On Monday and Tuesday, we were busily getting our mailout organized for the 2010 season.  Just under 1,500 pieces were prepared and brought out to the post office on Tuesday afternoon.  Hopefully everyone will get their packages by today or early next week!  We are very excited about what we have produced for the new mailout.

Included in this year’s mailout are three things.  Firstly, we have our very popular calendar.  Julie works hard to select the right pictures and compile the whole calendar, and Janelle was able to help her with some expert finishing work on the selected photos.   We also have our new printed newsletter with some juicy tidbits of info for the upcoming season written in tandem by Pit and Pat (thanks to Paul for his editing skills!)  We also list all our sportshows in the newsletter (we are doing 9 shows plus two local shorelunches in Manitoba this year).

Lastly, a very exciting DVD will be part of the mailout.  This is a copy of the new Call of the Tundra show that was filmed in August 2009 and aired on Global TV in Western Canada in October this year.  The DVD also includes a copy of the 2008 edition of the show, as well as a very excellent 4-minute promotional video for the lodge.  In the promo video, the contestants of the past few years share their candid experiences with the viewer.  Very scenic shots are cut into the video and it is all very professional.  Thanks to Global TV and to Toyota for making this happen for us!  If you would like to see a copy of the promo video online, see our homepage at www.aikenslake.com or our Youtube page @ http://www.youtube.com/user/aikenslakelodge

Have a very Merry Christmas and happy New Year!

With graphite hockey sticks instead of rods, 13 Aikens Lake veterans journeyed south to the quaint burg of St. Pierre, Manitoba and strapped on the skates for the first ever Aikens sponsored team event.  Sunday night’s main event, which followed up our annual Christmas party on Saturday, was a chance for staffers to reconnect and enjoy a friendly exhibition match vs. the local St. Pierre aces.

Headed by Player-Coach Pit “The-Boss” Turenne, our unpracticed roster took in a short warm-up before the puck dropped. Our Bait and Tackle man, Luke Gnutel, manned the pipes for our team, while the dirty traitor (wink) Marcel Bédard was the man behind the mask for the opposition. Presiding over the rulings on the ice was our talented Charlie Préfontaine.

First period: After a few laborious line changes, the Aikens team settled into a great pace chasing the home team’s early lead.  We managed to stay out of the penalty box and capitalized on some golden chances to bring the score closer. 5-2 for the bad guys at the end of the first.

Second period: Coach sat us down and gave us a serious talking to: “… I didn’t travel all this way just to see you guys give them the game!” He then proceeded to take things into his own hands and scored a pair of beauties back-to-back! This breathed some life into squad. We dropped the clutch and dug deep to bring the game within one goal. 8-7 bad guys at the end of two.

Third period: Then the dam burst. It is with much sorrow we regret to inform the readership that in the third period the wheels fell off the wagon. Firstly a game misconduct was handed out to one of our star players for a tripping call by the Santa-impersonating Zebra. Deflated, the Aikens team tried to muster a come-back but the levee had broken. Unanswered goals by the opposition put the game away, leaving only smiles and a round of handshakes at the end of the game. Final score 15-8 for St. Pierre.

Many thanks to all those who played and the few who cheered us on. Thanks to the St.-Pierre arena management for putting us up in the old barn. With so much fun by all in this trial run, don’t be surprised to see more Aikens Lake Hockey action in the not-so-distant future!

The dates for the Continuing Medical Education being offered at Aikens Lake have changed to August 30th to September 3rd, 2010. The bonus is that the instructor will be ON SITE!  This will no longer be a web-based program.

To recap the program, a 15-hour course called “Physician Resilience” is being offered at no charge to doctors looking to mix business with pleasure during a trip to Aikens Lake.  It will be part of our annual newsletter that we will mail out in the coming weeks.  We have begun booking single doctors or groups.  Please call us if you would like more information.

The Manitoba Lodges and Outfitters association is a strong voice for the outdoor industry.  Comprised of a record 160+ members this year, the association is stronger than ever and is the perfect lobby group for the industry.  Despite outside forces, the record number of members and attendees at the AGM are a testament to the great work of the association.  Aikens is certainly an avid supporter of the organization: Pit is the current president and has been since December of 2008, while Gerry is a past president of the association.  Pit, Pat, and Julie attended this year’s event.

The Annual General Meetings took place at the CanadInns hotel in Winnipeg, MB from December 5-7. Members from all over the province, and many that live in other parts of the world, congregated for the three day event.  The highlight, as always, was the banquet.  This year, we were honored to host the new Minister of Conservation, the Honorable Bill Blaikie as the guest speaker at the banquet.  A silent and live auction raised over $18,000 for the association as a record crowd was on hand to bid on the various items.  The banquet was attended by 8 members of the Manitoba Legislative Assembly, and thus the voice of the MLOA grew larger and larger.  In all, a very successful evening for the association.

The two days of meetings ranged a variety of topics, from social media advertising and website designs to meetings with government officials on topical issues of conservation and Crown lands.  The topics were both informative and timely for our industry.  We were also honored to have the Minister of Culture and Tourism (and responsible for Travel Manitoba), Mrs. Flor Marcelino speak at our luncheon on Monday.  We also had the Minister of Water Stewardship (and responsible for the Fisheries Enhancement Fund), Mrs. Christine Melnick speak to us on Tuesday.

One other exciting thing that happened right before our meetings was that the Safari Club International had a meeting about setting up a local chapter… thus the Manitoba Chapter of SCI was formed!   This organization is an international powerhouse in terms of conservation and wildlife projects.  We look forward to joining forces with them to brighten the future of Manitoba wildlife!

Using the AGM as a point of reference for our industry, it would appear that we are headed in a very positive direction.  Although the economy hampered some outfitters and lodges, it appears that most weathered the storm well and we have established a very solid foundation on which to build on for the future.  Manitoba is quite a diverse wonderland of outdoor activities, and we at Aikens Lake Wilderness Lodge are proud to be a part of both the MLOA and part of the province of Manitoba!