My grandfather had relatives in Whiting and as was the custom in the Polish tradition on Sunday afternoon, after church, you go see the relatives. And so he’d walk across Wolf Lake during the winter, which is a fairly easy process. My mother would share stories about walking across. And of course they would stay at the relatives’ house, have some food, [and] have some drink.
And on further memory… my Dad was also a muskrat trapper and he and his brother Tony would trap all winter and take the pelts to [Chicago’s] Maxwell Street and they would barter them away. And that was a huge amount of money back in the [Great] Depression.

Bob Brandys, Rockford, IL

One of the many things I remember about Wolf Lake was how big I thought it was. To this day, the lakes & the oceans I've seen don't stack up to how big I thought Wolf Lake was -- particularly if you were in the middle of it in the winter and you hear the ice start to crack.

Gene Szuflita, Chicago, IL

It was December 23, 2010. I was with my friend Dylan. We had a small jig pole and very small ice shanty. It was my first time ice fishing and first time on Wolf Lake. All of a sudden my jig pole bent over and was pulled into the ice hole. I knew it was big, but unaware how big it was. Twenty-five minutes later I was holding a 38-inch Northern Pike, which weighted 14.3 pounds. Not bad for a first time on the ice.

Mario Bovina, Lansing, IL