Dusting off the water skis

By Brenda Erdahl

Just when we thought this winter couldn’t get any stranger, two local teens decided to prove us all wrong.

The call of the open water on Lake Pulaski was too much to resist for Isabelle Melgaard of Maple Lake and Ashlyn Petersen of Annandale who decided to take advantage of the ice-free lake on New Year’s Day with a quick tour on water skis.

Uncommonly warm weather and heavy rains on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day left some area lakes completely free of ice going into the new year. The girls generally prefer downhill skiing this time of year but since Mother Nature hasn’t been very accommodating in either ice or snow this winter, they decided to start out 2024 on a different note.

Although only 23 degrees outside, the girls took to the water and battled the frigid temperatures to make their way around about half of the lake and back on water skis, Isabelle’s mom Jeani Melgaard said.