lakes in the State, to our thinking. It is really a
series of lakes, all bounded by irregular shores; while, in places,
occur deep bays and inlets, giving picturesqueness and beauty beyond all
ordinary fancyings.

Near the railway station are two hotels (the furthest being the best),
where good fare, and at reasonable rates, can be had, with row-boats
thrown in, _ad libitum_. This lake is one of the pleasure resorts for
the people of both St. Paul and Minneapolis. Excursion tickets are sold
for every train running thither, and many go up simply to enjoy a day's
fishing and sailing.

There is a little steamer running from near the railway station, which
is close to the edge of the lake, to the village of Excelsior, six
miles distant, near which lives one of the best guides to the fishing
grounds of the lake. But a guide is not at all essential to the amateur,
or those in simple quest of fun, pleasure, or health, since the fish
here are so plentiful that all will have luck, whether they have
experience or not.

Near "Round Island," and off "Spirit Knob," in this lake, are favorite
haunts of the fish, yet the "big ones" are not plentiful now at these
points, though their resorts are well known to most of the old
fishermen.

To tell of the size and abundance of the fish here will, perhaps, court
disbelief; yet we state "what we know," when we say that a single
fisherman starting, with the "guide" before referred to, at eight
o'clock in the morning, came to the wharf at noon--after rowing a
distance of six miles to make port--with a catch of about one hundred
weight of fish, chiefly pickerel, one of which weighed twelve pounds,
and measured near three feet in length. Another and less successful
party of two, instead of catching a "big one," came near being caught by
him. It was a funny incident altogether. They were from "down east,"
where pickerel don't weigh over a pound or so, on the average, unless
fed on _shot_ after being hauled in, all out of pure regard for the
hungry and worried creatures, of course. Well, this party, all
enthusiastic and eager, cast the line, when, lo! a monster pickerel
gobbled the bait and away he went, carrying the floats under and the
fisherman over and into the watery deep, with his heel and head just
above water level only. The fish, including the "odd one," were
subsequently pulled in by the man in the boat who is accustomed to
"takes."

Boarding can be had, at the hotels and private