Photo by Bill Banaszewski.

Can't you just smell the smoke from the campfire as the breeze from the lake fans the flames, with sparks rising along with the heat as it curls toward the heavens? The loons call in the distance while the last of the sun's rays disappear over the horizon, turning the sky into a purple hue. Boats clang on the wooden docks where they are tethered in wait for another day of anglers hoping for the bite of a lifetime. The frogs begin their nightly singing ritual, which is music to the ears of those entranced by the crackling of the fire. It's the vacation season in Minnesota, when time slows down and dreams become memories.

Your options are bountiful when it comes to vacation destinations in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. If a quaint cabin on the edge of a secluded lake is what you desire, you can have it here. Maybe a houseboat trip into the northern wilderness is something that has always been on the edge of your radar screen. Why not explore what the southern parts of Minnesota have hidden from those who always venture north?

There aren't many resorts failing to consider options that won't satisfy your entire clan. Some resorts cater to pursuits outside of fishing with spas, water parks, golf courses and tennis courts. Those that are more wilderness-oriented will offer naturalist themes with hiking, bird watching and orienteering programs. But there are some parts of a vacation destination that never change. Sand beaches that taper into the water, fire pits surrounded by freshly-split hardwood, skies so black that every star looks like it will fall into your lap and the ability to wake up whenever you want instead of being pushed out of bed by the ugly sound of an alarm clock. Vacations are designed for pure pleasure -- the kind that bears no guilt.

Here are a few options where you can find what you're looking for.

DEER RIDGE RESORT
Recently built Deer Ridge Resort is located on Garden Lake just outside of Ely. This resort sits on 35 acres of pristine woodlands and has over 2,500 feet of shoreline. Garden is one of four lakes on the White Iron Chain. Garden, Farm and White Iron have no motor restrictions, while South Farm is in the motorized portion of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW).

"We started building in 1996 and finished in 2000, so it's all very new," said Deer Ridge Resort owner Doug Kalina. "We were probably the first in 40 years to build a new resort up in the Ely area. And it's all log."

Being able to get to four lakes from the resort offers anglers options.

"Garden Lake is known for its huge crappies, and we have largemouths there, too," Kalina said. "In Farm Lake, you'll find the northern pike, and White Iron is the walleye lake. Of course, you can find smallmouths in these lakes as well. You have a good variety of options depending on what you want to fish for."

However, like many of today's resorts, fishing is not the only option.

"We do a lot of day trips where we take people up to Lake One and they can paddle back to the resort," Kalina said. "We set up a lunch for them and they paddle the North Kawishiwi River from Lake One right back to the resort. There is a nature center that my kids run. We're licensed by the DNR for the nature center, and we'll put on different programs through this like bird watching and that type of thing."

For more information, visit their Web site at www.deerridgeresort.com, or call 1-800-382-2041.

LAKE BENTON
Many Minnesotans point their compass north when planning a family fishing trip. That rules out some of our state's best walleye fishing.