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Vol. CXXIX — No. 24  •  Misquah, Minnesota  •  The Chain of Lakes
Tuesday, June 16, 2026  •  One Dollar (Two if you take the crossword)
The Misquah Pilot-Independent loon seal
The Voice of the Chain of Lakes

The Misquah Pilot-Independent

“Where the coffee’s hot, the lakes are cold, and all the children are above average.” — Serving the Chain since 1897.

From the ArchiveYou are reading No. 24, June 16, 2026. Return to this week’s edition →
Big Pelican to Mud Lake

Lakes & Outdoors

Ice houses settle onto the Chain of Lakes during the part of the year when every road seems to continue onto water.
Ice houses settle onto the Chain of Lakes during the part of the year when every road seems to continue onto water. — Pilot-Independent photo
An antique-style map of the fictional Chain of Lakes around Misquah.
The Chain of Lakes: Big Pelican, Little Pelican, Whitefish, Sandy, Bass, Loon, and Mud. — Pilot-Independent map

The Fishing Report

Walleye Turn Sullen at Midday; Evening Bite Still Honest

Warming water pushes the fish deep until dusk; the pike, meanwhile, have gotten ideas in the Sandy Lake cabbage.

By Tim Brevik, Fishing & Weather Correspondent  •  Misquah  •  June 16, 2026

The walleye have gone a little sullen at midday on the Chain, as they tend to once the water climbs past sixty-five, but the evening bite on Big Pelican remains, in the considered judgment of the cleaning station behind Tim’s, “honest.”

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On the shore of Big Pelican

Loon Ridge Resort & Golf

Eighteen holes • Lakeside dining

Cabins, pontoons & a sunset worth the drive

Ask about the locals’ rate. We’ll think about it.

On the Water

First Loon Chicks Sighted on Big Pelican; Resort Asked to Slow Down

Two chicks aboard their mother near the resort shoreline prompt a revised count and a renewed plea about wakes.

By Pilot-Independent Staff  •  June 15, 2026

The first loon chicks of the season were sighted on Big Pelican over the weekend — two of them, riding low on their mother’s back near the Loon Ridge shoreline — prompting the Chain’s loon-count volunteers to revise their tally upward and the resort, once again, to ask its guests to slow down.

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Chain of Lakes — Levels & Temperatures
LakeTempLevel
Big Pelican64°Normal
Little Pelican65°Normal
Whitefish62°+3 in.
Sandy66°Normal
Bass67°Low
Loon63°Normal
Mud—We don’t check

As of Monday a.m. Sunrise 5:31 / sunset 9:01. Last week’s rain: 0.4 in. Recorded ice-out: April 18.