Ivanhoe Resort - MJM Resort - Allen's Resort - South Walker Bay Resort

I've posted a new picture of the resort from around the late 40's. It was MJM Resort then. We believe these are the 3 small cabins on the hill overlooking the harbor. A really cool picture.

MJM Resort in the late 1940's

Ivanhoe Resort started out it's resort life as Allen's Resort on the south tip of Walker Bay.  I was told that Mr. Allen was a contractor and built the resort cabins either in the 20's or 30's to keep his workers busy during down times.  The earliest I found any mention of the resort was 1932.  I was told that some of the cabins started life out as small logging cabins that were pulled out of the woods and used for guests.   All had some sort of additions, some were built new, and they are almost all still there.

It was next called M-J-M Resort.   The letters stood for the names of the three owners, Merle Meyer, Jack Meyer, and Mable Mitchell.  I could not find out for sure when it changed from Allen's resort to M-J-M Resort. It most likely happened in the late 40's.

It was M-J-M for quite some time up through the early 60's when it was sold to Ivan and Irene Flowers and became Ivanhoe Resort.

The Flowers ran Ivanhoe until 1976 when they sold it to Bill and Mary DeVries.  Bill and Mary ran the resort through 2012 when they sold it and it became a private resort called South Walker Bay.

Today it looks much as it did when Bill and Mary ran it as Ivanhoe resort.  Part of the cabins were sold off as private homes, and the rest are run as seasonal leases, but it all looks the same.

I have heard many great stories from Bill and Mary about their time running the resort, great stories from others that have been long time renters at the resort, and I would love to hear your stories.  Feel free to post!  Pictures would be great.

As a note of disclosure, I am a seasonal leaser at South Walker Bay Resort and it is a great place!

Here are pictures as Allen's Resort.

As M-J-M Resort

As Ivanhoe Resort

Big Leech Resort

It has been a while since I posted.  I wish I had an excuse, but I just haven't done it.  I'll try to blog more.

I spent a lot of time fishing off of Pine Point on Leech this summer and as always I spent a lot of time looking at the maps and pictures of Leech and the resorts that I have aquired over the years.  I began to wonder about Big Leech Resort.  I know that it was on the south side of Pine Point on Trader's Bay.  I know it was around in 1982 as it was on the Chamber of  Commerce map.  It was owned by Dave and Jan Filkens at that point.  It appears on maps from the 40's as well.

It is now called Adventure North Resort and is still operating as a resort.  It has a beautiful harbor.  I'm going to do a little more exploring next summer!

It had a dining room, a store, and no harbor as you can see the boats on the shore.  I loved the pictures and the cabins in the pictures.  From the pictures, it appears that there were around 10 cabins in the resort, possibly more.

Anyone that has any stories and/or pictures, I would love to hear from you!

I added 3 more pictures from postcards sent in the middle 70's.  The lodge looks so cool.  I wonder if it is still there?  

The lodge is still there.  It is now rented out.  I also found out that picture of the snowmobiles is probably a stock photo.

From the late 1950's early 60's Chamber of Commerce map:

Big Leech Resort - Central location on Leech Lake.  12 modern cabins.  Lodge with dining room.  Launch service.  Ed and Marie Biska.  Walker, Minn.  Tel. KI 7-1532.