Letters from th G.M.

 April 12, 2012

Dear Members,

We are fast approaching peak season when the resort will be hopping with activity! There are several things we would like to communicate with you. First up is that we have a job opening for a new grounds maintenance person here at the resort. Some of you had the privilege of meeting David, our former grounds man. He took a maintenance job with one of the casinos in Cripple Creek. We will miss him! In the meantime, if you know of anyone who might be interested in grounds maintenance here at the resort, please have them send their resume to ladonna@pkenterprisesinc.com. It is a fulltime position at $8.00+ per hour depending on experience level.

Starting Saturday, April 14, the resort will have an area setup near Sun Lake for a“Metal Drive”. Any old grills, metal chair frames, odds and ends made of metal from your campsite, can be taken to Sun Lake. There will be a sign to indicate where to place your metal throwaways. This drive will continue through Memorial Day weekend ending on Tuesday May 29. So let’s open up our sites for the season and do our spring cleaning, getting rid of all of our rusty metal items that are no longer useful … and we can help beautify the resort in the process!

As a reminder, one of the benefits of being a member here is that you get a 35% discount on a 10×10 storage unit in Divide, which is $45/mo (regularly $70/mo). For more information on renting a storage unit please call Tracy at 719-687-6011 ext 20.

Now that the lakes are thawed, the “Tuesday Only” rule is reinstated for the four lower lakes: Bear, Deer, Summer, and Forest. Please fish at these lakes on Tuesdays only, catch-and-release only.

Speaking of our lower lakes, member Greg Cheney fished at Bear Lake for two hours on Tuesday, April 10^th, and caught-and-released 11 fish ranging 16”-20+” – 8 Browns and 3 Rainbows. He said they were all nice and healthy. This is a good sign that winter kill was minimal.

Be sure to take a camera with you every time you go fishing so you can enter your big catches in our fishing contest. The winter contest ends at the annual members meeting when we give out awards for the biggest three catches for the winter fishing contest, and then we kick off our summer fishing contest.

Speaking of our members meeting, due to a scheduling conflict with Pavilion reservations, we must postpone the members meeting until June (May 19^th is canceled). We will let you know as soon as the exact date in June is set. Please plan on a June members meeting instead of May.

Something new we are doing beginning this year is when new members enroll, we are prorating their first year so they do not have to wait until January to enroll. This is a once-in-a-lifetime prorated dues. If a member does not renew in January and then rejoins later on, the prorated dues will not be allowed a second time. The one-time prorated dues will encourage new members to join, so keep that in mind when referring a friend. Also remember that you get $100 credit off your next year’s membership when someone you refer joins. So far we have had many members benefit from that this year by referring their friends and family.

If you have more than six guests you would like to bring to the resort, to avoid the entry fee per additional guest, please consider renting one of our group campsites which range from $40 (Thunder Camp) to $160 (Gazebo Camp). There is not a limit to the number of guests (within reason) you can have at the group campsite you rent.

Something that has not been enforced in the past, but will be this season, is that anyone who is fishing may only have one rod in the water at any one time, and it must be under the control of the fisherman.

The following is our tentative fish stocking schedule for the 2012 season: Monday May 21^st1:00, Wednesday June 27^th 1:00, Tuesday July 24^th 1:00, Tuesday August 28^th 1:00. Dates and times are subject to change without notice so please call ahead. We encourage every to witness this fun event, especially children. Kids love it!

The General Store will open for the season on Friday May 25^that 2:00 p.m. The hours of operation for the General Store are as follows:

GENERAL STORE WEEKLY HOURS
Friday 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Sunday – CLOSED

HOLIDAY HOURS
Friday 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Sunday 12:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Holiday Mondays – CLOSED

GATE GUARD SCHEDULE
Saturday May 26^th 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Saturday June 30^th 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Saturday July 7^th 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Saturday September 1^st 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.

Warm regards,

LaDonna

Date:  January 26, 2012

December 19,2011

Dear Members,

I have been getting conflicting input about whether or not it is safe to return fish to the water when you catch it ice-fishing, so I called the experts. Our Aquatic Biologist, Kent Gilge, said that the fish in winter actually have a better chance of survival than fish caught and returned during warmer weather…less than 10% mortality rate. The owner of the fish farm that supplies our fish, Eric Koolstra, said when the water is cooler, the oxygen is higher which is conducive to a better survival rate for fish caught and returned while ice-fishing. So, with this new information, the same rules for summer fishing will apply for winter ice-fishing. Please do not keep more than than the limit of 10 fish per day, and 50 fish per year while ice-fishing. For winter there are no restrictions on the lakes so you may fish at all 15 lakes seven days a week, and you may keep fish in the catch-and-release ponds as long as you do not go over your limit of 10/day and 50/year.

Steve Haney and a buddy of his were our 1st ice-fisherman of the winter season. They came out this past Saturday and in one hour and 20 minutes they caught 31 fish and many of them were in the 18-22″ range. Steve used fathead minnows. His guest caught eight fish on the same chewed up worm (we think that must be some kind of record!) Steve said all the fish put up a really good fight and that it was an incredible day!

Steve wanted me to pass on that the ice was only 4-5″ where he fished, but it was safe (4″ is minimum for safety). It is normal for the ice to crack and groan. Ice does this because it is always expanding and contracting. Steve says he never gets used to it and it freaks him out every time. It would me, too, Steve!

I wanted to announce the official start of our ice-fishing contest. We will award cool plaques for the top three biggest fish caught. First place will also receive a fun gift. We will announce the winners at the Members Annual Meeting in May, and their pictures will go on our website. The winning catches must submit a picture of themselves holding the fish at the lake in which they caught it. Measure it and weigh it and email us that information along with all the juicy details of exactly how you scored that big fella.

The auger is available to rent 6 days a week at the Conference Center office. Our office hours are Monday-Saturday 8am-4:30pm. Since sometimes we must be out on property it is a good idea to call us in advance to tell us when to expect you so we can be sure to stay in office.

                The following days the office will be closed for the holidays:

       12/23 (Fri), 12/24 (Sat), 12/26 (Mon), 12/30 (Fri), 12/31 (Sat), 1/2 (Mon).

David just did another measurement of the ice on the lakes and it is as follows:

                 Deer 8″, Bear 6″, Summer 8″, Forest 6″, Moon 10″, Sun 11″.

                        Merry Christmas….and come and get those fish!!!!

MEMBERSHIP AT THE LOST DUTCHMAN RESORT

ARE NOW OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

The Lost Dutchman Resort has just decided to open our individual fishing memberships to the public.  Our memberships are renewable on an annual basis from January 1^st through December 31^st.

 We do limit the number of members to ensure you have a pleasant experience of a lifetime!

                    Annual Membership Fee:  Non-electric $1500    Electric $2000

                         Please call the office at 719-686-7738 for additional information.

December 15, 2011

 Dear Members:

I hope this letter finds you in the Christmas spirit.  There is nothing like being in
the foothills of Colorado for Christmas. The white fluffy snow on the ground makes me think that Rudolph might be hiding out behind one of the giant pine trees at the resort.  “Heeeeeerrree, Rudolph … Don’t be shy!”

The ice on some of the lakes is now thick enough for ice fishing.  Hurray!  The minimum ice thickness for safety is 4”.  This morning David went out with the auger and, from nine feet off shore, these are the measurements of the ice thickness:  Deer 7”, Bear 5”, Summer 7”, Forest 6.5”, Moon is too slushy around the edges to take a measurement, and Sun is 6.5”.  The auger is available to rent ($10/hour) Monday – Saturday 8-4:30.  Tip: The fish here at the resort hit high when ice fishing since there is more oxygen at the surface.

At the end of last season a member asked if we would move Moon Gate to Sun Lake so there could be motorized access up to Sun Lake for ice fishing.  After researching it, I said “no” because it would be too expensive to maintain the road up to Sun Lake for such low demand (we only get a dozen or so ice fishermen in the wintertime).  Well, since then we hired David as our grounds maintenance, and he has made a drag plow for our work truck that has been able to adequately maintain the road up to Sun Lake without the expense of hiring a snow plow removal service. What that means to you is that we are opening Moon Gate and maintaining the road with a drag plow so you can have motorized access up to Sun Lake for ice fishing! Hurray!  Since a drag plow does
not clear the road as thoroughly as a regular snow plow, you will be required
to have 4WD or AWD vehicle in order to go beyond Moon Gate.  The road to Sun Lake is packed with snow and ice, but is completely manageable with 4WD or AWD.  No motorized access is allowed beyond Sun Lake – foot travel only.  If members disregard the requirement for 4WD/AWD past Moon Gate and get their vehicles stuck, we may have to go back to closing Moon Gate again since we do not provide a towing service.

During the winter, Deer, Bear, Summer, and Forest may be used for ice fishing any day of the week (not just Tuesdays).  During ice fishing, it is required that all fish are kept, regardless which lake, since they will die if you put them back.  During the summer,
however, the question has been asked if a fish is injured in a catch-and-release, does the member keep the fish since it will die anyway.  Injury to a fish is at times subjective, and
I do not want this to become an excuse for breaking a resort rule, so I am implementing that, no matter what, fish cannot be kept at a catch-and-release lake even if it is injured.  This is for the summer season only.  During the winter season, all fish are kept while ice fishing.

We are working to improve the health of our lakes.  Resort member Karl Gilge introduced me to his brother, Kent, who spent his life’s career as an Aquatic Biologist for the state of Montana managing the state’s lakes.  Kent recently came out and inspected our lakes to help assess our needs to improve them. We have since ordered a kit to test oxygen levels in the lakes.  In the spring we will be purchasing an electric aeration system to install at Forest Lake. If it proves effective at improving the health of that lake then we will consider purchasing additional aeration systems, non-electric (windmills), to improve the health of our other lakes as well. This aeration system is similar to those commonly used at golf courses.  One of our members told me that he once caught a big trout in one of our lakes and it was like “reeling in a boot” – the fish had no fight.  This is a sign that the fish was not getting enough oxygen.  With Kent’s help we will hopefully remedy this problem.

We have had a few inquiries about broomball.  We will not offer broomball this winter since we cannot justify the expense.  I will include a broomball question in our annual survey report card to see if members would be willing to pay a team fee in order to play broomball.  If there is enough interest, then we will offer broomball again next winter.  Our annual member survey will be sent electronically this year so please let us know if you would rather continue receiving your survey by U.S. Mail.

The mailboxes for Trout Haven Estates and Arabian Acres have been moved onto the resort property on Trout Lake Road.  At their former location on Kutsu Ridge Road, the mailboxes were repeatedly getting damaged by the county snow removal tractors.  To
resolve the problem, the county made arrangements with resort owner Pete Kuyper
to move the mailboxes.

One of the changes for next season will be that the maximum number of fish you can keep is 50 rather than 100.  Over the past two years there have been just two members who kept more than 50 fish, so this change will make only a small impact.  Plus, if you do the math, our lakes could never support every member keeping 100 fish.  It was prudent for us to make this change.

More dam repairs were just completed at Wind Lake, and of course dam repairs at Deer Lake were completed at the end of the summer last season.  Since our lakes were once a flowing river, they will always try to go back to being a river; hence, ongoing dam repairs will continue as needed in order to give you the best possible fishing experience in our unique and beautiful stair-step ponds.

By now you have all received your membership renewal contracts that Christine worked so hard to produce and distribute.  Next year we will purchase software so that we can deliver these contracts to you electronically via the Internet, as well as get your signature electronically with the click of your mouse.  We are looking forward to saving a tree and
saving on postage!

One of our members has said that he thought the tone of the new contract was antagonistic. That was certainly not our intention since we so greatly appreciate your
business!  In a legally binding contract, it is important to visit every possible worst-case-scenario, which can sound unpleasant at times but is imperative for the integrity of the contract.

Fines have been added because we have a handful of members who repeatedly violate resort rules.  In a mostly honor-system resort such as ours, we don’t have much wiggle room before there is chaos.  By far, the majority of our members are very conscientious
and respectful of resort rules which is why this is such a fabulous place to be; we simply need to create a greater motivation for non-compliant members to comply.

Within the last month we have found three deer carcasses on resort property that look like they may have been killed by a mountain lion.  We reported it to DOW and
they are monitoring it.  It is a normal part of nature, but we just want make sure it stays “normal.”  Randi put up an article on our web site entitled “When Mountain Lions Meet People” giving safety tips on what to do should you encounter a mountain lion.  It is very
similar to what you would do if you encounter a bear.  You can read the article here:  http://www.lostdutchmanresort.com/mountain-lion-aware/

Speaking of our web site, Randi has been working hard to improve the look of our web site (LostDutchmanResort.com), making it more informative and user friendly.  You can
now see pictures of all our rental cabins, details of all our wedding packages, current resort news, past member letters from the GM, pictures and bios of all the staff, various downloadable forms, fishing contest results, and more.  We are very proud of how Randi is teaching herself to be a webmaster extraordinaire, in addition to her other
responsibilities.  This Friday she will be going to an all day workshop on the subject, so she is investing considerable time and energy into making our electronic presentation more impressive.  Thank you, Randi!

During off season, please use the dumpster newly located at the Conference Center.
We had to remove the dumpster from outside the gate at the General Store because non-members were leaving things like mattresses and other large items at the dumpster which are not picked up by Waste Management.  After off-season, the dumpsters will be made available again at their normal locations.

We are having a garage sale!  We did a winter “spring cleaning” of all our storage spaces here on the resort, and we will be selling the items we no longer need.  Some items are not yet posted, so keep checking our web site for new listings.  We have a variety of items from dishes to electronics, and we are selling them for cheap, cheap, cheap!  If you are interested in making a purchase, please call our office at 719-686-7738 or email us at ldr@pkenterprisesinc.com.  To view pictures and prices of items for sale, please go here:  http://www.picnik.com/show/id/17172919183_J49Hs/t/garage-sale  

Speaking of items for sale, David built us a big wooden container next to the Pepsi machine at the General Store for the purpose of storing firewood.  We can now offer firewood for sale to our members for cheap at $5 for a bundle of 10 logs.  We hope you like this added convenience!

Well, that is all the news for now.  If you are traveling for the holidays, I pray for your safe travels!  May this be your best Christmas yet, and may the New Year bring you many happy surprises!

Yours truly,

LaDonna

December 2011 

2012
Renewel Contracts 

As we see 2011 come to a close, we wish to say “Thank You” for being a part of the Trout Haven family. Please be on the look out for your new 2012 membership renewel contract. Christine will be mailing them out during the 1st week of December. 

We are looking forward to seeing you next year!

November 2011

Dear Members,

Unfortunately the decision to close Moon Gate has been made. Even though the main road has been plowed to Sun Lake, none of the roads to the camp sites have been plowed.
There are drifts of 15 plus inches in many areas and are very hazardous. Ice has formed in the shaded areas and has been covered with snow, therefore slippery conditions are not necessarily visible.

ITEMS FOR SALE 

http://www.picnik.com/show/id/17172919183_J49Hs/t/garage-sale 

CLICK ON THE LINK ABOVE TO VIEW ITEMS FOR SALE IF YOU FIND SOMETHING OF INTEREST JUST GIVE US A CALL 719-686-7738  OR EMAIL US AT LDR@PKENTERPRISESINC.COM

The lakes have a very thin layer of ice making fishing impossible. Ice fishing is not feasible because the ice is not near thick enough. Therefore fishing is out of the question.

Mr.Potts has shut down the port-a-potties in the upper elevations. Only the port-a-potty near Forest and Summer which will be moved out to the road will be serviced during the winter months.

September 14, 2011

Dear Members,

The Members Picnic on September 3rd was a lovely success. We had 70 in attendance and lots of good food and fun fellowship. We recognized the winners of our fishing contest. David Graff came in first place with his 27” oinker caught at Bear Lake on July 12th. Brian Rowe came in 2nd place with his 22” 5.5-lb super-sized trout caught at Dragonfly on August 14th. And little 9-year-old Sarah Campbell placed 3rd with her 21” 5.3-lb trout that was almost as big as her! She caught it at Dragonfly on June 25th. They were all awarded a plaque with their picture on it , along with details of their catch.

The first place winner, David, was also awarded “Frankie the Singing Fish” as seen on this video clip (click on link to view) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f071AfSf9rE

Thank you to all who submitted their entries. We plan on having another fishing contest next season to include a “Chub Derby” to see who can catch the most chubs. Fun-fun!!

Labor Day Weekend was extremely busy at the resort but relatively quiet. Thank you all for your contribution to a drama-free holiday! There were reports of ATVs being driven at the resort which is prohibited. As a reminder to all, off-road vehicles are not allowed due to their noise level and their liability. Thank you for respecting this resort rule.

The dam repair is complete at Deer Lake so it is now open for fishing on Tuesdays only for catch-and-release.

We are in need of a good local repair service for commercial appliances with whom we may establish an ongoing relationship. If you know of a reputable local repair service for commercial refrigerators and such, please let us know by responding to this email or calling the office at 719-686-7738.

Since the General Store is now closed for the season, the new office hours for the Conference Center are Tuesday – Saturday, 8am-4:30pm (closed Mondays). Please feel free to come see us on Saturdays if you need assistance while at the resort on the weekends.

Sunday, October 2nd will be the last day to use the garbage dumpsters at Sun Lake. They will be flipped upside down for off-season. There will be a garbage dumpster located at the electronic gates that will be serviced year-round for you to use.

We had a request to move Moon Gate to Sun Lake in order to have motorized access to the upper lakes for ice fishing in the winter. This would mean the resort would have to maintain the road (keep clear of snow and ice) up to Sun Lake. Unfortunately, the reduced activity level in the winter does not justify the expense of maintaining the road up to Sun Lake. We still encourage ice fishing in the winter with motorized access to Moon Gate, and foot access to the remaining upper lakes. There has been no date set for closing Moon Gate since that is solely determined by the weather and the road conditions. All lakes are catch-and-keep while ice fishing, and all lakes can me fished seven days a week while ice fishing. To use the resort auger is $10/hour and you must sign a release form. You may check out the auger at the Conference Center during our normal business hours.

We are re-verifying our waiting list for electric campsites. Please let us know if you want to remain on our waiting list or be added to our waiting list. We are planning to open some additional electric sites since there is such a high demand. You may let us know by responding to this email or calling us at 719-686-7738.

I would like to introduce our new grounds maintenance man to you . His name is David Moritz. He is a journeyman plumber and has well-rounded maintenance experience. He has lived in the area for 18 years and is married with grown children. He is an outdoorsman who loves to hunt and fish and occasionally likes to sleep in the snow! He is a hard worker and a great addition to our team. Please be sure to give him a warm welcome when you see him.

On a personal note, I have some exciting news. On August 24th my boyfriend of one year asked me to marry him. I said an enthusiastic Y-E-S!!! We will marry in the spring. I have turned into one of those starry-eyed-in-love-type persons to whom I used to roll my eyes. Be careful what annoys you – that’s what you may become!

A great job and a great man … I can’t remember a time in my life when I was happier. It could only be made better by a longer season at the resort. The summer went by way too fast. It was fun while it lasted though. And it’s just going to keep getting better and better. Thank you for the opportunity to serve you!

Yours truly,

LaDonna DeVore, General Manager

August 22, 2011

Dear Members:

We have had several new impressive entries for our fishing contest.  Check them out at http://www.lostdutchmanresort.com/prize-fish/

We will recognize our top fishing entries at our annual Members’ Picnic on Saturday, September 3^rd.  It looks like we are going to have a good turnout.  Please RSVP by Monday August 29^th.  Let us know what dish you plan to bring and how many will be in your party.  We will provide hamburgers, hotdogs, lemonade and tea.  The picnic will be held at the Pavilion so please do not bring alcoholic beverages since our liquor license there prohibits it.  If there is no fire ban then we plan on having a bonfire so be sure to bring your smores and coat hangers.  The picnic will go from 12 noon to 4pm.  Come and get to know your neighbors and the resort staff.  You may RSVP by either replying to this email or by calling the office at 719-686-7738.

As a reminder we have requested the radar trailer and a gate guard for the Labor Day weekend.  Please be prepared to tell the gate guard your name.  Your guests will be asked their name and with whom they are at the resort.  You are allowed a maximum of six guests.  Also, please be sure to always enter through the electronic gates.  The entrance off of Trout Haven is for Events only.  We receive an alert when a vehicle exits the electronic gate without having entered through the electronic gates.

We have had lots of bear sightings including an extra fun one on Saturday August 13^th at the Pella annual company picnic at the Pavilion.  A beautiful cinnamon bear meandered to the far shore line of Bear Lake (appropriately named apparently) and took a little dip in the water to cool off.  Then he meandered off, never in a hurry.  For many of the city-living attendees of the picnic, it was their first time to see a bear in real life so it was an extra special occasion for us all.

We have had repeated sightings of three bears in particular:  a cinnamon bear, a black-colored bear, and a bear with a dark spot on his back.  We have notified DOW and they are beefing up their patrol of our resort.  None of the bears have been aggressive; nonetheless, we sold out of bear spray at the General Store – better safe than sorry, huh?  Instead of bear spray we have re-stocked the General Store with air horns since they are cheaper and can be used at a further distance than bear spray.  To keep trash from attracting the bears, note that the bar on the bear-proof dumpsters is to block the bear – please use the clasp on top to access the dumpster.  For tips on how to decrease your chance of a bear encounter, please click on the following link:  http://www.aspenpitkin.com/Departments/Police/Aspen-Bears/Living-with-Bears/

Beginning Friday August 26^th we will have a Labor Day sale at the General Store that will last through the Labor Day weekend.  All clothing is 50% off with some items marked as low as $5.00 each!  These prices are cheaper than even our cost so hurry and take advantage of these extra low prices!

We now carry shovels and 5-gallon buckets in the General Store.  With our new emphasis on fire mitigation, members will be required to keep a shovel and a bucket at your campsite in case of a fire.  Please make arrangements accordingly as we will begin enforcing this with the new contracts that come out in January.

The fish stocking on Monday August 8^th went fabulously!  We had a nice turnout of about 20 people – lots of kids which is the best part.  Everyone was respectful of the process and well behaved.  Thank you!  We put 100 lbs. of fish in each lake.  The employees of the fish farm told me that all the fishing clubs are complaining that fish are not biting.  They told me that July and August are the worst months for fishing because when the water gets warm, trout get lethargic and stay at the bottom of the lake, not biting.  Oh, well, I guess it wouldn’t be a sport if it was always easy, right?  Check out the fish-stocking photos on our web site:  http://www.lostdutchmanresort.com/fish-stocking/

I want to say a shout-out to the Girl Scouts that Steve Haney brought in recently to help clean up our resort.  Look at all the trash they collected!  Nice work, Ladies.  Thank you!

We found some cans set up for target practice at Rainbow Ridge.  Please be reminded that no firearms, including BB guns or paintball guns are allowed on the resort.

The burn pile is no more!  I was beginning to think the fire ban would never be lifted and we would be stuck with that ugly pile of trash forever.  As soon as the burn ban was lifted I yelled, “Somebody, strike a match QUICK!”  I was not prepared for just how quickly that pile of junk would vanish.  It was a beautiful thing.  We were able to burn up the picnic table graveyard behind the General Store, too.  It looks soooo much nicer.  The wooden picnic tables have just been too big of a job to maintain, so now we are making room to replace them with more durable metal picnic tables.  There will be a rental fee for the metal picnic tables of $150 per year to have one at your campsite.  These are nice $700 picnic tables.  If interested, please contact the office at 719-686-7738.

BURN PILE GONE BYE-BYE

*******************

I want to thank all of you for your encouraging emails, letters and comments concerning my unpleasant encounter with the poachers at Sun Lake a few weeks back.  I must say that 95% of the members I encounter are first class all the way which makes my job delightful here at Lost Dutchman.  Thank you for all you do that makes this such an amazing resort.  We are all very blessed.

August 2, 2011

Dear Members:

On Sunday, July 31^st I was here fishing with my family at Sun Lake.  Suddenly a beautiful brown bear came over the dam from Mountain Lake, jumped into the water, swam around, caught a fish in his mouth, took it to shore and ate it, jumped back into the water and swam across the lake (I think he was doing the backstroke!), hopped out onto the shore and headed for the fish cleaning station.  We were spellbound watching the whole thing unfold before our very eyes.  We snapped some pictures.  Below are a couple of shots, one with my boyfriend being silly with the bear in the background.  Please notice that the bear has a dark spot on his back.  I was a little alarmed at how unafraid of people this bear seemed to be.  If this “friendly” bear becomes a regular siting at unsafe distances, we may need to call DOW and have the bear removed.  Please keep us posted, and always be bear aware!

On a more disturbing note, when I arrived at Sun Lake on Sunday, there were a couple of people openly catching and keeping to the tune of eight fish in their catch cooler!  These were Trout Haven members for years and claimed they did not know the rules (never mind the posted signs).  I have since drafted them a formal letter stating that keeping at a catch-and-release is grounds for immediate termination of their membership with no reimbursement.  The most alarming thing was their indifference.  In fact, they told me to, “Get a life, Lady.”

Stocking our lakes with fish is very expensive.  If we have members that totally disregard the catch-and -release only lakes, it will increase our cost of keeping the lakes stocked which means we will either have to decrease our number of catch-and-keep lakes, or increase the cost of membership to cover the cost of poachers.  I am asking for all of your help to patrol our lakes and be bold about approaching anyone who is breaking the rules.  Our resort is as only as orderly as its members.  We need all of your help to confront members who believe they are above the resort rules.  Please don’t let a few bad apples spoil it for everyone.  Let’s pull together and demand excellence from ourselves and each other.

You will all be delighted to know that our next fish stocking is scheduled for this upcoming Monday, August 8^th.  I bumped it up a week so that more kids could attend before school starts.  We start at 1:00 p.m. at Dragonfly Lake and work our way down.  Bring your cameras because we are once again stocking trophy-size trout.  Remember that the fish are in shock and will gather at the shoreline in a lethargic state.  Please instruct your children that there is a $100 fine for touching or attempting to capture the fish.

Have you been keeping track of our online fishing contest?  So far our winner is 9-year-old Sarah Campbell who caught a 21” long, 5.3 lbs. Brown Trout at Dragonfly Lake on June 25, 2011.  She used a Hannah Montana purple fishing pole, with multi-color Blue Moon power bait.  Congratulations Sarah!  We will be recognizing Sarah at the Members’ Picnic on September 3^rd.  The fishing contest is not over until the Members Picnic so please keep submitting your photos.  Even if they are not bigger than Sarah’s, you still may receive honorable mention.  We have a framed picture of Sarah and her catch at the Conference Center.  You can also see the photo at this link: http://www.ldutchman.com/prize-fish/

We are hoping for a big turnout for our Members’ Picnic on Saturday September 3^rd from 12:00 noon – 4:00 p.m.  We will provide hamburgers, hotdogs, lemonade, and tea.  Members, please bring your favorite dish.  Please RSVP by Monday August 29^th and tell us what dish you will bring and how many will be in your party.  You may RSVP by replying to this email or you may call the office at 719-686-7738.

Our biggest event of the year, the Music Festival, went fabulously.  We had such a big turn out that we ran out of parking spaces and were having to park cars on the side of the roads.  The music, the food, the drinks, fishing, volleyball, horseshoes, you name it, people were having fun doing it.  All the acts were wonderful, and Asleep at the Wheel had the dance floor packed with fans whooping and hollering.  Pete Kuyper told me that we “hit a home run.”  I would have to agree!  I wish all of you could have been there to enjoy the fun.

We are already gearing up for a big Labor Day weekend come September.  We have a call into the Teller County Sheriff’s Office to reserve the radar trailer again.  We will also have a gate guard so please be prepared to give your name and with whom you are there.  Remember that you are allowed a maximum of six guests.

The fire ban has been lifted so you may now have a campfire – Hurray!  Open burning is still prohibited.

We finally completed our Community Wildfire Protection Plan and tomorrow we submit our application for grant money to help pay for the manual labor it will take to reduce the fire fuels at the resort.  We will know by April of 2012 if we are awarded the grant money.  In the application, we committed $10,000 toward volunteer labor so please be thinking of ways that you or people/groups you know might be willing to contribute to this worthy cause that is meant to protect the wellbeing of our members and our wildlife here at the resort by preventing or minimizing the devastating effects of a forest fire.

As a result of our focus on fire mitigation, we want to allow limited, regulated use of chainsaws by our members.  If you would like to use your chainsaw for the purpose of reducing fire fuels at your campsite, please come to the office to fill out the required paperwork.

July 7, 2011

Dear Members:

Yesterday’s much-needed rain produced some washed out roads here at the resort.  We are expecting more rain today (60% chance).  We will do minor road repairs immediately, but will wait on any major repairs needed until we see what the weather will do.  The road next to Forest Lake in particular is badly washed out so please drive as far away from the water as possible since the dirt near the lake is very soft.  This is true for Summer Lake and other lakes as well.  Please do not drive your vehicles near the edge of the lakes.

We had a relatively quiet July 4^th weekend at Trout Haven.  I’m hoping that the gate guard and the radar trailer helped with that.  We ended up getting to keep the radar trailer for the whole weekend which was nice.  Thanks to all of you for your contributions to a peaceful weekend.  Our gate guards appreciated how patient and kind you were to them.  We had two big weddings at the Pavilion on both Saturday and Sunday so things were very busy for the Resort staff.  Having a “no drama” Trout Haven helped immensely with our successful performance at the weddings.  THANK YOU!

By now I’m sure you have all noticed the “creeping crud” green stuff emerging onto the surface of our lakes.  This is the result of a natural treatment we have started to clean the ponds and make them healthier for our fish.  We are using MuckAway pellets which digest accumulated organic debris, also known as pond muck, that reside at the bottom of ponds/lakes removing excess nutrients, improving water clarity and eliminating noxious odors around the shorelines.  The MuckAway pellets sink below the surface of the water releasing beneficial bacteria which instantly begin digesting debris.  MuckAway is a natural eco-friendly product which is safe for all animals.  It is NOT a chemical, and has no water use restrictions.  Please bear with us as our ponds must look a little bit ugly before they get to look extra pretty.

Speaking of our ponds, Trout Haven Member Richard Schultz made us a couple of beautiful wooden signs for Bear Lake to remind us of “Members Tuesdays, Catch & Release”.  Thank you, Richard, for your most excellent workmanship!  I resist putting up signs to keep the beauty of nature in the forefront, and Richard produced signs for us that are as beautiful as nature itself.  Thank you, Richard!

We are starting a fishing contest beginning immediately.  Here’s how to enter:  Email pictures of you with your favorite catch of the day to LDR@PKEnterprisesInc.com .   Tell us your name, date caught, which lake and its size–length in inches.  There will be an “Unusual” category–tell us something unusual about the fish or your experience landing the whopper!  The Top Three as well as Most Unusual fish pictures for the year will be posted on our web site HERE: http://www.ldutchman.com/prize-fish/

First, Second, and Third Place winners for the year will be recognized at our Members Picnic on September 3^rd.  Be sure and go to the above link to see the fun we had putting together the fish contest web page.  The picture for “Most Unusual” category is sure to give you a chuckle!

We just got a “LIKE” button added to our web site for Facebook to let people know about our Music Festival.  If you have a Facebook account, open Facebook in one window and log in.  In another window, go to our Music Festival webpage http://www.ldutchman.com/music-festival/

and the homepage http://www.ldutchman.com/

and hit the LIKE button!  Add a comment!  It’s that simple.  Let’s tell everyone we know through Facebook about the cool Music Festival going on at The Lost Dutchman!  Whaaa-HOOO!

Beginning this weekend there will be new hours for the General Store:

Fridays:  4:30p-7:30p

Saturdays:  10am-6pm

Sundays:  CLOSED

Holiday Mondays:  9am-4pm

June 30, 2011

Dear Trout Haven Members:

Hello and happy Independence Day!  As we gear up for our busy weekend, I wanted to share some of our plans and other information with you.  We will have a gate guard over the 4th of July weekend.  Please be prepared to tell the gate guard your name, and tell your guests to be prepared to give their name and which member they are here with.  We want to insure that everyone has a safe 4th of July.  There is still a stage two burn ban which means you may only use a propane or gas grill, no charcoal or camp fires.

To help reduce the speed of vehicles, we will have a radar trailer on the Resort today June 30th (Thursday).  We were not able to book the radar trailer for the July 4th weekend since it was already reserved, but we will schedule to have it for upcoming weekends.  We are receiving many complaints about vehicles speeding through the Resort.  There are numerous speed limit signs posted throughout the Resort.  A good rule of thumb is if you are making dust then you are going too fast.  We will be issuing citations for speeding and/or reckless driving.  Remember that citations are permanently in you file, and if you receive three citations, we evaluate whether or not to terminate your membership, so PLEASE SLOW DOWN!!!

For our first members’ pot luck on Saturday June 18th we cooked 80 hamburgers and hotdogs, and only one family showed up.  The Resort staff and the Troudt family had a fun and intimate time together!  Unfortunately we must cancel all future pot lucks because of lack of interest.  We will still have our members’ picnic on Saturday September 3rd, but will require RSVP so we can plan accordingly.  More details will be forthcoming about the members’ picnic and how to RSVP.

On Tuesday June 14th we put some trophy fish (referred to as “pigs” for those of us who saw the monsters J) in the ponds with our normal stocking.  From what we are hearing many of you are already aware of that fact.  Many sightings and many catches – the largest so far was 22 inches!  Many smiling faces among our members!!

We had a nice little turnout of about 15 people to watch our last fish stocking on June 14^th.  Everyone was very polite and well mannered – thank you for being such delightful members to witness our fish stocking.  When the fish are first put into the ponds, they are in shock and tend to gather at the shoreline in a lethargic state.  Since I want to encourage our members to attend the fish stockings, and I want the number of attendees to continue to grow, to help maintain control in larger crowds, I am establishing a new official rule that if someone touches or attempts to capture fish that are gathered at the shoreline the fine will be $100.

Just a reminder that we still have the 30 yard open dumpster at Sun Lake until the 18th of July, so take advantage of it!

The 4th annual music festival at the Lost Dutchman is scheduled for July 23rd from 2 PM until 10 PM.  Our headliner is Asleep at the Wheel (Texas swing) celebrating their 40th anniversary.  Nina Storey (contemporary rock, pop and blues) and Big Jim Adams Duo (blues) will also be entertaining us that day. Get your tickets now.  Get a group together and buy 10 tickets and get 1 free!

I hope all of you have a safe and happy holiday weekend!

Hi to all of our members at the Lost Dutchman Resort.

This is an invitation to a Member’s Potluck on Saturday June 18th.

It will be held from 12 – 2PM at the pavilion.  We will provide the meat and soda. We would love it if our members would bring their favorite side dishes.  It is a wonderful way to get to know your fellow members.

The Resort will have a clean-up scheduled from June 18th – July 18th.  We will have a 30 cu yard open end dumpster set up at Sun Lake for your convenience.  This will be provided as incentive  for members to clean up their personal sites.  Please feel at ease to clean up your site and fill the dumpster to the brim  Please remember no chemicals, tires, car parts, paint or oil is to dumped in the open end dumpster.

Our next fish delivery is scheduled for 6/14 at 1:00.  You are welcome to attend as long as you do not slow down the process by asking questions to the workers.  Please remember that the fish are in shock and the process needs to be completed asap to avoid fish fatality, and that the fish typically will not bite until they get acclimated to their new environment.

We will have a large group at the Resort on the weekend of June 23rd – June 27th.  The group campgrounds will be full and the individual camp sites will be utilized. We are expecting around 225 people to be in the group.

In order to accommodate our large gathering, I have scheduled extra clean-ups for the bathhouse and fish cleaning station. We will do our best to keep the Resort in it’s normal atmosphere.

The fire ban in Teller County is stricter starting today, June 17th.  There are absolutely no fires, including gas and charcoal grills.  Please observe this restriction, so we can all feel comfortable at the Resort. Hopefully, sometime this summer we may be able to enjoy our camp fires again.

Check us out on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lost-Dutchman-Resort/171707636221772

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We do hope all of our members are having a great summer and enjoying the Resort to it’s fullest.