Wild animal in the house!

This is not about maps, but it's interesting and it happened in our house. What would you do if you had just woke from a night's sleep, rubbed yours eyes and spotted an animal tail around a corner inside your home? 

Well for me, the first thing that entered into my mind was: "Dang kids are playing a trick on me like the time they painted my toe nails purple while I was asleep in the lazy-boy." I didn't figure it out until the next morning when I had taken a shower and was putting on my socks. Imagine the shock of seeing 10 purple toes nails looking back at you and then thinking what the heck was I doing last night.  But this time was different, it's a real creature. I thought, what the heck is that and how did it get in the house? Dang, looks like a Raccoon and we don't have a pet Raccoon. I bet the wife has let it in thinking it was Creamy the cat, which is possible because her night vision is not what it used to be. 

Now what to do, throw shoes at it, call animal control, get the guns? Just call me Davy Crockett because I feel there's a new coonskin cap in the future and then to my surprise....... 

As I turned the corner to get a better look this is what was looking back at me. Kibble our cat. I suppose the reason I was thinking Raccoon, is because before I went to bed, I spotted this outside munching on cat food.

It's a Raccoon stealing cat food outside. Just call me crazy.

Oh yeah, I paint lake, river and bay maps, read what my customers are saying. "I was finally able to give my husband the map I bought for his birthday last night. I want you to know how beautiful it was and how touched he was by it. He loves this Lake. His family has a home there and when we are lucky we get away for a few days, it’s the only place we want to be. He actually had tears in his eyes. Thank you for the beautiful art work."

I don't hide snapping turtles, but I do hide a tiny mermaid/fish in the waters of all my lake map paintings that folks love to search for. I call my maps treasured maps because most folks have that special body of water that they treasure. These maps make great gifts for the lake house owner, lake lover, or fisherman. I have over two hundred on my website that can be purchased right from the site, or I can do custom and personalizes lake, river or bay maps, too. If you would like to see more and read about my treasured maps go to LeoMaps.com. 
 

As you can see, my maps make a great gift. To see more of my work click here www.LeoLakes.com. 

Remember: Life is short, get away from the big screen and get on a big stream, or at least enjoy one on the wall.

Beautiful Lake Winnebago

I just finished a map of beautiful Lake Winnebago which is located in Wisconsin.  If  you look closely, you may see fish jumping in the water. 

The lake was named after the Indians that lived around the lake. Interestingly, the Algonquian Indians called them Winnebago, which means "people of filthy water" because the lake had a fishy smell in the summer months. Speaking of fish, Lake Winnebago is a top Walleye lake and many tournaments are held at the lake. I hide a tiny mermaid/fish in the waters of all my lake map paintings that folks love to search for. I call my maps treasured maps because most folks have that special body of water that they treasure. These maps make great gifts for the lake house owner, lake lover, or fisherman. I have over four hundred on my website that can be purchased right from the site, or I can do custom and personalizes lake, river or bay maps, too. If you would like to see more and read about my treasured maps go to LeoLakes.com.

Paddle over to website to see my Lake, River, and Bay Maps. I have hundreds of maps on my website that can be purchased right from the site, or I can do custom and personalizes  maps, too. Lake maps will add beauty to your Lake House Decor! Find out more interesting facts about my treasured maps by going to LeoLakes.com. 

   

Elephant Butte Reservior

Yep, it's a real butte. It's known as Elephant Butte and rises out of the waters of Elephant Butte Reservoir, which is located in New Mexico. Why is it called Elephant Butte? Because, at certain angles it actually looks like a huge elephant, no kidding. However, the picture below doesn't do it justice.

The reservoir surrounding Elephant Butte is really a neat lake that is fed by the historic Rio Grande. There are some very interesting names along the lake. Some of these names are so descriptive, you immediately have a mental picture of the place, for instance, Kettle Top Butte or Jungles Gate and Elephant Butte. Am I right? A lot of folks think of pelicans as being coastal waterfowl, however Elephant Butte has beautiful White Pelicans. Not only is bird watching a great activity on the lake, but so is boating, camping, hiking and fishing. In fact, the lake owns the state record for the Striped Bass, Blue Cat, Flathead Cat, Green Sunfish, and Longear Sunfish. I must say, "Elephant Butte is a real beauty!"  

I painted this custom decor map of Elephant Butte not long ago. I hid a tiny mermaid/fish in the waters and folks love to search for her. I call my maps treasured maps because most folks have that special body of water that they treasure, like Elephant Butte. These maps make great gifts for the lake house owner, lake lover, or fisherman. I have over two hundred on my website that can be purchased right from the site, or I can do custom and personalizes lake, river or bay maps, too. If you would like to see more and read about my treasured maps go to LeoMaps.com. 

Massive Alligator Snapping Turtle

Wow, this Oklahoma angler got a huge surprise while fishing for catfish on Eufaula Lake. After a struggle, he and a friend pulled in this massive alligator snapping turtle weighting in over 100 lbs. Believe it or not, he caught this large turtle on a rod and reel. Amazingly, the largest alligator turtle ever caught weighted over 200 lbs, now that's a Godzilla Turtle. After the photo op, the turtle was released unharmed.

How old do you think this turtle is? Well, they say that there's no reliable way to determine the age of turtles, but I bet that this is a fairly old turtle. I did a little research and found that male snapping turtles live up to 45 years and females up to 37 years in the wild. They have been known to live up to 70 years in captivity.  It is fascinating what one might catch while fishing. When I was a child, we caught an alligator snapping turtle on the Duck River in Tennessee. It was a 50-70 pound turtle and had moss covering some of its shell. I was amazed. It was like seeing an alien creature and I was very curious. After we checked the turtle out we released it back into the waters of the Duck.

Interesting, here's a decor map of Eufaula Lake that I painted.

I paint river, lake, and bay decor maps and hide things in the waters. I don't hide snapping turtles, but I do hide a tiny mermaid/fish in the waters of all my lake map paintings that folks love to search for. I call my maps treasured maps because most folks have that special body of water that they treasure. These maps make great gifts for the lake house owner, lake lover, or fisherman. I have over two hundred on my website that can be purchased right from the site, or I can do custom and personalizes lake, river or bay maps, too. If you would like to see more and read about my treasured maps go to LeoLakes
.com. 

Remember: Life is short, get away from the big screen and get on a big stream!

Custom Lake Maps

A beautiful Little Lake! I Just finished this custom vintage style map of Deep Creek Lake in Maryland. Deep Creek Lake is the largest lake in Maryland at approximately 3,900 acres. The lake is named after the creek that feeds into it and the maximum depth is about 75 feet.  This lake has an abundance of wildlife, fish and birds and is a great lake for fishing, swimming, tubing, and canoeing.

Interesting, I always hide a tiny mermaid to the waters of all my lake map paintings that folks love to search for. I have been painting river, lake, and bay maps for the last five years. I call them treasured maps because most folks have that special body of water that they treasure. 

Here's the actual customer's comment: 

"Good Morning Larry, Please know that we received our new Map yesterday and love everything about it!!  Thank you so very much as this will be an amazing addition to our home.  Many blessing to you" 

These maps make great gifts for the lake house owner, lake lover, or fisherman. I have over two hundred on my website that be purchased from the site, or I can do custom and personalizes lake maps, too. If you would like to see more and read about my treasured maps go to LeoLakes.com. Makes a great gift!

Remember: Life is short, get away from the big screen and get on a big stream.

I often receive emails back from customers after they receive one of my treasured maps. Here's a sample of a few emails that I have received lately.

 What Our Customer's Are Saying: 

Customer Email 5/01/14: Hi Larry, The map arrived on time and was perfect!  My husband loved it. Thank you for all of your efforts and attention to this project. It will be a conversation piece in our home for years to come! 

Customer Email 4/29/14: The map arrived yesterday and looks great. Thank you.

Customer Email 4/20/14: I received the map yesterday (we were out of town all weekend). It's perfect!! Thank you very much. 

Customer Email 4/12/14: The pkg arrived Friday as scheduled. The map was a surprise for my husband. He loves it! The Table Rock Lake Map will be a treasure in our family for generations. We are both very happy with the quality and colors. We wouldn't hesitate to recommend your product. Thank you. 

Customer Email 4/3/14: I apologize for the delayed email but I wanted to tell you thank you so much for the beautiful map! I got it right in time and my mom and dad loved it!! Have a great day. 

Customer Email 3/2/14: Hi Larry, The painting just arrived, it is beautiful. He is going to love it. Thank you for getting it to us so promptly. Have a nice day. 

Customer Email 2/26/14: Larry, Received the map today and it is fantastic!  My heart kind of sank when my receptionist brought it in because the box had a fist sized hole in it.  However, it is unharmed and is beautiful.  My office staff just loves it and we are rearranging some other wall hangings so we can display it so that our property owners will be able to see it when they come in.  We will put your cards and contact info out, so hopefully you can sell some. Thanks Again.

See more Leo Lakes treasured maps at LeoLakes.com. They make a great fathers day gift!

Custom Lake Painting Maps

Here's a beautiful custom lake painting map of the Walleye Capital of Wisconsin. That lake would be Long Lake. Long Lake is located in Washburn County and is 3,300 acres in size. It's name is true to its length, being 19 miles long. The lake was carved out by glaciers millions of years ago. It's a beautiful clear lake with miles of undeveloped shoreline, pristine bays and nice gravel beaches. 

Click to Enlarge

Not only are walleyes common, but large and small mouth bass, crappie, blue gill, and northern pike are too. You will find much wildlife/waterfowl around the lake such as eagles, osprey, cranes, otter, beaver and my favorite, loons. In fact, I added a couple of loons on the map along with fish, canadian Geese, and an osprey. Interesting, I always hide a tiny mermaid to the waters of all my lake map paintings that folks love to search for. 

I have been painting river, lake, and bay maps for the last five years. I call them treasured maps because most folks have that special body of water that they treasure. These maps make great gifts for the lake house owner, lake lover, or fisherman. I have over two hundred on my website that can be purchased right from the site, or I can do custom and personalizes lake, river or bay maps, too. If you would like to see more and read about my treasured maps go to LeoLakes.com. 

Remember: Life is short, get away from the big screen and get on a big stream.