“This is one of the largest seaplane bases in the lower United States and one of the oldest,” said Surfside co-owner Dan Kedrowski. “It started in 1946. Surfside has been a part of the Lino Lakes community.”
Last November, Kedrowski and Bob Timm bought Surfside from Bruce Hanson.
“Bruce has owned it for 53 plus years,” Kedrowski said. “Time to sell it, 93 years old. We’ve been working with him for over a decade.”
For now the seaplanes are dormant – shut down by frigid temps, a frozen lake and snow. But in a few months Surfside will be bustling as it will be splash down time again for float planes going in and out of Lino Lakes.
“In the summertime on floats Rice Lake is the runway,” Kedrowski said. “We store all of the float planes on land and then we have a machine that takes them and puts them in the water.”
“Unique airport”
Surfside is a popular spot in the float plane community – especially for those who want to visit the Twin Cities.
“I would say this is a very unique airport because of its location and its proximity to the cities,” Kedrowski said. “Lots of people can come here from all over. Land here then see some of the stuff that the Twin Cities has.”
The new ownership tandem has a vision and wants to make Surfside even better.
“We’re very excited about this opportunity now,” Kedrowski said. “We have the responsibility now to take the airport to the next level. We want to make improvements here and get involvement with organizations like MnDOT, the DNR, MSPA, SPA – which are aviation organizations.”
Kedrowski and Timmons are hoping to convince pilots that flying seaplanes is a great opportunity.
“I think our focus is to expose existing pilots to this type of flying,” Kedrowski said. “Then to bring the next generation into this.”
Kedrowski and other pilots get a special rush when they fly float planes and glide onto a lake – it’s much different from a conventional flight.
“It’s the freedom that you have with flying on floats,” Kedrowski said. “It’s a very structured type of flying when you fly in and out of land-based airports.”
Traveling in a float plane gives pilots plenty of flexibility and options.
“Every lake is a runway,” Kedrowski said. “We’ve taken float planes all the way down to Florida and back. Up to the Arctic Circle and back. A lot of the guys here either have cabins or make a trip to Canada every year.”
Of course getting a seaplane requires some cash. Some cost between $200,000 and $300,000.
Surfside isn’t just for seaplanes – the airport also has a grass runway.
