can accommodate any want or need you might have.

You can stroll the entire downtown and find plenty of outdoor seating, or stop at one of the many restaurants and coffee shops for a drink or a bite to eat.

Most shops are open 7 days a week during the height of the season, from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Shops will vary their hours throughout the holiday season and into winter. A handful of shops close for the winter and reopen in the spring.

If you’d like more information about Nisswa stores, the Nisswa Chamber of Commerce Welcome Center is in the heart of downtown and is open 7 days a week from Memorial Day to Labor Day, and six days a week otherwise.

Plenty of parking and fun awaits in downtown Nisswa! We are a special destination spot in the lakes area. Come and see for yourself.