A Fish With No Name

The Eagle’s Nest is famous for its fish dinner, number one with guests. But did you know about the Eagle’s Nest other fish stories? Hint: there’s more than one.

Recently a sculpted fish returned to the Eagle’s Nest after five years. Clark Lake’s Mike McKay had secured it during the restaurant’s previous transitions. Now back home, here’s Eagle’s Nest owner Blair Huff with the fish.

But as Blair has said, “it’s a fish with no name.” So, he is offering a 50-dollar Eagle’s Nest gift card for the best name (a drawing will decide if more than one entry comes up with the name chosen). Email your idea to namingthefish@gmail.com.

Is this the only fish story? Nope. Jim Simpson, a local artist, who sculpted the fish also created the three fish that hang near the entrance.

Then, when you enter the Eagle’s Nest, take a hard left. You can’t miss the giant marlin on the wall. The Clark Lake story behind it began 4 ½ miles off of Kauhi, Hawaii where Dan and Donita Baker were fishing. They counted their good fortune as they caught several amberjacks 12 to 15 inches long. Then the surprise of a lifetime. Donita’s line went taut, there was thrashing in the water. Donita had hooked a 16-foot marlin. Whales and sharks circled, other boats gathered for the show. Several hours later, and after several attempts, they brought the tired-out fish to the boat. What to do with the catch? Donita decided that such a beautiful creature should be allowed to go free. So, they released it.

The marlin you see in the Eagle’s Nest is a 10-foot replica that Dan and Donita commissioned to commemorate the adventure. But the fish story doesn’t end there. Now on its way to the Baker’s Clark Lake home, the large delivery truck couldn’t make the sharp curve on Woodland Drive. Dan and Donita’s kids loaded the crate onto skateboards to push it home. Their kids joked that when their dad died, the replica would become his coffin. When Dan passed away in 2015, that didn’t happen. But the fish story lived on, and offered a smile at a time when it was needed. When Donita moved to her new home, the fish moved to its new permanent residence at the restaurant. But how to get it Eagle Point? This being Clark Lake, it happened by raft. Donita’s neighbor, John Rousseau, helped Donita load it onto Susie Creech’s raft, because it had sea legs. The marlin is brought through the door. The mounting… Success!

In the annual Clark Lake Cup, The East end of the lake (Almeda Court) faces off against the West end (Eagle Point or Narrows). This year's game was played on Saturday, February 5th. Originally intended to be held on the ice near the Eagle's Nest lakeside, an overnight snow created surface issues. So, a new rink was quickly formed on the other side of Eagle Point, within view of the Eagle Point Marina. Eagle's Nest owner Blair Huff put on his skates, grabbed his hockey stick, and played for the Eagle Point team (of course). How did it go? Check out the video produced by the Clark Lake Spirit Foundation. And Blair? He is wearing jersey #19. The Eagle's Nest warmed up players and fans before and after the game, with a full menu of food and drinks. Game hosting alternates each year. In 2021, the game was played under the lights at the east end.