ORR- Aspen Resort’s new owners David and Cora Downes had a dream, something they had been talking about for at least 25 years. The family, who love camping and the outdoors, wanted to run a family resort.

“Every time we went on a family vacation we would look at different places,” they said.

Eventually they narrowed down their search to northern states. After visiting resorts from Maine to Montana, they fell in love with northern Minnesota.

“Three years ago we came to northern Minnesota and knew this was it,” Cora said.

One year ago the couple, who had both been born and grown up in Delaware, decided to put their home on the market. When it sold, they decided, they would make the move.

But right at that same time, the family suffered a tragedy when their thirty-year old daughter died. For a while, Cora said, life was put on hold.

“We still talked about doing the resort,” said Cora, “and last December we decided to go ahead.” Their other child, a married son with a toddler, was also ready for a move.

The couple got in contact with Minnesota Resort Sales this spring, and met up with Dan Houle, who took them on a three-day tour of a half a dozen resorts stretching from the north shore to northwestern Minnesota.

But the resort that caught their eye was Aspen Resort in Orr. It was a family resort on a nice big lake, said David, just what they were looking for.

“We met Ray and Vanessa Ingebretson,” they said. “They seemed a lot like us. We knew we could do this.”

They made the decision quickly. The couple made the move in early June.

“Our guests already seem like family,” Cora said. “The guests are so good to us.”

The Downes said the Ingebretsons have made the ownership transition easy, and stop by several times a week to answer questions.

Houle, who brokered the sale, said the Ingebretsons had a well-managed resort for sale.

“The resort was neat as a pin. Everything was working. It was a beautiful operation,” he said

The family feels right at home in Orr. David, whose background is in construction management, knows that there will always be repairs to be made, but it is something he has the knowledge and experience to tackle.

“We are here to live,” Cora said. “We will be here year-round. This is our home now.”

Aspen Resort is a classic Minnesota resort, located on Pelican Lake. The cabin rentals are about 85-percent repeat business, with some visitors stretching back three generations. The resort also has a campground, with mostly seasonal campers.

Family fun is a weekly event. On Thursdays the resort has minnow races, on Sunday, it’s make-you-own sundaes. Their daughter-in-law Julie oversees cookie decorating on Tuesdays, featuring fish-shaped sugar cookies. They have campfires in front of the main lodge each night, and s’mores every Wednesday.

The resort operation is a family affair, with son Cody working full-time, along with his parents and wife. The littlest Downes, two-year-old Briar, is loving life in the Northwoods, and the family is excited to see him start school in a few years at North Woods.