In 1968 my Norwegian-heritage parents walked into the 1922 Norway pine cabin called Solbakken (Sunny Hill) on the shore of Woman Lake and knew they'd found their summer retirement home.
My fisherman dad had done a great deal of research, and at the time the Woman Lake chain in Cass County was one of the top spots for fishing. He was happy that my mom was excited about a cabin there. I was happy because I was graduating from college, and the new cabin meant that instead of going home to Illinois, I'd be able to stay here and see my Minnesota boyfriend all summer.
Mom and Dad added a guest cottage, a fish-cleaning house and a little screened house on the shore they dubbed the lysthus (lighthouse or gazebo in Norwegian). When my brother-in-law suggested "Høy Farts Båt" (high-speed boat) for the name of our new boat, though, my mother balked.
Over the years, the cabin became a gathering place for friends and family. During the first summers, my mother made so many trips to the laundry with loads of sheets that the proprietor asked where her resort was located. I married that Minnesota boyfriend, and our daughter made her first trip to Solbakken when she was 8 days old. My parents and my husband have passed on, but I look forward to trips to the cabin with my son and daughter, their spouses, a fourth generation of children, and all of our dogs. We swim, boat, tube, water ski and throw dummies for the dogs. We get Sunday-morning homemade doughnuts at the little store, walk in the woods and sit on the dock and the porch, listen to the loons and listen for the whispering voices of all the loved ones who have spent time with us at our beloved Solbakken.
Kathy LeFevere, Dassel, Minn.
