Minnesota Prairie Roots

Writing and photography by Audrey Kletscher Helbling

Up North at the cabin, a Minnesota summer tradition July 22, 2026

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Identifying signage for some of the property owners along Horseshoe Lake. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo July 2026)

FOR MANY MINNESOTANS, going Up North to the lake cabin for a week in the summer is a time-honored tradition. They go to the same mom-and-pop, or luxury, resort. Stay at the family cabin. Or camp at a private campground or state park.

Mission Tavern, a local gathering spot just south of the cabin. We have not been here. Yet. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo July 2026)

They fish. Swim. Boat. Hike. They dine out and shop and play hard. It’s all part of the experience.

The northwoods cabin where we stay each summer. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)

Seven years ago, I finally joined this Minnesota summer-time phenomenon when a sister-in-law and brother-in-law purchased lake property and opened the on-site cabin to family. Every summer since, Randy and I have headed to Horseshoe Lake south of Crosslake in the Brainerd lakes area for a week-long get-away.

A warm welcome banners a business in Garrison, on the way to the cabin. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo July 2026)

I’ve grown to know and love this region of north central Minnesota, decidedly different than southern Minnesota. Here woods and pristine lakes define the landscape. Narrow tree-lined gravel roads trail into the woods. Personalized signs identify cabin locations. Boats, bait and beer are common refrains.

The sun rises over Horseshoe Lake in Crow Wing County during a previous visit. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)

For those of us who come here to vacation, this place provides a respite from everyday life, a peaceful place to plant ourselves for a bit. Lounging lakeside. Dining lakeside. Drinking coffee as the sun rises over the lake. Reading lakeside.

Loons in Horseshoe Lake south of Crosslake. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)

Here the unique call of loons carries across the water. Here rods bend as weighty fish take bait. Here the sun sets on a campfire complete with s’mores. Here time has no clock.

Grandpa and grandchildren follow the pine-edged driveway in one of my favorite cabin photos. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)

And for me, cabin life means, above all, being with family. Our eldest daughter, her husband and their two elementary-aged children join us for several days. I love sleeping under the same roof, the grandkids in a loft, the adults in two bedrooms.

We gather around the campfire for s’mores and stories. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)

I love gathering around the same table for meals. Grilled pork chops, burgers, hot dogs, veggies and, one evening, take-out pizza. I brought banana bread and chocolate chip cookies from home to share. And this stay we picked up a made-from-scratch-daily Grandma Bettie Jane’s blackberry/peach pie from Schaefer’s Foods in Nisswa to celebrate the son-in-law’s birthday.

Grandpa fishes with the kids. This year they each reeled in sizeable bass, which were released. Another lunker fish snapped the line. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)

I love playing games. Some numbers game dreamed up by math whiz Isaac, 7, who seemed determined to stump Grandma. Or BUILDZI, a tabletop game challenging players to stack uniquely-shaped blocks into a tower. No bumping the table, please. And when the grandkids left and quiet settled in, Randy and I played Yahtzee.

Copper Cats Escape Games in Brainerd offers three escape rooms rated by level of difficulty. The one available happened to be the easiest of the trio, perfect for newbies. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo July 2026)

But before everyone left, when extreme heat confined us to the indoors, the daughter suggested booking an escape room at Copper Cat Escape Games in Brainerd. I’ve always wanted to try this mystery endeavor. And so we did, looking for, solving and following clues to unlock locks, eventually leading us to Granny’s secret recipe. There was no sitting in a rocking chair for this Grandma. I was in the thick of the action, good at finding, not so good at deciphering. It was a whole lot of fun, earning a top rating from me.

Moonrise over Horseshoe Lake near Crosslake. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)

Not so easy, though, was sifting through sand searching for a small plastic toy dinosaur that Izzy, 10, found in the lake, buried on the beach and then couldn’t find. Our efforts turned up nothing. But this search is now the stuff of family stories.

The Andersons have been making memories on Horseshoe Lake in the Brainerd lakes area since 1968. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo July 2026)

Up North at the cabin is about sharing stories, about connecting, about making memories and about understanding that, above all, family matters most.

TELL ME: Do you get away with your family to a special place each year? I’d like to hear. I should note here that I would love to have all of my family—the son and his girlfriend from Boston and the second daughter and her husband and our other grandson from Madison, WI.—together with us at the cabin. Maybe some day…

© Copyright 2026 Audrey Kletscher Helbling

 

My writing publishes in Minnesota literary anthology, again October 16, 2025

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Two of my poems and a work of creative nonfiction are published in this literary anthology. (Book cover sourced online)

FOR THE 16thCONSECUTIVE YEAR, my writing has been selected for publication in the Talking Stick, a literary anthology published by the Jackpine Writers’ Bloc based in northern Minnesota.

The editorial board chose two of my poems, “Up North at the Cabin” and “Where There’s Smoke, There’s Fire,” and a work of creative nonfiction, “Birthing Everett,” for publication in volume 34, titled Toward the Light. The recently-released book features 128 pieces of writing by 76 writers either from Minnesota or with a strong connection to the state.

I consider it an honor to be published in the Talking Stick, which includes the work of talented writers ranging from novice to well-known. I especially appreciate that entries are blind-judged so each piece stands on its own merits. There were 275 submissions from 119 writers for this year’s competition.

Grandpa Randy and grandchildren Izzy and Isaac follow the pine-edged driveway at the northwoods lake cabin. This is my all-time favorite cabin photo. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo 2020)

I’m particularly excited about two of my pieces published in Toward the Light. Anyone who’s ever spent time at a lake cabin will enjoy my “Up North” poem as it centers on nature and family togetherness. I was in my sixties before I first experienced cabin life. Now I’m building memories with my grandkids each summer at a family member’s lake cabin. That centers this poem.

My grandson Everett, nine months old, plays with his toys in his Madison, Wisconsin, home. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo October 2025)

A grandchild also focuses “Birthing Everett,” a deeply personal story about the birth of my 10-pound grandson in January. My daughter Miranda nearly died during childbirth. I knew I needed to write about this to heal from my own trauma of nearly losing her. I will be forever grateful to the medical team at UnityPoint Health-Meriter Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin, for saving Miranda’s life. You just don’t think of women dying during childbirth any more, but it can, and does, happen.

My three recently-published works bring to 39 the total number of poems and short stories I’ve had printed in the Talking Stick. Toward the Light is available for purchase online by clicking here.

© Copyright 2025 Audrey Kletscher Helbling