RR Brannstrom | Daily Press Keith and Connor Soderman have been inventorying Bayshore Resort Bait and Hideaway, which has been under new owners Chad Meyer and Jeff Diebold since January.
Editor's note: The Daily Press will feature a series of articles about local businesses, highlighting their history and what makes them unique. This series will be serialized regularly in the Daily Press.
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KIPLING — The business at 1323 N. Lake Shore Dr., which has provided supplies and lodging to anglers in Little Bay de Noc since 1959, is under new ownership as of January 2024. Chad (CJ) Meier and Jeff Diebold, who also owns Iverson's Home Center, conducted a major overhaul of the store this winter, including a small name change. The owner has another job, so day-to-day operations at the store are handled by manager Keith Soderman and his wife, Connor.
The property has changed hands approximately eight times since it was built 65 years ago. According to John Lindbergh, the property owner next door, the building was built by a man named Barr, who also built Lindbergh's Resort, and then sold to Don Lon, who then sold it to Elmer White. , the company became known as White's.
John Creten, who owned the place for the past seven years before selling it to Meyer and Diebold, said the cabins were built by successive owners and slowly evolved over the years.
“As the years went on, people started adding more, but they were all original, like old timber camps.” Creten said. “They put a big log and built on it.”
For a while, Rick and Debbie Fiorini owned the business. Richard (“small”) and Diane Carlson, who owned other bait stores in the area, ran the bait store portion for the Fiorini family for a time before they sold the resort and the entire store. Many of you may remember that Bayshore Resort Bait and Tackle (as it was called until recently) was run by Connie and Naomi. It was Naomi Johnson that Creten bought about eight years ago.
There are currently seven rental cabins available and two docks located at the back of the 1.32-acre property.
“Our cabins range from one to three bedrooms to be exact, with two bathrooms and…a huge living area. So when a large group comes here, They do, but they have that much space.” Connor said.
Keith said they will eventually add one or two more docks. For the time being, this bait shop, with the boat launch right next door, provides an easy supply point for those staying in the cabins as well as anglers departing from Kipling.
Little Bay de Noc has long been known as a fishing destination and Kipling, just north of Gladstone's Narrows, is a prime location. However, the appearance of the port was different than before. It was dredged several times, breakwaters were built, and water levels fluctuated over the years.
The dredging project resulted in certain leases and permits. This is because – reportedly – unusually – much of the ocean floor is owned by the state, whereas the Bayshore River owns a portion of the bottom land beneath the port, and once again This means there is a possibility of dredging.
As the newest owner, Creten has been able to report changes in the business over the better part of the past decade.
“We redid a lot of the cabins and some of the plumbing and things like that, but when they took over, they really worked hard and redid everything.” He said.
The interior of the store will look completely different in 2024. The store was closed for several weeks this winter to be demolished and renovated. Connor said it was probably a good year to do it because the ice was so poor.
Ice fishing season is typically a busy one, and now Bayshore Bait and Hideaway is gearing up for the most important day on an angler's calendar. Walleye season arrives on May 15, and the Soedermans have no doubt that business will be booming.
Tackle and bait are selling well in the store. When it comes to lures, Connor and Keith proudly pointed out his Mr. Chrome brand of Germfask. We also have a large lineup of custom color patterns exclusive to Bayshore.
As customers approach the counter, they can hear the sound of water bubbling, and behind the counter is a tank of live bait.
“Right now we have 1- or 2-inch fathead minnows.” Connor said, “And we have a lot of crawlers and things like that, because they kind of go fast depending on what fish people are chasing.”
The Soderman family, especially Keith, are experienced anglers. Creten is still around and can provide some insight, but the new management is pretty confident they can identify trends and prepare for them as the seasons change. Walleye are coming, and people go salmon fishing in the summer. While salmon fishing is popular in large, remote bodies of water in June, local river coho fishing will be more popular starting from late August to mid-October, Keith said.
The store itself may have been renovated, but the entire operation is a work in progress.
“We're going to update the cabin a little bit, and they're working on the dock that we have up there.” Connor said.
Bayshore is reportedly working on obtaining a license to sell food products such as paste, and plans are also being discussed to build a pavilion and update the fish cleaning station.
