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Diaries of a Lodge Owner
In 2009, sheet metal mechanic, Steve Niedzwiecki, turned his passions into reality using steadfast belief in himself and his vision by investing everything in a once-obscure run-down Canadian fishing lodge.
After ten years, the now-former lodge owner and co-host of The Fish'n Canada Show is here to share stories of inspiration, relationships and the many struggles that turned his monumental gamble into one of the most legendary lodges in the country.
From anglers to entrepreneurs, athletes to conservationists; you never know who is going to stop by the lodge.
Diaries of a Lodge Owner
Episode 145: How To Reboot A Remote Fishing Lodge Without Burning Out
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Lodge season does not “start” so much as it hits you all at once. Early June brings that first real wave of guests, the scramble to reopen cabins and docks, and the reality that Mother Nature controls the schedule, especially when you are running an island lodge on the French River. We talk through what those first days actually feel like, from the excitement of opening to the gritty details that never make it into the brochure.
A big theme is staffing a remote fishing lodge when turnover is normal and training time is limited. We get honest about why overhiring can be the only sane plan, how culture shock shows up fast when young staff live in a dorm-style setup, and why lodge owners spend so much time managing personalities. We also share what helps people last, including scheduling true escape time off-island so staff can reset and come back stronger.
We dig into guest experience and expectation management in hospitality. Instead of pretending everything is perfect in week one, we explain the “training period” approach: subsidising early trips in exchange for patience and feedback. That shift turns guests into partners, helps returning anglers reinforce dock routines, and builds a community that improves service, reviews, and morale. Along the way, we get into the unglamorous systems that matter, like orientation, fire drills, and the very real grinder pump rules.
Then we tell a spring work story that sums up lodge life: rebuilding a stone walkway with 987 bags of concrete, moved by hand on an island, right up until guests arrived. If you are thinking about lodge jobs in Canada, we also share exactly how to stand out by calling, researching, and making a real impression. Subscribe, share this with someone who loves the outdoors, and leave a review so more people can find these Stories Of The North.
Last-Minute Lodge Job Openings
To anybody out there listening who has uh grandkids or who is, you know, 17, 18, 19, just getting, you know, schools uh schools just about out in high school or or college are getting back, right now is not too late to apply. Okay? If you're looking for a job at a lodge, right now is probably a great time to apply.
Early June And Opening Day Pressure
This week on the Outdoor Journal Radio Podcast, Networks, Diaries of a Lodge Owner, Stories of the North. We're shaking off the cobwebs and getting back into the swing of lodge life. With early June upon us, most lodges have had their doors open for just a couple of weeks, and the rhythms of the season are just beginning to hum. On this show, we'll talk about those first days, the early guest arrivals, the unexpected quirks and magic of getting the lodge running like a well-oiled reel. We'll share stories of those first fishing trips, the early laughs, and the lessons learned when the season is fresh. So if you're ready to dive into the heart of lodge life and feel that buzz of the first weeks back in action, then stick around because we're all in this together, and the season is only just begun. Hey folks, how are you doing? Back in the swing of things, it is June, and the lodges across this province and country are beginning to hum. And this was always one of the most exciting times of the year for me. It was opening, it was the rush to get everything put together before our guests show up. And there was a defined day. And there was not a defined day where we could get in to start the work because Mother Nature had full control of that. Being on an island, um, and uh like a lot of other resorts and lodges across the uh the province and country, many of them don't have that control and that luxury to get in there and get things going. So there were a few years where Mother Nature held on right to the bitter end. And uh I remember we had uh about the shortest, the shortest uh period of time that I had to get everything ready was nine days. Um the the ice didn't go out until very late. It was early, it was like May 5th or something. And um it was it was an absolute rush. But we've talked about all of those uh opening stories, but you know, we've never really sat down and focused on the beginning of the year and um all of the quirks and the unexpectedness and the the machine that is supposed to run like a well-oiled reel, but um sometimes it just doesn't.
Why Overstaffing Saves The Season
And um for me, I learned very quickly after my first couple of of years that um I needed to overstaff. It was always a very scary thing for me because you know payroll was probably the single most expensive um part of my business. Um, but to understaff was a nightmare. I realized that even, you know, I had it down pretty good after the first year that I needed, I needed at least four dock hands, I needed um three in the kitchen, I needed five uh housekeeper servers, um my manager, whatever, whatever, all of those numbers we've talked about them in the past. But to hire those spots and just hire four those spots um was a um um a critical mistake that I realized after, you know, year two or three or four, whatever it was. Sometimes I'm a bit of a slow learner, sometime it took me a little bit a little while to learn because you're I always wrestled with that, you know, I gotta try and I wasn't even all that worried about making money. I was just worried about not dying. You know what I mean. And until my attitude changed about that, my success was right around that number. But um, I realized that no matter how you hire and how well you think you did with your staff, there's always, always, always one, two, or three of those staff members that really don't understand what it's like to live um in tight quarters with the people that you're working with, um, work long hours and have next to no escape.
Culture Shock And Staff Turnover
We're on an island in the middle of the French River. So inevitably, I would lose one to sometimes three staff members fairly early within, you know, that first four to six weeks because it's culture shock. Um, and and you as an owner can do everything that you can. You you can you can explain to your heart's content to you know 18 to 25 year old people what it's like to live on an island, work in tight quarters, and you know, it's not just you. Like everybody had their own room, but you're working with 14 people that you really don't even know. And sometimes it's more. Sometimes we were we were up around, you know, not including guides, 18 people on staff. And um, it's just you can explain to people what it's like, but there are so many factors that you can't you can't explain because you don't have answers in the beginning, like um personalities. And you
Playing Referee In Tight Quarters
might have somebody that is exquisitely um uh equipped to do the job that you're hiring for, whether that be dock hand, whether that be sous chef, whether that be uh housekeeper server, you may have somebody that is perfect for that position. And um once they get to the island, their personality and another personality clash. And that so often happened. And um, like I mean, there's there's there's there's not well, I shouldn't say there's not a lot that you can do about that. Um I've said it once, I'll say it again. If I haven't said it a thousand times, I've said it a thousand and one. Most of the time that I was at Chaudiere, for one reason or another, I felt like Dr. Phil. My the the the the majority of the important things in my day somehow revolved around managing people and managing um personalities and and and really trying to understand who these people were and really trying to find common uh ground between people and um identifying whether or not it was going to work, number one. And then if you you you come to the conclusion that this just isn't gonna work, um then you have to take into consideration which one of these people, if you have to make the call, um are you going to let go? And um that sometimes happened too. Like I mean, when you've got people that you've hired to do a specific uh job within the company, and um they're not getting along with other people within the company, and and being on an island and living in tight quarters is not like um working at a factory, working at Honda, where I can hire people to do specific jobs, I can move them to different departments. Everybody gets to go home at five o'clock at Quitten time, unravel, you know, um uh debrief, come down, do their own thing, you know, de-stress. Um no, no, you don't get any of that. When you're on an island, your your your quitten time comes, and for the most part, everybody is now together again. You know, it was uh it was uh uh a large building with 14 rooms. It was a dorm. You're living in a dorm with a common area and two common bathrooms, a bathroom for the girls on one side, a bathroom for the guys on the other, and by the end of the year, they're all mixed up anyway. And um, so you really have to to focus on now you're in a situation where um you've got two people that aren't getting along. You've realized that it just is not gonna work. Uh, as a as a business owner, uh I would have to analyze who is is genuine, who is what is the friction, why is there friction? Um potentially uh will this friction continue? Is it like the maple leaf uh syndrome where the uh everybody's gotta have somebody to hate on? And is one of these people, do they always have to argue with something or somebody? And there are people like that, and uh you can't figure that out when you're interviewing over the phone or whatever. So these are all traits that you would that I would have to analyze and then make a decision on which person you keep, how to replace them, and and and move on. And this is all happening in the first, you know, month of of the of the year. And and don't think that there was a year where everything was dead ass smooth, because it wasn't. I uh I would have a hard time to try and pick out a year where where we started with with um the starting staff uh was complete as we started after six six weeks. I just don't I don't remember it ever happening. Um and those those um those decisions are are tough decisions, but and and I am not a guy that likes to let people go. Um I'm just I'm just not that guy. I would I would I would go out of my way to try and and make it so that everything um everybody worked out. And um a lot of times you could, but there were some times where you're just and it and it's usually in the beginning of the season because once you get through that six weeks, um you're you're really you get to know everybody, everybody's got a good feel for what we're doing, how things work, and um whether they like it or not. And um, this takes me back to that original point. Um, I always overhired. I always overhired by about 30%. So that would mean that I would hire three people on staff that I really didn't need. I would hire an extra dock hand, an extra uh housekeeper server, and then I would hire somebody else in there that could do all three. Um, you know, and and I say all three because I've still got the kitchen. And I would hire somebody that would um um be a kitchen assistant, um, which just was a glorified name for a pot washer. But that pot washer I always hired um knowing that um um and they knew too that if uh some days you need an extra server, they would be serving. If you needed a dock hand, they would be on the dock. So it was a position, it was really a rover position. So there's three extra people that I would start off of the season with, and nine times out of ten, I was shorthanded after six weeks. It was that that that is the there there was a lot of movement in those beginning days, and it was not it was not um um um the I wasn't I wasn't mad at people, there was no fighting, there was no, it was it there was there was no issues with it. It's just that you know people would would understand that they didn't understand what they were getting into. And I was good with with letting them go, right? I was I was okay with it. You know, if if somebody said, hey, this isn't working, I'd be like, okay, no problem. And then, you know, if I had to let somebody go off the beginning, um, it was one of those things where where everybody saw that um that um you know your job's not guaranteed, right? Um not that I would ever use that as leverage, use fear as leverage. That that's that is totally the the the opposite of of what um of what how I uh looked after the business and my staff. Um but you know it's not a bad thing for people to understand that if shit doesn't work out, it it just doesn't work out. It's it's not it's not me, it's not you, it's it doesn't work out. So, you know, there was that the whole staff thing, and uh it was literally a a dance. And then I always looked forward to once we got everything settled and everybody was there, we all got along, and that and that really did happen 90% of the time. Once you get through those initial um first weeks, then after that, it was um it was it was pretty good, you know. You always have those times where where shit happens in the middle of the season, and and a lot of times it didn't have anything to do with me. It was it was just the simple fact that it is very difficult for anybody on the planet to work long hours um in tight quarters and live together on an island in the middle of the French River.
Giving Staff A Real Break
And um, the years for me that worked best were the years that um I had guys like Micah. And um he was my uh pastry uh chef, my sous chef, my breakfast chef. He was like a um an all-around great guy. He'd have the odd temper tantrum here and there, and and I used to enjoy those because I knew those temper tantrums were, you know, it was like being married. You you know you're never gonna leave. You just kind of have to blow steam off every once in a while. And, you know, then you make and make up and kiss and hug, and that's what Micah and I did. But Micah was the guy that would always take people off of the um um off of the island. He had a car, uh Jeep or whatever on his day off. And and I would try and schedule people that I knew that needed a little break and a little away time to be off at the same time Micah was off, and then they would leave. Or somebody else that had a car. I would always try and schedule them so that they could get off the island and maybe go to North Bay or go to Sturgeon Falls or just go somewhere where you're not staring at trees and rocks, right? Um, and that always helped.
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Training On The Fly
And those guests, um, I learned quick. Um people you've got to manage expectation. And shit's gonna happen at the beginning of the year because number one, no matter what, um I even if I've got a a solid core of staff coming back, we're still training 50% of the staff. Like, I don't know if I maybe once had more than 50% of my staff coming back um for two years in a row. Um, and if you can do that, you're doing pretty damn good. Um, you know, maybe 60%. But anyway, we were always, always training somebody. And because it's a quick fire startup, you know, especially when your your mother nature doesn't let you get in there right off the bat, there's not a whole lot of time for training in the beginning before guests get there. Like if we were lucky, we'd have a couple of days to sit down and and uh and and train.
Orientation Day For Island Safety
And like with those couple of days, I learned very quickly that I needed those at least one day for I call it orientation. Um, we would do a fire drill because we're on an island and people need to understand where there's a fire pump and a fire hose and how to use it, because just in case there's a fire, there ain't no fire trucks coming. So, you know, you do a fire drill, and then um that eats up uh a whole morning. And then you sit down and you do the orientation where I had my um my um my book where that I that I crafted over um um every year I was making additions to my employee handbook from listen, guys, no sanitary napkins down the toilet. Because if you do, um there's one you you get you get two two strikes, right? If I find two down there, because those napkins, they go down the toilet, but I have a grinder pump and that grinder pump. Grinder pump, it it gets stuck with napkins in there. And those napkins have to be pulled out by hand. And uh the third, third strike, guess what? You guys are coming down, and I'm gonna teach you how to do it, you know. And that was always one of those conversations that um that um opened eyes real quick because I wasn't calling them sanitary napkins, and and I was I was I was being very, very descriptive um of the process of clearing out the septic pump. Because not only that, like I mean, I uh this is a bit of a tangent, but um between myself, uh Uncle Barry and Eric, uh, who was a maintenance guy uh that worked for me for all probably six years anyway, um, we pulled all kinds of shit out of there. We pulled toys out of there, we pulled underwear out of there, we've pulled t-shirts and bras and all kinds of clothing that have gone down the toilet. Like, I mean, I I thought I threw shit down the toilet until I was the one that was pulling it back out. And I had no clue. And it wasn't until we sat down with the staff members at the beginning of the year during our uh employee orientation day, and I was very specific and very um um convincing, and I was a thousand percent serious. That's third strike, everybody's coming down and everybody's taking a turn, elbows deep. And um, once I did that, there was no more shit going down the toilet other than the provided toilet paper and what goes through you first. And it was it was it was the the learning curve of being very descriptive and and upfront and telling people why, because everybody comes from a different walk of life. If you come from a town, you're used to throwing all kinds of shit down there, and it's not your problem anymore, right? It's different on an island. So, anyway, we were talking, I don't even know how we got there, but um, we were talking about expectations. Oh, and training, training the staff. So the point is, I didn't have a whole lot of time to train. I had enough time to do the orientation with the staff, um, sign contracts, do all of the stuff that I realized that I needed about halfway through my tenure. And then to try and train, man, it was a nightmare. So we were training on the fly. As people were coming in, we were training. And in those first couple of years, I always I always had a spring deal. I wanted to bring people in. I was scared that I couldn't fill the place. I needed people to come. So I would always do a spring deal.
The Unsexy Systems That Matter
Well, after oh, about two years of doing the spring deal and then rolling that into my regular prices, I realized that guests complained on a deal just as much as they complained on not a deal, right? So I'm thinking to myself, and I and and there weren't a whole lot of complaints, but there were people that that would not go and write bad reviews and would always come back, but would always kind of you know complain. And um I thought to myself, why am I giving a spring deal if the complaints are the same? So I contemplated in my head, to hell with it. Let's not do a spring deal. But then my fear kicked back in, and I'm like, Well, we got them, it's spring, man. You're never full at springtime. And then the other side of me is saying, Well, who cares if you're not full? It'll give us more time to get trained up and everything else. And am I really making any money um uh with this spring deal anyway? And then the other side says, Well, it's better to get people to come in because then there's more people talking. And then the light bulb went off. And that little voice in my head said, Well, then don't give a spring deal. Subsidise people's trip for their patients, right? Same shit, and I get what I want, right? I'm up front with all of my guests, and I say, Hey, we've got this uh um our spring uh from uh May uh the third Saturday in May until June 10th is our is our um our training period. And I'm willing to subsidize your trip by I don't know what it was, 25, 20. I'm willing to subsidize your trip by 20 for your patience and understand that, you know, off of the beginning of every season, we're training new staff and and we're working through um some hiccups with, you know, systems getting back online and and uh menus and getting in the swing of things with ordering and all of this stuff. So I want you to understand that, you know, if you're looking for the perfect show to the air experience, come in June. Come in June till, you know, September. But right now, we are we are we are getting things rolling, and I'm gonna subsidize you by 25 to come early so we can practice on you. That was my pitch. And people loved it. They were like, Yeah, okay, no problem. Is it gonna be really bad? No, no, it's not gonna be really bad, it's not gonna be any different than it was last year, right? It's just not so um, but yeah, it's gonna be good, but there could be hiccups, and by me subsidizing your trip, I would also kindly ask that if you see anything that you think will help me make your experience better and not just your experience, because I'm subsidizing this one, the experiences of the people that are going to come in behind you. Please tell me so that I can get it worked out now. And all of a sudden, what that did was it put the people that were there on their subsidized trip, it put them, it gave them ownership of the business. It wasn't just me now that helped train, especially for the guests that were coming back year after year who already knew the program, right? Instead of Chris Shock saying, um um, coming to me and saying, Hey, Steve, uh, um, you know, uh Josh down there, he forgot to wipe off the seats and start my boat this morning. Instead of Chris coming and telling me, I've given the guests this task and asked for help. And now Chris takes, you know, Josh aside and says, Hey Josh, I know this is training week and and um um I know that uh you're there's a lot going on, but um you're supposed to start uh to start the engine on my boat and um and get the live bait in here before I come down after breakfast because you know these old Yamaha's they uh they take a little bit to warm up or they'll stall when you first start. So Steve usually has all the dock guys start them about half an hour before. Meanwhile, I've already told them that and they've just forgot. But beside the point, we're learning. And uh Chris reinforces what they need to do, and they're hearing it, not just from me, which makes it easier for them to remember and learn. And it was it was um probably the biggest um shift in uh perspective that I could have ever made to get the results that I needed. Number one, all of a sudden I had returning guests helping train um staff. And you know, sometimes, sometimes they would tell the staff different things and and it wouldn't be right. But uh at the end of the day, it's okay because the staff would come to me and say, Hey, Chris told me to do it this way. I haven't heard that yet. Am I supposed to do it that way? And I would say, well, actually, we did that a couple of years ago, but we found that this way works better, and this is why. So, yeah, that's okay. Uh, just do it like that for Chris, and uh after that, we move on to the way that that we're doing it now, right? And everybody's happy. I don't get no more complaints. There's uh the ever reviews on TripAdvisor because now it's a community, we're building uh uh a community between our guests, our staff, and everybody is taking that pride in ownership and and helping to make the next guest's experience that much better. And um, it was it was a magical um, it was it was a really it was a really great one of one of the best um moves, decisions, whatever you want to call it, changes that I made within the business.
Building Guest Ownership Through Honesty
And um, like I mean, there was that one, and and honestly, the best changes in the business were the ones that um gave the guests a sense of ownership. Anytime in any kind of hospitality business, if you can give your guests a sense of ownership and pride in in the place, um, it was it was I I don't want to say easy, but it was easy with Chaudi Air because it's such a beautiful place. And it and and it was it was so big and um um natural and uh rustic in a beautiful way, and there were always little changes that people would make suggestions, and it's not a suggestion box, suggestion box are stupid, it's a conversation. It's uh it's it's it's a a personal conversation with the people that are there sharing common interests. It was me having those conversations with the with the with my guests and convincing them, telling them that this is not my place, this is our place. I'm just the guy, I'm just the curator that pays the mortgage. But this is our place. So the things that you that that we talk about and changes that we can make together to help everybody, this is ours. So and and that anytime you can do that in any facet of your business, do it. It it it it it is it is key, um, especially in hospitality. And um, you know, um those are those are just some of the um of the the the things that the first few weeks this is when you go to a lodge right now, what I'm talking about is what's going on there. Some places are better at hiding it than others, believe me. But all of this stuff is going on right now behind the scenes. You know, people are figuring people out, the guides are are figuring each other out, the the staff, the the the um management, all of it, all of this stuff is going on. And the other point I want to make to anybody out there listening who has uh grandkids or who is you know 17, 18, 19, just getting, you know, schools, uh, schools just about out in high school or or college are getting back, right now is not too late to apply. Okay. If you're looking for a job at a lodge, right now is probably a great time to apply because you uh a month ago, all these places had all of their positions full. It's just the way it works. You know, you start trying to hire in January, you want to have your full staff in place and plans made and all of this horse shit done before you go up to open up, right? You want to have it done. Now that plan is being put into motion. There's been a couple of weeks. The the we just talked about it. There's people that don't understand what it's like to work at a lodge and they find they figure it out quick. Hey, Steve, I I'm really sorry. I know that I said I wanted to do this, but I am so freaking homesick right now. I'm I can't I can't deal with it. I remember this is um this was um maybe I don't know, 2016-ish. Anyway, it was the spring that um that I had to put in um there's this big, long, beautiful cobblestone pathway that went from the dock to the main lodge. And it's been there for I don't even know, hundred years. And um over time, like I mean, when people were just walking on it, it was one thing. And back in the day, to get concrete onto the island was a big freaking deal. Like even today, it's a big, big freaking deal. So we had to replace the path because from driving the golf carts on it and putting weight on it, all the stones were breaking uh out of the concrete, and it was the the path was it was just breaking up, and people were it was a trip hazard everywhere. And um, I decided that you know what? I love this pathway. I'm going to, I'm gonna redo it. Well, redo it for me was take all of the stone, all of the flag stone that come from the island that was already in the path, kind of clean it up, set it aside, and then bust up the rest of the concrete, which there wasn't much. It was just a matter of taking a shovel and scooping it out of the way. Like there really wasn't a whole lot of of concrete there. And um uh put up a form. Uh, there was one spot where the two pieces of bedrock went down and it was all dirt, and we dug that hole out, took us half a day, and by the time we were done, right in the in the crack, that crack was well, it was like four and a half feet deep. You know, like I mean, it wasn't very well, it was big enough that you could stand in it, so it was big enough. Um, and uh build a form across right up to the to the main lodge. And then I even there was a uh a bridge, a wooden bridge that uh went across the front of the lodge. Um, and um we built a form right across there and we started pouring concrete.
987 Bags Of Concrete And Grit
And uh I think we had it was it was just over two weeks, right? And this was the only job that I scheduled other than opening, um, because I knew concrete is a bitch. Like, I mean, this is how you do it when you're on an island. You take your truck, you drive to to home hardware in Noualville, or um Nadone Lumber, or whoever has the cheapest uh concrete in Navalville. You load your truck up with as many bags as it'll hold, and that was usually about, you know, a hundred because they're they're heavy, they're 44 kilos, whatever they are. Drive them back, get to the Dokis Marina, have big blue, unload all those bags of concrete onto the out of the truck, into the boat, drive the boat across, unload all those bags of concrete onto the dock, drive the golf cart over, lift the bags of concrete into the golf cart, drive the golf cart up to where you've got the cement mixer along the path, unload them from the golf cart, stockpile them there, and lift them from the stockpile, dump them over your shoulder into the cement mixer and mix and then pour. So I'm not sure if you did the math on how many times you lift them up and put them down, but it's a shit ton. And that hole that I was talking about, we threw everything in the kitchen sink in that hole to try and take up that space. We threw in old steel and and uh um uh stones and bricks and all kinds of stuff into that live concrete to take up space. And um, I had uh Mac. He was um McKenzie. He he worked for me as a dock hand for three or four years. Absolutely wonderful guy, one of the best. And Mac brought a a buddy of his, and I forget what his name was, and um I I had said to Mac, I said, Hey Mac, we got a big project. We're we're gonna be uh we're gonna be pouring concrete on the uh on the front walkway. And he says, Yeah, yeah, no problem. Uh and I said, Okay, well tell your buddy that um uh yeah, I need him, and I need him as soon as he you as soon as you guys can come. So sure enough, they showed up and um Peter uh Bowles, he's now a guide at Show de Air, but Pete, myself, Mark Plant, another great guy, he worked for me. I think that might have been the year he worked for me. He worked for me for a bit, he guided for a bit. Mark was always kind of in and out, loved the man, still love him to this day. Anyway, so there was Mark, Peter, Mac, this young fella, and myself. And on the day that we started, this goes back to the staffing issues, right? The day we started, I said, boys, listen, there is going to be nothing easy about the next two weeks. But if you make it through these two weeks, the rest of the year is gonna be smooth sailing. Well, we made it like six hours. And Max Buddy comes up to me, he says, Steve, I don't think this is a job for me. I've already called my mom. Can you take me to the Dokis Marina? They're gonna be there in an hour. I was like, holy shit, man. I I didn't think you were gonna make it, dude, but I thought you were gonna make it more than five hours. So so I give them about, I don't even know, it was the equivalent of about 10 hours pay, a little bit of severance, I guess you'd call it, whatever. And uh off he went. And uh again, like I say, it's uh you just never know when you're hiring staff. But that uh that year, the the four of us, um we uh we hammered it out, and I was putting the last stone in that bridge when guests were coming. And um that probably was the single largest next to the whole dock program, and that was something that uh I had uh Jay Lilly and and Bud and a whole bunch of different people working on was uh building the dockhouse and and um the new docks. Um, but uh next to that, that pathway was the single largest project that uh that I did in the springtime and got it finished. And um it took every last bit of everything that all of us had to give to get her done, but we got her done. And um it it really looks beautiful. And um that walkway on average is about eight, nine inches thick, and it's in places it's four feet. You know, it is uh it's uh it is a uh an engineering feat to say the least. And um just so that uh just so you know, and you can kind of do the math. By the time we finished that job, just that job alone was 987 bags of concrete. And we lifted them about six, seven times each, five times each. I don't even know. Um, so you you can do the math there. And it was after that job because we had done many multiple jobs before that. Um we I figured that we had mixed our our 2000th bag of uh concrete and the old cement mixer that I had up there, my buddy Tim, the two. He gave it to me. And we figured that that she had mixed her 2000th bag of concrete after that job. So we gave her the name Old Dinah. And I don't know why, but it's a good name for her. And she still spins and uh mixes concrete up there. So um yeah, good old Dinah. But um those are some of the uh some of the spring um things that are happening right now at these places.
How To Get Hired At A Lodge
And uh again, it's not too late to uh to apply. Like I was saying, you get guys that try and mix concrete and decide no, this ain't for me. Well, right now you're is the time where people are figuring out if they if it's gonna work for them or if it's not, and some it's not. So lodge owners out there are welcoming um um applications. And listen, don't just send an application, okay? If you really truly want to work at one of these places, pick up the phone. Pick up the phone and call and call and ask for the owner, manager, um, and uh and tell them who you are, what you want. Um, make sure you're prepared. Make sure that you go onto the websites of the lodges that you're gonna phone. Understand what that business is. Understand that the, you know, this is just a housekeeping place. The only people we employ are guides and and um uh maintenance crew, right? So don't go and apply for a uh kitchen assistant at a at a place that doesn't have a kitchen, right? So go do some research, figure out the places that that have positions that you're interested in, understand the lodge, the business, the location, so you're educated when you call and and make a pitch, man. Don't worry about the uh the the resume. Yeah, have a resume, but the only thing that you should use the resume for is to follow up after you talk to the guy. Because not everybody is going to say, Yes, I need somebody. You're gonna get you're gonna get people that don't need somebody, but that's when you follow up with your resume, so it's on file. So when that person does need somebody, they remember that that uh that person that phoned. They remember the person that was enthusiastic, they remember the person that wanted to come and work for me, the owner, and searched me out and talked to my head, talked right in my ear hole, right? That is the difference between somebody getting hired and somebody not getting hired, right? You call, you talk, you you make an impression because otherwise, you're just a piece of paper with a bunch of lies on it, as far as I'm concerned. So you can take that one to the bank, anyway.
Closing Thanks And Network Promos
Folks, thank you for for getting to this point. I really appreciate it. Um, back in the swing of things for me too, uh, you know, it was a bit of a tough time for me, and pop, God rest your soul, brother. And folks, thus brings us to the conclusion of another episode of Diaries of a Lodge Owner, Stories of the North. I'm a good old boy, never meaning no harm. I'll be the whole you ever saw. I've been reeling in the hog since the day I was born. Bending my rug, stretching my light. Someday I might on a lodge and how'd be fine. I'll be making my way, the only way I know how. Working hard and sharing the north with all my plows. But I'm a good old boy, a bottle and live my dream. And now I'm here talking about how life can be as good as it seems. Yeah. Hi, everybody, I'm Angelo Viola. And I'm Pete Bowman. Now you might know us as the hosts of Canada's favorite fishing show, but now we're hosting a podcast. That's right. Every Thursday, Ans and I will be right here in your ears, bringing you a brand new episode of Outdoor Journal Radio. Hmm. Now, what are we going to talk about for two hours every week? Well, you know there's gonna be a lot of fishing. I knew exactly where those fish were going to be and how to catch them, and they were easy to catch. Yeah, but it's not just a fishing show. We're going to be talking to people from all facets of the outdoors, from athletes, all the other guys would go golfing. Me and Garchomp Turk, and all the Russians would go fishing. The scientists. Now that we're reforesting or anything, it's the perfect transmission environment for line decisions. To chefs, if any game isn't cooked properly, marinated for you will taste it. And whoever else will pick up the phone. Wherever you are, Outdoor Journal Radio seeks to answer the questions and tell the stories of all those who enjoy being outside. Find us on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. As the world gets louder and louder, the lessons of our natural world become harder and harder to hear, but they are still available to those who know where to listen. I'm Jerry Olette, and I was honored to serve as Ontario's Minister of Natural Resources. However, my journey into the woods didn't come from politics. Rather, it came from my time in the bush and a mushroom. In 2015, I was introduced to the birch-hungry fungus known as Chaga, a tree conch, with centuries of medicinal use by indigenous peoples all over the globe. After nearly a decade of harvest, use, testimonials, and research, my skepticism has faded to obsession. And I now spend my life dedicated to improving the lives of others through natural means. But that's not what the show is about. My pursuit of the strange mushroom and my passion for the outdoors has brought me to the places and around the people that are shaped by our natural world. On Outdoor Journal Radio's Under the Canopy podcast, I'm going to take you along with me to see the places, meet the people that will help you find your outdoor passion and help you live a life close to nature and under the canopy. Find Under the Canopy now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever else you get your podcasts.