Wanting to Be at the End of Your Rope at Big Bass Lake

This time around, being at the end of your rope at Big Bass Lake is not being behind a speedboat, but instead your rope is found on dry land. No, it’s not for decorating one’s neck as in the old west. It’ a rope to have a ball with. It was for the Hoffman Estates Boys Club kids at our pointe. They would swing that rope out into Big Bass Lake and then at the highest they would leap off into the refreshing waters below.

It wasn’t wise to come back as they might, like George of the Jungle, have to “Watch out for that tree!” The only competition for that rope swing is when we turned our metallic rowboat over and used it as a diving platform which the boys loved. Often times both were in use during our evening swim.

Rope swings were very popular on our trip as we had two of them at the pointe. One was with a tire swing on land and the other, of course, that led out to the water. I tried using the entire beach front area that I had from the pointe to the main camping area which covered about fifty yards.

From the tents to the main swimming area was only about twenty yards and in between was a nice moss slope where the kids could discharge the sand from their feet before returning to the tents. Just before the tent area was our main fire pit and behind them our secondary fire pit.

Like the folks from Camp Martin Johnson who have their memories of camping at that facility so I have of my boys club trips to our wooded beachfront.

Looking Toward the Public Landing on Big Bass Lake

This used to be the view that many of my boys club kids had from our wooded beachfront looking toward the Public Landing on the opposite side of the lake. About where you notice the covered wagon float on the right side of this photograph, taken by Mike Elsner, was our property which ran all the way to the landing on the southwest corner of the lake.

Memorial Day weekend will see the Big Bass Lake Public Landing do a brisk business as all the big boats will make their return to the lake.  Cars will be lined up throughout the landing ready to get their boats into the water.

As well, the wooded beachfront was also our family land and well beyond that. I used to love to row this section of the lake to our pier which was about a hundred yards further than where that covered wagon is located.

How things have changed though over the years as this lakefront property now has large homes on it all the way to the public landing. Where before stood large sections of trees or an open field has now been filled in with homes galore.

Yet after Labor Day things seem to settle down at Big Bass Lake where rowboats again to take dominance over that of speed boats on the lake. Not that far away now!

The Steps of Camp Martin Johnson

For those kids that attended Camp Martin Johnson, these precious steps were the ones that led down to Big Bass Lake and the waterfront. How many feet over the era of that camp took those stairs is anyone’s guess? I have to wonder who took those steps for the last time down to the lake?

Presently the old camp is a housing area for new homes and few remnants of the old camp remain. One has to wonder if those steps remain at camp now? Yes, the land that was used for the camp was only used at certain times of the year as opposed to everyday usage for the new homes there but something was lost when CMJ disappeared from the scene. Memories of friendships that have been forged forever is one thing that remains to this very day. And, memories of the camp held in one’s mind as well as at Big Bass Lake and Beyond are another that can be revisted again and again.

Do any ex-campers or staff have memories of these steps? And, here is what those steps look like in 2017-

Another Large Home on Big Bass Lake

Our former property on Big Bass Lake is sporting large homes such as this one along our former shoreline. Even on the Matson properties, along the southwest part of the lake, large homes have taken over. For those that can afford it, I suppose larger homes are the order of the day. Yet, at the same time, many of those same large homes are now up for sale. I often wonder how much damage the harsh winters do to these large homes?

This home looks quite nice and fits in with the surrounding forest very well. I think it is located close to where our old two room gray cottage was and not far from the hired hands small cottage. That place had a large gapping floor in the middle of that structure the last time I saw it in 1990. With all the changes coming to Big Bass Lake, I wonder when the Big Island will gain a two lane bridge to it?

Do you prefer the new large homes around the lake or the smaller one floor cottages? Let us know by way of a coment.