Gateway Lodge Restaurant and Lounge

06/08/2026

Have you thought of a name for me yet?

06/02/2026

THE GREAT GATEWAY LODGE OTTER NAMING CONTEST HAS BEGUN. PLEASE STOP IN THE LODGE OR COMMENT ON THIS POST ONLY WITH YOUR IDEAS!!!

05/31/2026

Part 14:
And as the days passed, I began hearing something new around the lodge.
Not loons.
Not the crackling fireplace.
People.
Talking about me.
"What's his name?"
At first, I assumed someone would answer.
But nobody ever did.
One guest called me "Otto."
A little girl insisted I looked like a "Mr. Whiskers."
One gentleman at the bar referred to me as "That Fella."
I even think I heard someone call me “Micheal Phelps,” I mean I am a good swimmer.
Another suggested "Rusty."
Someone even called me "Bob."
Now, with all due respect to Bobs everywhere, I never felt particularly like a Bob.
The funny thing is, after all these years, I realized something.
I've never really had a name.
Not a real one.
Not one that belonged to me.

During my years with the No Concerns Group, I was mostly known as "The Otter." Sometimes "The Lodge Otter." Occasionally "Jimmy" Around Christmas I was apparently referred to as "The Otter Wearing The Santa Hat."
Names came and went.
Nothing ever stuck.
And now that I'm home, it seems everyone has an opinion about what I should be called.
Frankly, after thirty-four years of waiting, I think it's finally time.
I think I deserve a name
So I am pleased to officially announce...
The Great Gateway Lodge Otter Naming Contest!
That's right.
After thirty-four years of adventures, fireplaces, one UPS shipment, a suspicious package investigation, a brief anthrax scare, and countless holidays...
I am finally looking for a proper name.
And I'd like your help.

Step 1: Name Submission Round
For the next few weeks, everyone is invited to submit their best ideas.
You can enter in two ways:
• In person at Gateway Lodge by filling out an entry slip.
• Online through Facebook or other social media.
Whether you've been visiting the lodge for decades or you've just discovered the story of the wandering otter, I'd love to hear your ideas.
Maybe the name should reflect my northern roots.
Maybe it should honor my remarkable journey.
Maybe it should celebrate the No Concerns Group.
Or maybe you simply have the perfect otter name waiting in your back pocket.
All ideas are welcome.
We'll collect submissions for approximately two to three weeks.
The best part?
Everyone gets to be part of creating the story's next chapter.

Step 2: Narrowing the Field
Now, while I would be honored to answer to all 437 names that humans are capable of inventing, I've been told that isn't practical.
So after the submission period closes, the Gateway Lodge team will carefully review all entries.
They'll select the top three to five finalists.
Duplicate names will be combined, and names that don't quite fit my personality may be gently retired.
For example, "Sir Reginald Fluffington III" may be a fine name.
But it might be a little difficult to fit on a T-shirt.

Step 3: Public Voting
Once the finalists are selected, it will be time for the most important part.
The vote.
Everyone will have a chance to help choose my official name.
Voting will be available
• At Gateway Lodge
• Online through social media
Guests, locals, visitors, longtime friends of the lodge, and followers from far away can all participate.
This keeps things fair while preventing hundreds of names from splitting the vote.
After all, if every single suggestion remained on the ballot, I might end up being named something with only two votes and a very enthusiastic grandmother behind it.
The Big Reveal
When voting is complete, the winning name will be announced.
For the first time in my life...
I will officially have a name.
A real one.
A name chosen by the people who welcomed me home.
A name that will appear in stories, photos, souvenirs, and memories for years to come.
And honestly?
After thirty-four years of wandering, I can't think of a better way to begin this next chapter.
Until then, I'll be sitting by the fire, greeting old friends and new ones, and eagerly waiting to discover what everyone decides to call me.
Because for most of my life, I've simply been The Otter.
But not for much longer. 🦦🔥🏕️
Stay tuned...
The Great Gateway Lodge Otter Naming Contest is about to begin. Details to follow in the next few days.

05/30/2026

Gun Club Open Saturdays and Sundays 10AM-2PM! Call 715-547-3321 to set up an appointment! Trap and Sporting Clays!

05/21/2026

Thirty-four years ago, before the long ride away, I had listened to those same peepers from beside the fireplace. Back then I hadn’t understood what they meant.

Now I did.
Part 13...
Spring wasn’t just a season here.

It was relief.

It was survival.

It was proof that no matter how long the winter, the world always found a way to begin again.

Over the next few days, more sounds returned.

The honking of geese overhead.
The tapping of a woodpecker somewhere deep in the trees.
The sound of shotguns at the spring shoot.
The screen door opening and slamming shut as people carried in supplies and stories.

I listened to guests talk about fishing.
About cabins.
About snow finally being gone.
About summers they spent here as children.

Funny thing about lodges—they collect people’s memories the way old trees collect rings. Year after year, story after story, until the walls themselves seem alive with them.

05/14/2026

Have you seen some of our new Merch.

05/12/2026

Part 12.....
The first night back, I barely slept.

Not that otters truly sleep the way humans do, of course. We simply sit very still and listen to the world breathe around us.

And this place… this place still had the same heartbeat.

The lodge creaked in all the familiar ways. Pipes hummed softly in the walls. Doors opened and closed with distant thumps. Somewhere down a hallway, someone laughed—the kind of tired, genuine laugh that only happens at the end of a long day.

I had missed that sound.

But what surprised me most was the quiet between everything.

The Northwoods quiet.

You never truly forget it once it gets into you.

Morning came slowly, wrapped in the pale gray light of spring. The kind of light that doesn’t burst into a room but gently asks permission to enter. I sat near the window and watched the world outside wake up.

The snow was mostly gone now, retreating into the shadows beneath the pines.

05/10/2026

Part11…
Home has a sound.

I didn’t remember that until I heard it again.

Through an open window…

I heard them.

Peepers.

A chorus of tiny voices rising and falling in the dusk, as if the earth itself was humming back to life. I had almost forgotten that sound—the way it fills the air without asking permission, the way it means winter has finally loosened its grip.

Spring.

I sat very still, listening.

For 34 years, I had known other seasons in other places. Different sounds. Different rhythms. But this—this was the Northwoods waking up. Melting snow dripping steadily from eaves. The soft squish of thawing ground under boots. A screen door somewhere opening, then closing with that familiar clap.

And laughter.

New laughter this time.

I didn’t recognize the voices, but I understood them instantly. Guests arriving. Stories beginning. Someone asking about fishing. Someone else already planning a fire for later. Life continuing, just as it always had.

And now… I was part of it again.

05/09/2026

05/09/2026

https://www.wjfw.com/taxidermied-otter-returns-34-years-after-theft/video_cb75ee65-c77a-5804-83e7-6a6dffba1c57.html

Click here to view this video from wjfw.com.