Dennis Anderson: Yoga and Pilates? Walleyes? Some northern Minnesota resort guests want it all - and get it.

MINNEAPOLIS - When Tom Lantry was a kid growing up at his parents' resort on Lake Vermilion in northern Minnesota, he often felt like he lived in the outfit's fish-cleaning house, wielding a knife into the late evening, filleting guests' walleyes.

"What I remember most is the camaraderie of our fishing guests," Lantry said the other day. "They'd leave the resort early in the morning, fish all day, come back at dark, and we'd clean fish together. Sometimes I thought I'd never get out of that cleaning house."

Lantry, now 42, is still at White Eagle Resort. He and his wife, Steph, 37, bought the operation from Tom's parents in 2013. Founded in 1915, White Eagle is one of the state's oldest continuously operating family resorts.

Though it still has a fish-cleaning house, White Eagle is a testament to vacationers' changing tastes - and wants. With a combination pickleball and tennis court, complimentary yoga and Pilates classes, fire rings alongside each of its 15 cabins, and of course Wi-Fi, the resort truly is a home away from home.

And then some.

"We still have a lot of people who come up to fish, especially in spring and early summer, beginning with the opener," Tom said. "But these days we have more of a focus on families, often spanning multiple generations."

White Eagle's transformation from a fishing camp to a modern, comfortable lakeside destination is not unique. On lakes throughout northern Minnesota, the 14-foot Lunds that once were tied to creaky docks have been replaced in many instances by sturdy piers and plush pontoon boats rigged for happy-hour cruising.

Lakeshore values have helped drive the transformation. As their prices have soared in recent decades, resort owners had a choice: Either they could develop businesses whose revenues justified the property they occupied - or sell out to developers.

Many resort owners have chosen the latter, according to the state Department of Revenue. From 2010 to 2020, Minnesota lost nearly 250 resorts.

At White Eagle, after the school year ends and summer begins, multiple generations of guests often arrive at the resort, Steph Lantry said, bringing with them recreational interests the resort's founders could only have imagined.

Among these is ATV riding, which is increasingly popular among northern Minnesota vacationers. Toting four-wheelers or side-by-sides from their homes in the Twin Cities or elsewhere in the Midwest, guests can depart directly from their rented cabins to an expansive network of northern Minnesota trails.

"My dad got a sense of the changes that were coming with our clientele when he built a couple of our larger cabins, with three or four bedrooms and multiple bathrooms," Tom said. "He found out quickly those were his most desired cabins. Steph and I have continued that transformation, and now most of our cabins are larger."

Jim Jacoby and his wife, Molly Morter, along with Janet and Drew Prest, will welcome a similar variety of guests this summer at Timber Bay Lodge and Houseboats on Birch Lake, which lies about a mile from Babbitt, Minn., and about 15 miles from Ely.

The two couples bought Timber Bay, which was founded in 1947, last spring.

"Drew and Janet, who are from Chaska, had vacationed at the same resort near Boulder Junction, Wis., that Jim and I vacationed at, that's how we met," Molly said, noting that she and her husband live in Milwaukee. "One thing led to another, and the four of us started looking at resorts to buy together."

Timber Bay appealed to the couples because it was a well-operated resort with a customer base consisting primarily of repeat guests.

"We knew we wanted to fine-tune some things about whatever resort we bought and put our own spin on its operation," Molly said. "We had looked at a half dozen resorts. But when we saw Timber Bay, we knew this was the one we wanted. We bought it last April, and the summer was already pretty much booked."

Birch Lake (it's actually a reservoir) has been in the news because it's near the northern Minnesota site where copper and nickel mining operations have been proposed. Timber Bay's new owners were aware of the possible mine when they bought the resort. However that situation plays out, they believe Birch Lake will remain one of Minnesota's most beautiful and, at about 20 miles long, largest lakes that also features good walleye fishing.

Among the resort's guests, Molly said, are people who have previously camped in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness but are no longer up to paddling and portaging.

"They come here to get the same type of North Woods experience, but with more comforts," she said.

Like White Eagle Resort, Timber Bay welcomes walleye anglers beginning with the fishing opener, which this year is May 9. After that, customers ranging from couples to multigenerational families to groups of anglers or ATV riders fill most of the resort's cabins, while youngsters play on the beach or join a daily kids club.

"We have three larger, more modern lodges, along with 12 cabins that have from one to three bedrooms‚" Molly said. "We also have 10 houseboats that are popular with guests who want to explore and ‘camp' on the lake in the boats while also fishing or touring."

Smaller, more traditional fishing and family resorts still exist throughout Minnesota. Price is sometimes the appeal of these. In other cases, their clientele is less concerned about a resort's accommodations or amenities than the fishing, trail riding, hiking or wildlife viewing that is nearby.

Regardless of a resort's size, Tom Lantry said, once the winter's ice goes out on a lake, the work begins.

"Guests will be on their way," he said, "and to get a resort ready in spring, it's all hands on deck."

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This story was originally published April 29, 2026 at 5:43 AM.