Logs
July 6 to 10
The trip up to Red Lake and Pre-Trip Activities
July 6th
Up at 2:00 am – left home at 2:51 after packing up a few last minute things from the freezer and fridge. We’re bringing ground moose and 24 beers for a BBQ that’s to occur at Goldseekers.
We make good time:
Parry Sound at 5:35
Nairn Center & Breakfast at 8:40
Sault Ste Marie at 12:10
Wawa & Lunch at 2:40
Terrace Bay at 5:30
Stopped at Terrace Bay for two hours to visit Doug Caldwell. He was just bringing a party from the Slate Islands. We met them at the public dock and from there adjourned to Doug’s place for a tea and a chat.
Dinner in Schreiber and we camped in Rainbow Falls Provincial Park. In bed at 10:30.
July 7th
We slept in!! Up at 8:30 – our excuse was that it was raining at 6 am. Truth be told – we were still tired. Brushed our teeth and hit the road. I had made some muffins for the trip so we munched on those and stopped in Nipigon for a coffee.
Ignace was our next stop (except for Thunder Bay for gas). We had lunch at 12:20 and adjusted our watches to Central Time. The road from Ignace to Dryden was under construction so a 1:15 hr trip turned into 2:30.
We arrived in Red Lake at 5:30 pm and saw Albert’s truck headed in the opposite direction – they were on their way to a friend’s for dinner.
Went to Goldseeker’s and let ourselves into the bunkhouse and then out to dinner at The Lakeview…..a place that’s been in business since the 1930s.
In bed at 11 pm – glad the drive is over.
July 8th
A whirlwind of activity as we:
went to the park office for our permits
visited Chimo Airways to introduce ourselves
visited the local IGA to stock up in BBQ items.
Back to Goldseekers to make moose burgers, moose meat balls, salad, and chill the drinks.
Guests began arriving at 5:30. Albert was head chef (burgers were well received), a few beers, coffee and desert and the crowd dispersed at about 9:30.
July 9th
Touring and picture day.
Double check day.
Make sure that the resupply procedure is in place.
Back to MNR office to get picture with Claire and Doug.
Then to Chimo – and a wait for Duane to return so we could get his picture.
Bought and wrote some postcards.
Picked up some tomatoes, cucumbers and broccoli for our first few days.
Packaged our pitas, wraps, salami, cheese and jerky for resupply
Packed our first two weeks of perishables.
We're scheduled to depart Goldseekers at 7 am for a 30 minute drive to our put in point. Take a few pictures and we should be on the water by 8:30.
July 10 to 23
The first Segment of our trip - Days 1 to 14
Thursday July 10th, 5:30 pm
We wake up at 5 am to say goodbye to Franz and Edelgard (they're taking a water taxi to Pipestone Bay). We might see them again on Knox Lake if we push through to there in three days. Today went well so we're thinking that maybe we'll postpone our layover day until Knox or Young.
We saw them off at 5:45 as Albert drove them to Howey Bay. It's only a 5 minute drive so we didn't have long to wait until Albert was back – 6:10 as their shuttle was scheduled for 6:00.
Had another coffee with Albert and went over the resupply procedures. We left him with our car keys, loaded his truck and were off. Oh yes - Kelly came out to say goodbye.
We drove to the Johnson Lake access point, took a couple of pictures and were off at 8:00 am. A short paddle brought us to the portage out of Johnson Lake. It's listed at 400 metres but seemed a little longer. Our gear is well organized and even though we have more stuff than ever the portage routine is easy. There are moose tracks in the portage (this is true of all our portages today) – fairly fresh.
A short paddle across Stan Lake and we find the 150 metre carry to an unnamed pond – out the outlet of the pond – the stream is narrow and winding. A right turn takes us in the direction of Douglas Lake.
A 30 meter portage is advertised but it turns out to be a beaver dam. We slide over and do the four foot drop to the stream carefully. Another beaver dam requires sliding over before we're in Douglas Lake.
Douglas Lake seemed busy – a plane landed and went to a lodge there. We met another party of canoeists – they had gear and were headed in the opposite direction but reported that they were going to stay on Douglas Lake.
At the end of Douglas we felt that we were finally entering an area where we might be alone for several days. We stopped and made an offering of tobacco. In return we requested safe passage and guidance on our journey.
The 125 metre portage to Hatchet is almost all up and rocky. The passage on Hatchet gives us a chance to dry off a bit. It's been cloudy, humid and about 20 degrees. Mosquitoes greet us at each portage and stay with us for a little while. We had our gorp break at the end of Douglas Lake.
We reached the portage out of Hatchet, a nice sandy spot with mature trees and a nice looking portage. Stopped for lunch here and tried out the neem and catnip bug repellent. It does work but seems to work better for Kathy than for me. We gotta try a more scientific test – I don't know how much she used.
The portage to Peterson, as beautiful as it looked, was marred by a fallen tree that required scrambling under on all fours on our first pass. On our second pass we detoured to the left. An easy 150 m carry to Page Lake and we start looking for a campsite. It doesn't take too long and we're out and setting up.
First I start a fire and some coffee. We go for a swim while the coffee is brewing – well, I swim and Kathy dips. We bathe and have a coffee. Kathy goes off to set up the tent and I grab the journal and pen. So now you're up to date!
Page Lake is our kinda spot – lots of rock sloping down to the water. Our campsite here is Kathy's ideal. A nice drop-off for swimming.
Friday July 11th, 8:45 pm – Indian House Lake.
Well, we got to Indian House – but not without a struggle. We're both beat. It promises to be an early night.
The day started at 5:30 am as we got up to watch the sunrise. After a breakfast of 12 grain cereal with fruit and nuts we packed up and were on the water at 8:15. I know, not very quick but we'll work on it.
First portage out of Page was pretty easy – paddle up a small stream and carry in to an unnamed lake. The paddle south to Bell Lake is very pretty and the portage to Crystal is easy to find. We stop at the end of the portage for a quick swim. It's bright and sunny now with a temp of about 23 degrees. The water is cool but refreshing.
Now the fun begins – the swamp tour. We have to drag the canoe about 50 metres to get to the start of the next portage and it's through a bog – 225 m of wet feet. We congratulate ourselves on our accomplishment – but too soon – the next 450 m is a repeat of the previous experience – complete with cattails growing in the middle of the portage trail. Now we're really hot, soaked and tired.
We stop for lunch and a well-deserved rest. The 550 m which leads towards Indian House is easy enough – but we're tired and it's a struggle.
The wind is now up and in our faces for the passage across this small lake. The paddle to Indian House is along a mid-sized stream through very boggy terrain. We expect to see a moose but have to be satisfied with two beavers and a number of turtles that are surprised by our presence.
We enter Indian House with the wind blowing from the northwest. Our intention was to camp near the north end but we began checking out likely spots and found a nice one. Nobody has camped here before – no fire pit and no signs of camping – only an old fire on the rock.
We arrive here at 5:20 – an hour behind schedule and really beat. A pot of coffee, a swim and a bath. An orzo and pesto dinner and I'm beginning to feel better. Now for tea and cookies and we're off to bed. Oh – just to let you know – our sprouts are doing well – first will be ready tomorrow.
Sunday July 13th, noon, Knox Lake.
Well, I'm sitting here under the tarp, I've started some Bannock on the outback oven. We're doing a wash and hung the clothes and we just finished the last of our salami and cheese pita sandwiches.
Our original schedule didn't call for us to be here until the 15th so I should go back a bit and bring you up to date. First – Indian House Lake is a place not to be missed. Lots of exposed rock places and lots of islands just begging to be camped on. You could easily spend several days here just enjoying its beauty.
In any case, we're up at 5:15 and having a coffee as the sun shines in to our campsite (we try to find places the face north or east so we can get the morning sun). We're supposed to have a layover day here but we've consulted the trip plan and decide to postpone the rest day until the middle of what looks like some long days coming up. We even discuss trying to put the next two days together and go for Knox Lake in one day. Our decision? Let's wait to see how we feel as we get close to that 1500 m carry in to Knox.
On the water at 7:50 am for the paddle across Indian House. We camped in the south so we have a bit of a paddle before our first portage. The sun is out and there's not much breeze so it's shorts and no shirt weather.
I stick to shorts through the first portage – a 70 m shorty followed by a nice paddle to a 100 m portage. I change to long pants here as there are a series of three portages (100, 200, 325) coming up in quick progression. None are difficult and we're now further than I had originally planned for today.
We stop for lunch and to discuss what to do next – we're on a place that would make a decent campsite. Kathy's back has been bothering her since day one when she slipped on a portage so that is one of our concerns. She's taken some muscle relaxers and says she's OK to continue – the exercise is OK – it's the sitting that allows the muscles to tighten up.
So the decision is made. It's off to Knox Lake. We start to pack up our lunch stuff and a bull moose appears on the opposite shore (we're on an island). I manage to get one picture and then put in the 2x multiplier but I can't hold the camera steady enough at this magnification.
We paddle to the stream where the portage begins and start up. The maps indicate that the portage starts after a liftover. We reach a beaver dam and there's some red flagging tape here. We've encountered some other flagging tape previously that indicated either a directional marker or the start of a portage so we said "It must be directional since the map shows the portage starting later".
We crossed the beaver dam and noted that is seemed that not many others had been this way. When we got to the second dam there had definitely not been any traffic in a long time. We continued just a bit but there were no indications that we were on the right track so we doubled back to see where we went wrong. "Ah-ha" we said as we approached the first dam, "there's the portage – it's marked with a blaze on that tree". The red flagging tape at the dam was to note a new starting point for the portage as we could see when we pulled up to the blazed tree. Oh well, not all is lost – only about half an hour.
The 1500 m portage starts out in a bog. The rain of the past couple of weeks and the passage of moose has turned the path in to a quagmire. You can see that someone else has been through here and they were very often in the muck. About 400 m of this and the trail begins to rise. We go just a bit more and stop with our first load. We're intending to leapfrog our way across so we return for our second load.
This is my canoe load and I find it difficult to stick to the edges of the trial and out of the muck. By the time we get to our first load I need a break so we stop for a drink and a rest. When we discussed doing this portage I told Kathy it would probably take two hours and now it seems we'll need all that and more – and oh, did I tell you that it's now raining?
The sky had been threatening all morning and as we started the portage a black cloud was approaching. We started our second leg and went what seemed like another 500 m. "Let's stop here and try to come further with our second load" I suggest. We do manage to get further with the second load before we need a rest. This is a tiring process – there were several waist to chest high blow downs that we needed to struggle over or under.
We should be able to carry our first load to the end now we guessed. We did, but it was further than we thought, and through another bog. This one had corduroy installed which made it easier. The final load was bought out and we stopped for another drink before setting out on Knox Lake. It was now 6:15 and we needed a campsite.
Luckily the wind was with us as we set out. We immediately shed our shoes and socks and soaked shirt (Scott) and bug shirt (Kathy). A nice looking point disclosed a cabin so we continued and found an island site. Not our favourite kind of place but we're too beat to resist. We put up the tent, start a fire for some tea and go for a well needed bath.
Neither of us has much energy so we settle for a dinner of moose jerky, tea, an energy bar and two lentil puree with sprout wraps. This is the first of our sprouts and they've turned out really well.
Anyway, we've combined two days into one (20 km; portages totalling about 2200 m) and now we've built up another day of rest. I figure we'll need another rest day on either Bigshell or Burntwood so I'm glad we have a cushion now.
Today has been really windy and rain has threatened. It's now raining (3 pm). A thunderstorm is just passing through. We've lowered the tarp and gotten everything off the drying line – most of the stuff is dry – even my canoeing boots – socks are still a little damp.
Bannock has been baked for breakfast, afternoon water pumped. Now for some reading – a little "Lost Canoe Routes" by Kevin Callan.
Monday July 14th, Young Lake – 7:30 pm
Well, have I ever got a lot to tell you since yesterday. I did start to read some of Kevin's 'Lost Canoe Routes'…. I discovered that half of the original 4M route was still missing (the original started and ended in Gogama at Poplar Point).
We wanted to go fishing but the wind was really up so we decided to try fishing from shore. Kathy started from a point, made a few casts and said "No fish in this lake". I rigged up my rod and went down the shore a bit. "This is where the fish are", I said. The Gods were with me and my first cast produced a dinner sized Walleye.
Thunderstorms had passed us by all day long but as the sun was setting one came close enough so that it began to rain and so we covered up the gear and headed for the tent. It was a warm humid beginning to the night and I had a little trouble falling asleep…
We were up at 5:20 and on the water at 7:50. Today was to be a day of working our way up Knox Creek to Young Lake. We had one of those fortunate misadventures to start the day… wound up in the wrong bay looking for Knox Creek. A little map and GPS work got us on the right track…. but not before we got some pictures of a hawk and two eagle nests – move over Kevin!
Knox Creek was a relative piece of cake – we'd been warned of possible low water, possible high water and currents to paddle against – and a myriad of beaver dams to lift over. We found it very interesting – yes, there were a number of beaver dams, and twists and turns, and narrow passages. There were also the cow and calf moose we came upon so quickly that I was more concerned for our safety than trying to get a picture. They were on opposite sides of the creek and we were only about 30 metres away. Fortunately, the calf quickly swam the creek, but it was bawling all the way. I kept a close eye on mom but they were last seen trotting away.
A couple of easy portages and a nice lunch spot and we were paddling onto Young lake. It had drizzled a lot this morning and the wind was beginning to blow pretty steadily from the north so we searched that shore for a protected site.
In no time we found a great spot and were set up. It was still drizzling so I suggested we go fishing. Well, within half an hour, Kathy had hooked three and landed two really nice walleye. We bought them back to camp to get a picture and then, since they were both still quite lively, we released them.
It's chicken soup and dumplings for dinner tonight and I'm sitting by the stove writing this. Oh, by the way, we also saw – and got a picture of – a nice bull moose, and we found an old trapper's cabin. All in all a great day – and the sun's coming out now.
Tuesday July 15th, Linge Lake, 6:10 pm
Well, a day that I originally thought might get extended to include some of the journey towards Olive turned out to be more tiring than I thought. We arrived here about 2:30 pm, which was pretty much according to schedule, but we were both too tired to try to push on.
Knox Creek was really narrow, twisty and shallow and the current was stronger (we're paddling upstream, remember). There were no major obstacles in the creek except for the current and constantly having to search for the side of the creek with paddle-able water.
Our only problem today was the 100m portage from the creek to a small lake just before Linge. As we approached where the portage should be there was a section of swift that could easily have been waded up except there was a large tree across the creek. There was no sign of a portage where we were so we got out to scout. After several attempts to find a path, I went to the high ground along the north side of the creek and followed a game trail…. it led almost straight to the small lake. Sure enough, the portage began there but it bypassed only the first set of rapids and not the swift below. So, back to the canoe, load up, and up the ridge we went. The walking on the high ground was decent…. but not as good as a packed portage. Anyway, another adventure experienced.
That exertion left us pretty bushed (pun intended) so after the next 125m portage, during which I stepped in a hole and fell while carrying the canoe (I managed to ditch the canoe as I went down so everything turned out OK). We decided to call it quits for the day. We found a nice campsite, consumed a lot of water, set up camp, had a bath, rearranged the firepit (see pictures titled firepit 101), and settled in. I've got some moose and corn rehydrating for moose over mashed.
Thursday, July 17th, 10:30 am.
Yeah, I know, I missed a day…but I'll go back and catch you up on all the happenings. Suffice it to say that we're here on Olive Lake and have decided to take the rest day we scheduled for here. We're still a day ahead of schedule so we can take another rest day on Bigshell or Burntwood.
Our morning 'rest day' chores are almost done…Kathy's working in the laundry…I made coffee and breakfast…we used the berries from yesterday's picking to enhance our granola. I hung the tarp, cleaned the water filter (this is a daily chore since it seems to plug up very quickly – the water is quite dark). I've started some scrambled tofu rehydrating for lunch and now I've got time to write.
Yesterday was a great day to travel. We had a series of thunderstorms go through the night before. I even got up at one point to make sure everything was secure.
It was to be one of our longer days so we decided to pause a little longer at each portage and make sure we started well hydrated. The day started really well. We completed the 375, 550, 600, 100 and 150 meter portages fairly easily. We stopped on the south shore of a small lake for lunch. The north shore for as far as we could see was burnt over recently (1997). Regrowth had started but the landscape had that stark look.
We had hummus and sprouts in a pita for lunch. I pumped a couple of liters of water for our afternoon. The next 100m portage was through the burn. We stopped here to pick raspberries and blueberries that were growing in profusion – the benefits of the forest fire cycle.
The wind had been blowing fairly steadily all morning and it made carrying the canoe over the burnt out ridge a bit of an adventure. However, that one complete, we set out for the 425 that would bring us to Olive Lake.
This is where we came undone. When I transcribed the portage onto the topo maps I made a mistake of about 200m in its start. I placed it near the outlet stream. After trekking for an hour our more, which involved a walking tour of the burnt over ridge, we got out a copy of the park map and realized our (my) error. The start was still not easy to see but we did locate it.
These burnt over areas are very susceptible to blow downs since all the standing timber is dead: and so we struggled through a couple of areas where trees had fallen across the portage. We cleaned out two places but the third required crawling under…. or in the case of the canoe…putting the canoe down and dragging it under…but we made it to Olive Lake!!
Now to find a campsite…it was about 6 pm so we had a little time but the wind was gusty, the south shore was burnt over and the north shore where we were had suffered a severe blow down. We paddled along commenting on what the storm must have been like that had flattened the woods so well. We took a picture and moved on.
The lake widened so we headed for the north shore – the wooded area – and managed to find this spot – a picture perfect campsite. Kathy could not have designed it better. Someone may have camped here before but not within the last couple of years. There are some scattered rocks that I form into a fireplace. Kathy puts up the tent, I start a fire, Kathy requests coffee, and then we make soup and dumplings. We're having dinner at 9:15 – the sun is just starting to set.
A hasty dish doing and pack up and the bugs chase us into the tent for coffee and cookies. We decide that since this is such a nice place, we'll use the layover day we had planned for here. There are a couple of potentially tiring days ahead – days of 2100m and 2900m of portages so the rest should do us some good.
We were visited by a couple of guys that just flew in here to fish for an hour or so. They stopped by to say "Gee, we hardly ever see anyone in this section of the park". They asked us if we were OK and said that they'd tell Duane that they saw us since they were on their way to Chimo to get gas. They were here for 10 minutes and then gone. Offered to bring us back a fish if they caught some. Nice guys – thanks for stopping.
I just looked at the blow down behind our camp. Most of the trees are still green so it must have occurred recently.
1:15. Well we just had a visit by a cow moose. We were sitting here and both heard some twigs snap just to our west along the shore. We looked at each other and I gave the finger to the lips sign. The breeze was blowing from it to us so I thought that whatever it was would keep coming. I got out the pepper spray, just in case, and moved quietly up toward our tent. There was some more twig breaking and I could see that it was a cow moose – but only about 40m away. It took a few more steps towards us and stopped – it could sense that something was wrong. It was now about 25m away and looking at us and our tent. Rather than make any noise I just swayed side to side so that she'd see the motion. Sure enough, she did, and decided not to continue. She turned and went up into the bush…not in a hurry, but just not wanting to stay any longer.
If it had a calf, we never saw it, but I think it was a 1.5 year old cow (still had a bit of a brown face), and therefore probably would not have had a calf. Anyway, a perfect encounter.
Sunday, July 20th, 11:20 am.
I apologize for not having written in so long but when you hear the story perhaps you'll find it in your heart to forgive me.
Today is a rest day on Burntwood. We arrived here yesterday about 4 pm after a day of slogging through what seemed like endless muskeg. If you choose to come this way, be advised that portaging will take longer than you'll expect, and that portaging through muskeg is very tiring – but you'll see lots of moose tracks.
It's like anywhere else in the bush…cut a trail and the animals will start to use it almost immediately. This turns the muskeg into soup and creates a low spot where water gathers – and so forth.
Along comes the unwary canoeist…with his extra burden…and feet that are not made for muskeg trail. Each step is accompanied by sinking down into the muskeg and then stepping up to the next hump or what holds the promise of support – only to sink again – and so it goes.
Suffice it to say that after the first 1600m from Bigshell we were pretty beat…but we were now standing on the shore of a little pond and were facing a 100m paddle and another 600m of portage before it looked like we night reach dry ground. Oh, and it was also a hot day – temperature in the mid 20s, sunny, a slight breeze, but nothing in the muskeg. Bugs in the muskeg were numerous. But we survived it all and found a nice spot here on Burntwood.
A look at the map and our remaining schedule and it didn't take us long to determine that a rest was in order. Lots of water and a dinner of nutty rice curry, followed by more water. The bugs drove us into the tent at about 9:30.
Today dawned clear but is has now clouded over and is showering. Wind is also from the north and the temperature is dropping. However, we have had our coffee and breakfast. Kathy has done a wash and I put up the tarp so we'd have a protected place to dry the clothes and perhaps to sit under.
By the way, I should tell you that I've found a whole new respect for Kathy. Yesterday was a really tough day. But she never lost her sense of humour and never flagged under the physical stress – one tough and attractive lady.
But tell us about your other journeys you say – so OK – here it is.
Olive to Bigshell is downstream…we've been coming upstream to Olive and now we crossed over to the Sabourin River to begin our descent.
As you can see by the map and our plans…there were 7 portages totaling 2100m.
The river was quite narrow and fast flowing with Alder thickets encroaching from both banks. Throw in a few beaver dams and downed trees to navigate and you've got a pretty full day and pretty wet feet.
We never found a good lunch spot so we just ate gorp and drank water until we got to Bigshell about 4pm.
We were feeling pretty good so we decided to have our lunch, drop our gear off, go to see a pictograph site, return for our gear and try to find a campsite at the north end of Bigshell. You see, the wind was almost calm and Bigshell is fairly big, so we through it prudent to try to get close to where we'd exit the lake.
By the time we'd been to see the pictograph and left our offering it was 6:30. We got back to our gear at 7:30…and now to find a campsite.
We paddled up the west shore of the lake without finding anything close to suitable (no level spots), so we crossed over to the two islands. The east shore of the smaller island yielded the same results. We finally found a spot on the larger island that was just large enough for our tent.
It required some work but we cleared a little spot by moving some deadfalls and set up home for a night.
We had considered taking a rest day on Bigshell but since we couldn't find a 'beautiful campsite' we decided to move on in the morning.
While Kathy set up the tent I constructed a fireplace and started some soup – that's all we had time for. Dinner was at 9:30 – our first bowl was on the lakeshore and the second was in the tent as the bugs closed in.
I went out to pack everything up and rinse out our dinner dishes. We were going to bed at about 10:30 – a long day considering we were up at 5:20.
The 19th dawned clear and warm. We knew we had only portaging to do so we were taking our time. It was warm and there was almost no breeze so we went for a swim before departing for the portage – a nice start to the morning. The paddle to the portage was very pleasant…a slight breeze, a few loons…as we arrived at the portage eleven loons gathered to bid us farewell and two otters greeted us with some snorting and visual inspection before they swam off.
The 1600m portage started out easy enough but soon descended into the muskeg. We were going to try the leapfrog method of portaging again but soon found that we were running out of energy – and bodily fluid as it was so hot and humid. I'd say that we covered about 400m on that first attempt. Our second load got only as far as the first before we needed a rest…and so it went. At the end of the third set of carries, Kathy said, "Get out the GPS, I want to see where we are".
Fortunately, it did show us that we were only about 200m from the small pond. That boosted our spirits because we'd been at this for almost two hours.
When we got out to the small pond – sweat soaked and bug ringed – I looked at Kathy and said "Is this the vacation of a lifetime or what?!".
There was not a dry spot on me and it remained that way for the next hour as we did the 600m to Burntwood Lake.
At least we managed to carry our stuff all the way through on each carry. Note to LightJay – we need some lessons!!!
We found a spot for lunch after the 600m portage and just collapsed for a while. The last 200m was dry and easy. So now you're up to date!
Oh, by the way, we've made another offering…we do so for each new drainage we enter…tomorrow we're off on the Dutch River.
6:00 pm. Well, I'm back for a bit. We went out fishing. Kathy caught a mussel and a small pike. I caught a larger pike but still not dinner sized…besides, we had our mouths set for walleye. It's now raining again…most likely a passing shower, but we'll wait a while before starting dinner.
Tuesday, July 22nd, 8:35 am
It seems that I'm always apologizing for missing a days writing to you but here I am again – skipping a day. This morning finds us on a beautiful site in Thicketwood Lake…that's right; we decided to press on from the Dutch River spot we had planned.
We made really good time on the early parts of the Dutch River below Burntwood Lake…the portages were all short, easy and dry. I was surprised that we didn't encounter any moose along the way.
There is some evidence of native use of this area…some tables and drying racks…but the sites are otherwise clean and debris free.
There is no evidence that anyone has used this route within the past year…we found no campsite that had been used and other than knowing that the trail clearing crew had been here early this year (there are some fresh chainsaw-cut logs), you'd think no-one had been here.
By the way…thanks to those people who keep the trails clear. There have been a few sections where nature has chosen to pile trees like matchsticks. Without the trail clearing crew these portages would have become impassable.
We arrived in the area where I had decided we might camp yesterday (7/21)…it was only about 3 pm so we pulled over to a point where we had a gorp break and decide what to do. It was Kathy that said "I'd rather push on to Thicketwood if we can. This looks like pike country and I would rather have another walleye dinner".
I'd left a short day to get to Thicketwood, so we consulted the map and decided to go for it. Our estimate of traveling time to Thicketwood was three hours. We entered the lower Dutch River at 3:45. The park map notes that there are 'several liftovers' in this section, so we knew that our dry shoes were about to get wet.
10:00 am. I was interrupted by a morning swim, a bath and breakfast. Kathy did breakfast this morning so I agreed to do the clothes washing…we want to be as presentable as possible tomorrow, when we arrive at the Sabourin Lodge for our first resupply.
Back to the story…the lower Dutch River had a good current, lots of downed timber, alders that closed right in for sections and a couple of beaver dams.
Including the beaver dams, I think we only got out of the canoe four times. The river in most places was less than 7 metres wide with lots of twists and turns. We got to practice those draws and prys.
Without the clearing crew, this section river would have been a nightmare. Sections were cut out of fallen trees…limbs were cut off of overhanging trees…making the river passable with minimal effort.
We arrived on Thicketwood and spent about an hour looking for a campsite. Again, we constructed our own.
A site facing north, so that it gets the morning sun. We just had time to get set up, brew a pot of coffee and a dinner of rice and lentil curry before it was beginning to get dark (the sun had gone down a while ago but it was still light enough to see).
It went from no bugs to a million mosquitoes in a matter of minutes.
I cleaned up the dishes the best I could, got everything back in to the barrels, moved the barrels to a less exposed area and covered them for the night. We scrambled into the tent…followed by about 20 mosquitoes…all of which were hunted down and terminated with malice.
One of the things we're going to do today is go through all our gear and decide what items can be sent out…if we haven't used it…or don't see that we will…and it's not for emergencies…we'll most likely return it.
My list already includes some excess tarp ropes, the tarp pegs I brought, 100 ft of spectra rope (it'll still leave us with 100 ft), teaspoons, juice crystals, of which we've only made juice three times so far (we planned two per day). It'll be interesting to see what remains after we've pared down.
There are two other things that I found significant about the past few days…I don't want to get all spiritual on you, but…two days ago an eagle flew over our campsite – so low that you could hear its wings – and then went and perched in a tree on a point across from us. There it stayed – watching over the lake and us for the next three hours.
Yesterday, as I was making our morning coffee, a raven came along and cruised up and down the shoreline just in front of me. It was quiet except for a few soft calls. Then it flew and landed in a spruce tree almost above my head. Still silent, it stayed for a few minutes before leaving. When it left it followed the route we'd be taking yesterday.
4:00 pm. Well I'm bummed…a party of four canoes just arrived out of the east and followed the south shore of Thicketwood until they disappeared from our sight. The sun was from us to them so they'd not have known we were here except that we had a fishing date to keep to try to catch tonight's dinner.
6:00 pm. Really bummed…no fish for dinner…the weather is much too still and sunny for the walleye to be biting…at least that's our excuse…
July 23rd
Well, resupply day went quite smoothly. We left our campsite on Thicketwood at 7:50am in a gentle headwind … made good progress across Thicketwood and down the Sabourin River. The 250m portage was very wide and well manicured.
As we proceeded on the river the wind began to rise … we could hear it in the trees and got the odd gust on the river.
Entering Sabourin Lake revealed that indeed the wind was up … two foot swells greeted us coming from the Southwest.
Our destination … temporary at that … was the Sabourin Lake Lodge, which was only a few kilometers away on the north shore.
Quartering into the waves allowed us to position ourselves so that a quick turn and we surfed to a sandy spot next to the dock and the two planes operated by the lodge.
Fred Penner (he and his wife Susan manage the place) was there to greet us. He'd been in contact with Duane and the supplies were on their way out. "Come up to the lodge for a cup of coffee" he suggested.
We didn't need to be asked twice.
Fred drove us up the slope to the lodge in a golf cart.
'Holy expletive!!!" I said "What a place".
A vaulted ceiling, mostly glass facing the lake, on top of an esker. The main room housed a mammoth fireplace, a full sized pool table and lots of chairs and tables arranged in conversation groups … and OK, the whole place is a log structure built in 1957 and 1958.
There are also six cabins for guests as well as others for the staff.
The staff of 35 includes a guide for every two guests … the guides are natives.
This place is spotless!!! Grounds and cabins were all nicely done.
I can't say enough about the hospitality we received.
We had a couple of coffees and the Chimo plane appeared.
Fred said "Don't move – we're expecting them and they'll turn right around and leave … We'll fly the empty containers back to Red Lake tomorrow on one of our scheduled flights".
Not wanting to be impolite, we sat … I even used the washroom and got to wash my hands in hot water.
The lake was spotted with whitecaps as we made our way down to the dock to go through our resupply procedure.
We were so organized it was almost sickening. This stuff goes with us, this stuff goes back and this stuff is used to top up our current supply … Three piles … a piece of cake.
Now for just a few pictures of the lodge … maybe one of Fred and Susan with us and we'll be able to bid our goodbyes.
I would love to have met some of the guests … the tables were set for dinner (Prime Rib) … each table had a reservation card … a fishing club from Tennessee, a family group … but everyone was out fishing … not due back till about 5 … dinner was at 6.
Walking back into the lodge we were offered more coffee, fresh baked bread and cookies. Jars of peanut butter and honey were produced … Did I say that we were well treated.
Pictures taken and bellies full … the salami and cheese can wait another day … we made our way back down to the dock and our canoe.
The wind had subsided a bit … there were no whitecaps at least … so we decided to cross over to the south shore and search for a campsite.
We aimed for some sloping rock and made the crossing without incident … I did wear my lifejacket for the first time though.
It's on that sloping rock where I now sit … we got the tent up … a shower passed … and the rest of the day passed normally.
Kelly sent us a head of broccoli in our resupply so dinner consisted of hummus, lentil puree, broccoli, pitas, cookies and water … another planned dinner down the drain.
It's now 9:30pm … the wind has almost died off … we'll get up a little earlier tomorrow to try to get off the large section of Sabourin before the wind comes back.
IMPRESSIONS OF OUR FIRST TWO WEEKS:
- This really is a wilderness park. We've seen only one set of canoers after our first four hours. We've seen fewer people in total than we would have seen in our favourite crown land haunts.
- The scenery is forever changing – lots of rocky outcroppings – mostly easy to find camping spots – and not many have ever been used.
- Rivers or creeks have been easy enough to pass upstream or down – and have left us feeling that we'd see another moose around that next bend for sure.
- The place is clean. Even obviously used sites are free of trash.
- The weather has been phenomenal. Most days like today – bright and sunny with just a slight breeze. We've had a couple of passing showers but only got out our rain jackets once.
- So far it's everything I'd hoped for – and more.
- And by the way, fishing is very good.
July 24 to August 6
The second Segment of our trip - Days 16 to 28
July 24th – 9:15 am
The wind continued all night. I got up at 4:45 and walked down to the shore to get a better perspective … it didn't help … wind still up … and now the sky to the Southwest was looking very ominous. We decided to wait a while.
At about 7 we got up and had some granola … it had started raining. The waves were still marching across the lake so we're sitting tight for a while.
It looks like it's beginning to calm some so we'll wait until about 10:30. It'll only take about an hour to be packed and off so that'll give us enough time to get to Barclay if conditions aren't bad.
July 25th 7:45 pm Barclay Lake
It's really odd the way events have conspired in our favor.
A cow and calf moose just came off a small island that connects to the mainland by a sandbar about 70m from our camp.
As I was making dinner … with all my usual clatter of pots and spoons (I do try to be quiet) Kathy said "I just heard some twigs snap on that little island'.
I paused, heard nothing and continued with preparing and serving our dinner … orzo with dried tomatoes, mushrooms and pesto.
Dinner was served and as we sat eating things were pretty quiet. Then there were a few faint sounds from the vicinity of the tip of island.
"Where's the camera"? Kathy said. Fortunately it was just behind us so I retrieved the case, brought it to our dinner location and opened it.
A few more mouthfuls of orzo and there she was … or at least I could see her head and neck.
The breeze was in our favor as she emerged into full view with calf in tow.
The cow began to browse in the water facing away from us and we could hear them talking. As the cow continued across the sandbar I got several pictures.
She reached the mainland and I expected her to turn into the wind and leave having never seen or sensed us. However, she turned as if to come directly to us.
At this point I stood up, moved to where she could see me and whistled lowly to get her attention.
She stopped and looked straight at me. Another low whistle and some swaying back and forth produced no reaction from her.
I didn't want her to approach any closer so I walked down to the shoreline and talked to her in a low voice.
"We're not here to harm you or your calf but I think you'd be better off if you turned the other way and left".
Kathy also spoke quietly …. Ma and young'un turned and left - moving almost directly away from us.
The original title for today's essay was to be "Lunch stop on Musclow" … so after that short detour let me take you back to yesterday and get you up to date.
As you'll remember, it was quite windy on Sabourin and I was writing at about 9:15 saying that we'd wait a while before deciding what to do.
Well, Kathy made an executive decision. "let's go" she said "I think the wind has died enough so that we can leave"
Most of our gear was already packed so I began moving it down to the loading area. Kathy stuffed and rolled our in tent belongings.
It began to rain so we donned our rain suits and I helped take the tent down and pack our few remaining things.
We were on the water by 10:30 in a steady drizzle. After a stop to see the remains of a commercial fishing camp and to get some pictures we were on our way.
Now it began to rain harder and it rained pretty steadily for the next four hours.
We stopped periodically for a stretch and a gorp break and covered the 22km to the north end of Barclay Lake by 4pm.
The weather was beginning to clear … We found a nice spot … one that the Sabourin Lodge uses for shore lunches periodically. We set up, got things hung out to dry and went for a quick fish … after all, it was Thursday and we needed to check in with Albert at 7:00.
No luck fishing but the satellite technology came through and we had a short chat with Albert. That completed there was only time for dinner and tea before we hit the thermarests.
Today was to be a trip to Musclow followed by a layover day there. However, our conversation with Fred Penner revealed that his guests had been seeing caribou on Marys Lake so we decided to take our layover day there.
We took our time this morning since Musclow was not that far away and the day was promising to be a hot one. A swim before departing and we were off at 8:30. There was hardly a breath of air stirring as we got to Musclow and visited the pictograph site there.
Offering left and spirits consulted, we continued up the lake. Possible campsites were everywhere. We chose a beauty … lots of sloping rock and a nice tent pad at the edge of the woods. I made lunch while Kathy unpacked the tent and got ready to set up.
We paused for lunch and a breeze came up from the west. Within 20 minutes there were two-foot swells hitting our intended campsite. Kathy looked at me and said, "I think we've made a mistake in picking this site". "If we get some wind it'll be bad here."
Musclow is a big open lake so anywhere might be bad in windy conditions … We discussed our possible alternatives … either find another place to camp or get off Musclow entirely.
Knowing that we wanted to layover at Marys Lake and that if a storm did come up we'd be stuck on Musclow we decided to return to Barclay Lake for the night.
It was a rough paddle out of Musclow but the descent of the river was easy since it was out of the wind and we had the current in our favor. We returned to our old haunt and went for a swim … it was hot! The thermometer on our pack read 29 in the shade. That kind of temperature and blazing sunshine really seems to suck the energy out of your body.
We got here at about 4:30 … I pumped some water and we drank 1 ½ liters almost immediately … I also made some herbal tea for us to sip on as I made dinner … and yes, we swam several times … the water here is cool and very refreshing.
Now you've come full circle with me so until next time ….
July 27th
Well, we did it ….. WE SAW A CARIBOU!!!! Not only did we see him … he came to us … this morning on Mary's Lake.
I was down at the campfire, having made coffee and rolled oats for breakfast and waiting for Kathy to finish her tent duties before we had breakfast.
It was a slow morning for us … we didn't have that much to do today … just visit three pictograph sites so we were moving a little slower than normal.
Kathy had moved most of the stuff outside the tent and was preparing to come to breakfast … as she exited the tent she heard something behind the tent … looking over the top of the tent she could see a set of antlers in velvet coming toward the tent through the brush. She ducked back down behind the tent and made a hasty retreat down to my side. "There's a moose coming into the camp," she said, "It's right behind the tent".
We walked quietly back up to the tent and just off to the right there was a slight noise … there he was … a bull caribou. We looked at each other for a second and he turned and left. He went about 30 meters … then paused and looked back … before leaving for good. At his closest point we were within 50 feet of each other. WOW!!!
Things that we can't explain keep happening to us … now I don't want to go the way of Archie Belaney but if there is a spirit it is certainly looking over us.
As I related earlier, we leave offerings each time we enter a new drainage system … we also leave offerings at each pictograph site we visit … we treat those sites with the respect that a spiritual site should receive.
We leave offerings and we try to communicate with the spirits … as we ask them for whatever each of us feels appropriate.
I have always asked for guidance and safe passage … Kathy said that at our last stop on Musclow that she asked that a caribou present itself to us.
Another weird thing … you'll remember that we left an offering at the Musclow pictograph … well, on the way out of Musclow we had the opportunity to stop again … and our offering was gone.
We got back to our Barclay lake campsite and the cow and calf moose came to us … not only that … as we left the next morning two loons swam up to us … not more than 20 feet away … they didn't make a sound … I tried to communicate with them and asked if I could take their picture .. as I reached for the camera they dove … at the same instant four otter pups appeared off the right side of the canoe … so close that we could have almost touched them with a paddle … and swam ahead of us before diving … I got a picture of one of them.
As we paddled down the Bloodvein toward Marys Lake a bear appeared on the shore in front of us … we were quite a distance from it so it did not know we were present … it displayed no hunting traits … it just continued along the shore for about 50 meters and then went back into the bush.
We tried to find a pictograph site that Fred Penner had told us about … he pointed to a spot on our map and said we'd find it there … well, we went to the spot he indicated and could not find any pictograph we were disappointed and decided to stop for lunch …as we were finishing lunch a raven flew over us, landed in the next bay and began to call … we looked at each other and said "Why not?" … We went to where the raven was and sure enough … there was the pictograph.
As we left that pictograph site a cow and calf moose came out into a bay we were passing …. We stopped and I got some pictures of them.
Then the caribou …
It seems odd that we didn't see any large animals for a week and now that we've been to see some pictographs suddenly they appear in profusion.
Tomorrow we visit three more sites so we'll have to see if our luck, … or the grace of the spirits continues.
It did … we visited the Bloodvein and Artery lake pictograph sites … today as we were having lunch on Ford Lake a cow and calf moose appeared in a bay near us … I got some pictures.
July 28th – 6:30 pm
We're here on Ford Lake … we wanted to get to Craven Lake today so that we'd have a rest day in the bank … but it was not to be.
It's still very hot (about 27) and not very much breeze … bright and sunny … not ideal conditions to do all the portaging we had planned.
We found the start of the 2200m portage to Ford Lake without a problem. It took about three hours to complete … 8:45 until 11:45 … we stopped for lunch on a point where we could get some shade or be in the sun for a swim.
We were both so beat and dehydrated that the 1300m portage out of here seemed impossible so we decided to find a site here.
We're on the south shore of the lake on a rise overlooking the lake. Dinner will be soup and biscuits … we're monitoring the outback oven.
6:37 … biscuits done … and do they ever look good.
Now for some whiskey and jerky as a treat and then I'll start the soup … back later.
July 30th – 9:10 pm
The weather in Manitoba sucks.
We no sooner crossed the Manitoba border on Craven Lake yesterday than we got hammered by a three-hour thunderstorm.
As we crossed the border I took a picture of Kathy pointing to our location on the map. Within 15 minutes a dark cloud descended from the north.
We took shelter in a small bay and got the canoe up and our gear covered just in time. The first few minutes were pretty scary … the wind blew the tops right off the waves … some trees behind us came down … one within 20 meters of where we stood … it snapped off about 2 meters above the ground.
The rain, thunder and lightning kept up for three hours. When it let up we paddled just a short distance and took the first likely looking spot to camp.
I put the tarp up and we cooked both dinner and breakfast on the Dragonfly since everything was so soaked.
Today we paddled from Craven to the east end of Carroll … covering two days of our planned journey in one.
Tomorrow we'll take a rest day … we haven't had a rest day since we left Thicketwood … seven days ago.
Most of that journey was straight paddling however; the last bit has been very tiring.
he 2200m portage from Artery to Ford was very taxing. It was along a series of bare rock ridges so that the trail was constantly changing elevations. Some of those changes required thigh high step-ups or downs. Those rigors plus the heat really did us in that day.
Yesterday we did the 1300m portage from Ford to Craven.
The park map in the Red Lake office reads "South end wet". Well, if you count 1000m as being the south end then you'd be right. The first 300m were through a nice open sandy-floored forest. We actually stopped here to pick blueberries on our way with our second load … it took us no time to fill a jar. The office map was right though … it was wet. However, after our experience with the Bigshell to Burntwood portages we were prepared.
Our first carry got us about 900 of the 1300 … we were surprised at how short the second carry was.
Today's journey was almost a straight paddle … a 20m portage around the falls at the outlet of Craven being our only carry. The only other obstacles today were the extensive rice fields leaving Craven and entering Carroll. Otherwise the paddle was easy … almost no breeze.
We got here … within 2km of our turn north … at about 2:30 … lots of time to dry our stuff after yesterday.
We had our daily thunderstorm at around 6pm … this has been a regular occurrence now for about a week … warm mornings … fairly hot and still mid-days … you can see the clouds building … then the thunder starts off in the distance.
July 30th – 4:03pm
Here I am in the tent again … riding out another thunderstorm. Like I said yesterday this has been a regular occurrence for a while now. If I go back and recap the days where rain has occurred … I can do it best by geography.
1500 m portage into Knox – a shower
Up Knox creek to Young – a shower
Linge Lake – a nighttime thunderstorm
Sabourin Lake – rain – 3 hours
Barclay to Marys – a shower
Marys Lake – a shower
Craven Lake – a three-hour thunderstorm
Carroll Lake – a thunderstorm
Carroll Lake – a thunderstorm
That's 9 out of the 22 days we've been out to date..
In any case … we got our laundry done earlier and even though it's been a cloudy day the laundry has almost dried … I rigged a line under the tarp for a while.
We went for a morning fish at 7:15 but caught nothing … Kathy caught a walleye and a pike from shore last night … isn't it always the way?
If I were doing a retrospective of my impressions of the places we've been so far my first impression would be the countless places there seem to be for camping. These places … for the most part … have not been used for camping in a long time. Only a couple of places that we've been have showed signs of camping activity.
There is evidence of shore lunch activity … especially in the Sabourin, Barclay, Marys area … but all those sites were very clean.
The other impression would be the size of some of the lakes … as we paddle through there are arms of water that stretch off into the distance.
We've been lucky that the wind has not been a factor in our travel other that that day on Sabourin… and our decision to leave Musclow … but that was precautionary and not directly because of high winds.
I'm still impressed with the conditions of the portages and passages maintained by the park staff.
We saw the four canoes on Thicketwood and had that party of six land on Artery where we were having lunch (they were headed down the Bloodvein) Other than that we've seen no canoers.
There were fishermen on Sabourin, Barclay, Marys … all from the Sabourin Lodge … and all off the water by about 5 so that they could make dinner at the lodge by 6.
There was a family on Artery fishing but we never saw the cottage they were using and there is a fishing camp here on Carroll but so far we've only seen a couple of boats.
August 4th – 9:30 am
Thank god for rest days … and the fact that the weather pattern of the last two weeks seems to have broken. The sky cleared yesterday as we arrived here at Simeon Lake and has stayed clear. I woke up at 2am and the northern lights were dancing across the sky … woke Kathy up so she could see them.
Well, let's go back and see if can catch up with our travels.
As we left Carroll on August 1 we were still a day ahead of schedule and looking forward to laying over on either Terry or Dunston … however that was not to be.
Each morning dawned cloudy … and on Dunston very misty so we chose to travel and wait for a sunny day for our rest day.
The upstream work from Carroll to Terry was pretty straight forward … only a few beaver dams … but the rains of the past week had their effect … the current was quite strong. We had thought of trying to make it to Wanda in one day but by the time we reached Terry we were ready to stop.
We found a nice spot on Terry and I hoped we'd get a chance to layover there.
We also saw a cow moose on Terry. She didn't stay out very long … just came out in a bay across from us … browsed for a few minutes and left.
Terry to Dunston was a bit of a slug … we're now reaching the top of the watershed and the stream is getting much smaller and more shallow.
We missed the inflow from the pond where we were supposed to turn north. Kathy recognized our error as we began to travel east. We retraced our steps and found the weed-choked outlet so we lost about half an hour in total.
Our travel from Dunston north to Simeon was much more of a battle. The creek as very low and required wading in sections. As well, there was another area of boulders that we portaged on the east for about 800 meters through a grassy and low bush area.
Simeon Lake has experienced a lot of blowdowns so we had a bit of trouble finding a campsite. It's not that there aren't a lot nice looking spots … sloping rocks and all that… it's just that you'd need a chainsaw to clear enough of a spot to set up camp. Too bad because this is a really nice looking spot.
The site we're on is one of the shore lunch spots used by the Sabourin Lodge people. We've not seen any of their boats but the setup here is like the places we saw on Barclay and Marys.
It's nice to have a sunny day so far … I'm cooking a breakfast muffin … we're both trying to catch up on journal writing.
We've got wash to do and a few chores to take care of … maybe I can finally dry my shoes and socks … they haven't been completely dry in over a week. Even our layover day on Carroll was damp enough so that they didn't dry.
Enough for now … muffin's ready … I'll write some more from Larus so that I can include those notes with this batch to be sent out.
I should have mentioned back there some place that the Carroll to Terry day was officially dubbed "Rain suit Day" as we our suits on and off four times as showers passed.
Back for one more shot today. We were out fishing earlier and caught one walleye and one pike. As we paddled back to our site we decided to paddle past and be sure that we were oriented for tomorrows departure for Larus Lake. Don't you just know that there was a cow and calf moose in a bay very near our site. The wind was in our favor so we carefully paddled to get close enough for some photos.
August 5th – 7:00 pm
We're here at Larus .. got here around 1 .. set up our site … made coffee … drank the last of our whiskey … ate the last of our jerky.
Suitably fortified we called Albert to inform him of our exact position for tomorrows resupply flight.
Isn't electronic technology wonderful … the GPS to give us our exact location (although we could have determined it from our maps) and the satellite phone to communicate that we were OK and that we were ready for resupply.
We're living in the best of both worlds … technology when needed … the canoe and paddles for transportation … and our good sense for day to day living.
Went out fishing just below the inflow from Murdock Lake (a nice set of staircase falls) and caught three walleye and a pike. Let the pike go … we're having Cajun walleye and minestrone soup for dinner. The soup's cooking right next to me on the dragonfly. It's been threatening to rain all day … we actually had a few light showers this morning … so we're cooking under the tarp tonight. We're considering getting up early tomorrow to see if we can catch a few walleye to send back to Albert.
The place we've got here is great… well-protected and close to good fishing. We had to move one deadfall to place our tent. This spot hasn't been used as a campsite before. There were some stones arranged to form a crude fire pit on the rock leading up (I soon fixed that) but otherwise there are no signs that it's ever been used for camping. That's what we find here a lot … plenty of nice looking spots … just pick one out and move in. I took a couple of pictures of the site so you can see how well it's protected. I'll also try to get some shots of our resupply flight tomorrow and send them out as well.
That's all for now … talk to you tomorrow if there's time.
August 6th – 8:30 am
We're ready for the resupply flight … Got up at 5:20 and made coffee … then unpacked our barrels to sort through the contents to see what stays and what goes. Then I made a checklist for what to do before the plane arrives and after it gets here. Time is money for the fly in services so we don't want to hold them up.
After a bannock and PB breakfast we think we're ready.
The weather is quite overcast and low so they may not be able to fly this morning.
In any case, Albert has to get our stuff down to Duane at Chimo this morning so I'm not expecting the flight until about noon.
We chose this site because the only wind that could get in here is from the northeast … guess where the breeze is coming from?
To while away some time I added up the portage distances and daily traveling distances.
To date we've traveled 335km and done 21,065m of portages.
Most of that portage distance – 14,275m – was done during our first two weeks … no wonder we were so beat at the end of some days.
We're fairly well rested now and looking forward to our next 32 days.
Meals have been great … both good tasting and filling … quantities have been generous … we've not discarded any cooked food though.
All of our long portages are done for a while … the next segment will contain a number of shorter carries so it'll mean loading and unloading a lot but without the multiple carry portages I think we'll make good time.
We've also got some more pictograph sites to see … four sites over the next week … fish to catch … and adventures to have.
If things go well we'll meet Jerry (he and I corresponded about lake trout fishing) at Welkin Lake on August 21.
If you look at our schedule you'll see that there are a lot of travel days coming up … eleven in a row to be exact. In order to generate a rest day we'll probably extend a couple of days to accumulate a rest day. There are a few short days in a row from August 10 to 13 so we should be able to gain a day there. Then both August 15 and 16 are short so there's another possibility.
It's now 10:30 and no resupply yet so maybe we'll go fishing for a while to see if we can catch tonight's dinner … if we do that'll be fish three nights in a row and won't act to reduce the weight of the food pack.
One other thing I should mention … Sprouting … it's going much better than I expected it would. The little things just seem to have a life of their own. All they ask for is a damp spot, a moderate temperature and good air circulation..
Based on our home experiments we had high hopes – but as you know the environment out here is not that of your average test kitchen.
However, in spite of the rigors of tripping the sprouts have performed admirably.
They hang under the bow seat as we travel and get placed in the food barrel at night.
Given the nutritional value they provide in our diet they have been an outstanding addition.
I think I'll try to put together some pictures of the process while we're out here and then post the process on CCR when we return.
The process is easy and only requires a couple of linen bags and pure water … in four days you've got sprouts … Way to go Kathy!!!
August 6th – 5:30 pm
Well, the resupply flight has been here … we've got our new supplies but we had to paddle out to get them and the pilot couldn't stay because of the wind and foggy conditions.
If you are reading this then they've been back to pick up our return items. Other than the camera memory, these notes and our rechargeable batteries there's not much … but if our notes and pictures go missing I'll just S#*T.
I've attached a note to the barrel asking any finder not to disturb the contents … now we'll just have to hope all goes well.
Till next time ….
August 07 to 21
The third Segment of our trip - Days 29 to 44
August 12 – 11:30 am
Where does the time go? When I last wrote it was August 6 – we had just gotten our resupply and I was worried about our notes and pictures getting lost somehow.
Those of you who manage to plan trips so that there is enough time every day to record your logs get a big salute from us. Most of our days seem to get filled so quickly that we're washing dishes and brushing our teeth as the mosquitoes are making their presence felt. By that time there's not enough light left to read or write … so you can ask what we've read while we were out … but don't expect a list of books.
However, I do have a lot to report … some of it the day-to-day realities of expedition tripping and some of it those strange things that continue to happen to us.
Let's start back on August 7. That day was our journey from Larus Lake to Murdock Lake. Only one portage … a 750m around the rapids and falls entering Larus Lake. The storm we got while on Craven must have been fairly widespread because we keep finding blowdowns that are north to south … the path the storm was taking as it swept in on us on Craven. This portage is no exception as it has three areas requiring manoeuvring over, under or around some trees that are too big for my saw. Fortunately, that party of four canoes had been through ahead of us did some minor clearing … but so much for my estimate of 2 km per hour on portages.
The rest of the day went almost according to plan … we sought out and viewed the two pictograph sites that were on our schedule.
During the day we ran into two fishermen that reported; the fishing was pretty good and that there was a party of four canoes 'camped on that island over there."
So much for hoping we wouldn't be running into them again over the next few days. We did see where they were camped … from a distance … during our travels.
Near days end we found a spot to camp. One of our usual places – a nice sloping rock – a tent pad requiring only the moving of a few deadfalls – and we were home for the night.
We decided to get up early – 5 am – so that we could put some distance between ourselves and those four canoes.
August 8 started well, we were up at 5 … had granola and coffee and were on the water at 7:15.
As we paddled along the west shore of Murdock nearing the 550m portage there was a cracking sound from the bush just in front of us. We both stopped paddling to look and listen. Silence resumed so we took a few more strokes … the cracking resumed and a fairly large fir tree toppled into the water less than 50m in front of us. Had we been there it would have been very close to our path. This was not a deadfall. It was probably a little over a foot in diameter with plenty of branches and green needles.
We both remarked at how lucky we were to have stopped paddling and Kathy said, "Isn't it odd that something can live for 70 years or so and then just topple over".
I was immediately reminded of my friend and long time hunting buddy who died suddenly a little over a year ago. Was this a sign from Don? A reminder of his sudden passing? A message?
In any case the problems of the day soon took precedence.
The 550m portage required several detours around blowdowns .. not without the commensurate time and energy loss.
The 60m portage that followed was completely blown in.
We took about ten steps up the trail and were met with a twisted mass of horizontal trees. I took a look and decided to head off to the right … we worked our way through the brush and finally emerged at the destination lake … somewhere to the east of the portage … now to get the canoe over.
Returning with the canoe was not as bad as I had anticipated … almost no swearing … but lots of sweating.
The next 400m was quite wet at the beginning … one of those muskeg marches for the first 300m.
Oh – by the way – somebody call Claire and tell her that the portages south of Murdock need attention.
The next 250 and 225 were accomplished without too much trouble … actually there were some blowdowns to contend with.
It was the next 200 that was our undoing for the day. We just could not find the start. Two passes along the shore … a GPS consultation … and still no blazes or trail marking tape. Finally we canoed as close to shore as possible and just looked for what might be a trail. About the third spot we checked out proved to be the trail … the blazed tree had blown over … was that the sign???
By now we were hot, tired and convinced that those four canoes couldn't possibly catch up with us … so we find a campsite. Just for good measure we'll get up at 5 again tomorrow.
August 9 was almost straightforward. We had one more occurrence of no portage marker … but now we're ready for that eventuality. We hadn't accomplished all we wanted to on the 8th so by the time we got to Royd we were pretty tired. Luckily we also found an established campsite … it was further north than I wanted to camp but without any campsite setup time it was worth it. We decided to that the next day we'd push to see if we couldn't get to Hansen Lake. If we could then we'd be a day ahead of schedule and could earn ourselves a rest day.
Well, I guess you know that we earned that rest day … otherwise what am I doing writing at noon on the 12th?
August 10 began as a cool and sunny day … but as the day wore on the wind came up. As we neared the 550m portage leading south to Rostoul the wind was out of the southeast.
By the time we actually completed the 650 portage to Rostoul the wind had become a factor.
Using the shore for shelter we worked our way around to the portage to Hansen … there's a nice rapid here that enters from Hansen. We carried our first load over and there was a decent campsite almost at the end of the portage. A short discussion and we decided to take it.
The Hansen lake area had been burned over a number of years ago … the new growth is thick and about 20 feet tall … not the picture perfect kind of campsite we're looking for to spend a rest day.
A layover campsite it wasn't … but it was good enough for tonight … and it allowed us to return to the bottom of the rapid to try our luck.
No luck … the sun was shining directly into the pool below the rapid … not even a pike … no bites at all.
August 11 was one of those days we've been getting.
We visited two pictograph sites … left our offerings … paid our respects to the spirits that dwelled there and formed a large part of the native world.
At the second of the two sites Kathy asked "If the spirit of the shaman that created the drawings was near would he reveal himself to us"?
As we approached the next portage we both saw a big bird sitting on low blowdown. It turned out to be an immature eagle … and it let us approach to within about 50 feet. Kathy talked to it as I asked for permission to take it's picture … I got three pictures.
It was sitting right at the portage …and when it left it flew straight back to the pictograph site.
Kathy said that as she was asking for the spirit to show himself she had a vision of an eagle … we hadn't seen one in a couple of days now.
Kathy was quite moved by the experience … but it doesn't end there … read on.
The only other significant happening today was our inability to locate the 275m portage south toward Wrist Lake. It's supposed to be up a narrow stream. We arrive at the place where the stream should be … but it's a marsh … Kathy stands up in the canoe and tries to see a passage … no luck.
Finally we pull off to the right … I get out and go for a walk back to see if I can find anything.
At the back of the marsh I find an old beaver dam with a flow of water through it … so there must be a stream here somewhere … and a tree on the other side of the marsh … with a red trail marking tape band.
Armed with that information I return to the canoe to find that Kathy had retrieved the park map to verify the portage location. The portage was indeed up the stream and was indicated on the left.
It took us two passes of the marsh … and several false starts before we finally found the entrance to the stream … and thus ended our two-hour search.
We got to Wrist behind schedule but found a wonderful campsite … plenty good enough for a layover day.
I should tell you that the wind is still blowing quite strongly from the southwest … but it makes no difference … we're here and we're staying an extra day.
August 12 – rest day
The other shoe dropped today.
After our encounter with the caribou on Marys lake … it turned out to be a brief one … Kathy took the opportunity to ask for a second chance. Well, it happened this morning.
As we were preparing our breakfast Kathy heard a noise and turned around … once again she was close to the tent … and 50 feet behind the tent a cow caribou emerged. Kathy ducked down and called me. I had told her if she saw an animal to use a clucking or chipmunk sound to alert me … it's still very windy and she thought that I'd not hear the sound so she just called my name.
I was a little below the tent area but Kathy was crouched and pointed behind the tent. I took two steps and could clearly see the whole caribou … it was a cow … small antlers covered in velvet. She looked at me … probably saw me moving … stood for a second or two … then turned and walked off into the bush. We could see her go for another 20 yards before she disappeared.
How many people get a chance to see two caribou? Even though this is our 34th day I'd think two sightings in 34 days would be quite unusual. Oh, by the way, the wind is still quite strong from the southwest … and the caribou was traveling with the wind … I find that unusual … but it's the case with both the caribou and the moose that walked into our campsite.
Tell me its just coincidence.
August 13
An interesting day … humility day … a real lesson for me.
We got our usual start and were on the water around 7:45. Got our gear across the 850m portage toward Haven … when I returned for the canoe I noticed that our sprout bag was missing from its appointed place … hanging from beneath the bow seat.
You know that sinking feeling? … how could I be so stupid as to not put them where they belong? I remember setting them out on a rock in preparation for getting the canoe in the water … but obviously they were not placed in the canoe.
I had high hopes that we'd be able to do more distance than planned today … but that was now dashed … I was in a real snit.
The canoe, one paddle and our food barrel were still on Wrist so we carried the food barrel over … brought a paddle back … and returned to our campsite for the sprouts. They were not damaged … but my ego and energy level sure were. I spent so much energy being mad that by mid-afternoon I was exhausted. We did get beyond Haven though.
Two interesting things though … as we were leaving the campsite that morning I was humming the tune "you can't always get what you want … but if you try sometimes … you get what you need" … I don't know why it popped into my head … any suggestions?
The second was as we were returning to the 850 portage … someone else's gear was there … including a black lab that was lounging in the water. We met the couple on the portage … the dog accompanied us … and they asked if we were startled to see him in the water … "Most people see black and think he's a bear".
We were not impressed by Haven Lake … we like areas of mature forest and Haven still showed signs of a burn … we continued and camped before the portage to Adventure.
August 14
Today saw us paddling through the old burn area some more as we headed for Bulging Lake. The wind is up and it's HOT!
As we approached the 300m portage after Adventure Lake something looked odd to me … there was a black object in the water … but it was small … maybe a rock … but I stopped paddling to get a better look. Then it moved … it was a bear's head … we were only about 100 feet away and because of the wind it didn't know that we were there.
I grabbed for the camera as it continued to munch on some water plants … and yes, I did tell Kathy that it was a bear.
I got a picture of it as it left the water and started up the portage but it turned off the portage to the right and disappeared into the brush. I was still not sure that it knew we were there so we made plenty of noise unloading the canoe and preparing for our first carry.
You can imagine our common start when 75m up the trail we met again … this time at a distance of less than 50 feet.
It was off to our right and Kathy … who was in the lead saw it first …"BEAR" she said in a startled voice … I took two more steps and could see the black shape as it retreated along the ridge. We had taken the precaution of wearing our bear spray but neither of us reached for it. Kathy was too interested in backing up and I was too interested in locating it. All's well that ends well but if the situation were different we could have been in real trouble.
We were consciously trying to be noisy as we started up the trail but the wind in the low brush of the burn area must have been making enough noise so that the bear couldn't hear us … or it wasn't paying attention. You better believe that we made lots of noise for the rest of the portage effort.
At the end Kathy said, "Isn't it odd that we had the experience of seeing a black object in the water yesterday?" "Almost as if we were being prepared for this"
Did I say previously that funny things have been happening to us?
The rest of the day was a real slug … the wind was strong out of the southwest. We had hoped to cross Bulging Lake today but as we entered the lake we were met by a vista of whitecaps marching to intercept us. Using the protection of the south shore we got as far as the end of the peninsula sticking out from the south shore. We stopped on a small island there to await our fate. We swam, lounged and had an early dinner while waiting for the wind to die.
It finally subsided enough so that we felt safe in continuing and by the time we found a campsite in the northwest corner near the portage the wind had completely stopped. We made a campsite on an island and called Albert … after all, it was Thursday .. talked to Kelly for a bit and went back to campsite preparation.
As we were going to bed at 9:30 it was still 30 degrees with no wind. That's how hot its been here for the last few days. Clear sky, blazing sun and strong winds … well, at least we've reached a spot where the wind won't cause us to stop traveling.
August 15
Saw us make some good distance. I had intended to camp along the Haggart river but we couldn't find a site that suited our fancy so we just kept on moving. By 4pm we were entering Broken Arrow so we moved far enough south to get out of the shallow, weedy north end and found this place we're on now.
It's now 2pm … temperature 28 and there's a very slight breeze from the south … Kathy's finished the wash and we've wrung and hung it. Seems like we're always washing or rinsing out clothes. In this heat it's almost impossible to keep shirts clean … and forget socks … there's enough water work … or boggy portage areas so that they're wet every day.
The sunny skies have been wonderful after the week of almost constant showers … but could we have just a little bit less heat?
We're looking forward to meeting Jerry and Dave at Welkin Lake on the 21st … it's about a three day paddle from here so we'll have another rest day … I had planned one on the 18th … and probably arrive on Welkin a day early. It would be nice if we could welcome them with a fish dinner.
August 16 – 12:30 pm
I'm sitting here at a nice spot on Broken arrow lake … a small point that juts out into the narrows … someone camped here a long time ago (there's still the remains of some parachute cord that was used as a line). Its still really hot and sunny … has been for days now … but the wind finally broke yesterday and gave us a rest from trying to fight for some distance.
My morning chores are done … coffee … more coffee and muffin with cranberry sauce for breakfast … dishes are done.
We found some ripe cranberries along a portage toward Bulging Lake in a burnt over area (quite a while ago now) so we took the opportunity to gather enough to see if Kathy could make a sauce out of them. Well, it was a success … now we want to find more.
Well, let's get back to our travels.
August 18 – 3:15pm – Irregular Lake
Today was almost cancelled due to lack of interest.
It's been TOO DAMN HOT!!!
As my dad used to say, "My getup and go just got up and went".
It feels like my energy machine is running in reverse.
We awoke at 5:30 this morning to a temperature of 20 … no breeze … lotssa mosquitoes. That was on Mather Lake. You might ask, "how come you were on Mather"? "I thought you were due to take a layover day on Haggart?"
Well, let me explain – First … like I said … it's been so hot (28 to 30 every day since Murdock Lake – that's eleven days in a row) that it seems to just suck the energy out of me. We take every opportunity to drink and go for a swim but by mid-afternoon we're wiped.
We keep thinking that the weather will break and we don't want to get caught out in the open when that happens. Consequently we've been choosing well-protected campsites on smaller bodies of water … and that explains how we got here … well, not quite but let me continue.
August 16 saw us leave our site on Broken Arrow and head southeast to Haggart. The wind was against us and gusty but we made good time and were in the southeast portion of Haggart by a little before 1pm.
A short discussion of the weather possibilities and the time of day led us to decide to continue to Mather. We didn't realize it at the time but all around this area of the park must have burnt over 15 or so years ago. All the new growth is 12 to 15 feet tall, very closely spaced and there are not very many good camping opportunities. Burnt over areas are also more prone to reflect the temperature of the day … there's not the shade and moderating effect of mature trees.
In any case, we arrived at Mather around 4:30 with this burn as far as we could see. Fortunately there was one stand of mature trees so we headed there and scratched out a campsite. I left a fireplace standing so that others might spot it … we couldn't find any other spots that looked suitable.
Dinner was lentil puree with pitas as an appetizer followed by minestrone soup. We were so hot that we didn't want to cook a real dinner. Kathy was not feeling well at all … she was just too dehydrated. We went to bed with the understanding that we'd get up at our regular time and have breakfast before we decided what to do … "should I stay or should I go"?
The decision was made … let's see if we can find a nice place on Irregular. So here we are … landscape is still the same burn … but we've found a decent spot to camp … that doesn't mean that it's moderate here.
We arrived here at about 1:30 after stopping for lunch … our site is on an island close to the north shore and not far (about 3km) from the 825m portage that'll get us over toward Beamish and Welkin. At this point we've got to take some rest days … we'd hoped to paddle out of the burn area and find a nice spot.
We'll probably move on in the morning and get that 825m portage out of the way. In that case we'd be on Beamish or Welkin two days ahead of schedule. With resupply due on the 23rd and two paddling days to arrive at the resupply point we're gonna hafta take some rest days … I just hope that either the weather breaks or we can get back to some mature forest.
August 21 – 11:15am – Welkin Lake
Yep … we're here … arrived yesterday at noon … Jerry and Dave showed up at about 2 … with a 5 pound lake trout … talk about welcome guests.
The weather seems to have broken. We've had thunderstorms for three days now and the weather this morning is cool and clear with the wind out of the north. But enough about that … let's get up to date.
When we last corresponded we were on Irregular on the 18th … only a one day paddle from here. It took us two days … and therein lies part of our story.
As I reported earlier the weather was HOT!!! … our site on Irregular was sun drenched and unbearable out on the rocks in the sun. That night we left the fly off the tent to try to get some air as things cooled off overnight. The gods responded with a rainstorm that started in the middle of the night.
To bad the video crew wasn't there … you'd have seen two naked bodies in boots trying to attach the rain fly as the first few drops of the rainstorm were descending.
The thunderstorm had the graciousness to stay away until 5:30 therefore we were a little late in rising. The temperature was still about 20 and very humid … clouds were beginning to gather.
We did the 825m to Beamish … it was like a sauna … didn't have a dry spot on me after the first of our two carries … but about 2/3 of the way across we found the mother lode of cranberries.
We wanted to try to make some cranberry bannock for Jerry and Dave so we stopped and picked for 45 minutes … got a quart of berries.
As we started on Beamish a thunderstorm was brewing behind us.
In no time the sky was dark and we knew that we were in for it.
A spot to pull over was located on a small island and we went into high gear to get the canoe up to safety, get our tarp up and bring our food barrel under cover so we could have lunch.
The skies opened up. It rained steadily for the next four hours … sometimes in torrents. The canoe was bailed three times … each time our gear was beginning to float.
By 5:30 we decided that we had to leave this spot to find a place suitable for camping … there just wasn't a level spot where we were.
There was still some lightning and thunder in the not to distance as we paddled north along the east shore … usually about 5m from shore … in search of a campsite. We found a suitable spot … still in the old burn area … set up the tarp and tent … got out the trusty dragonfly and had dinner.
Over dinner we discussed the possibility of getting resupplied on Welkin on the 21st instead of on Aegean on the 23rd. That would let us start our next leg with a rest day in our pocket.
Through the miracle of satellite communications we called Albert to see if it could be arranged … it gave him two days to make arrangements. We said we'd call him back from Welkin to verify and to report our location.
So as you know … we got here … followed shortly thereafter by Jerry and Dave.
We chatted until about 5 and decided to see if we couldn't catch another fish for dinner … I know … you're thinking "A 5 pound lake trout for four people and they want more"?
No sooner had we rounded the tip of our island than the thunder began rolling. Kathy and I scooted back to the campsite and got everything under cover. J & D arrived soon after and we began cooking dinner as thunderstorms danced around us … we did get a few drops … but managed to get everything cooked just before one with our name on it arrived.
Dinner (Cajun trout, red beans and rice, chick pea and rice curry and sprout salad) was consumed under our tarp accompanied by thunder and raindrops and lit by lightening. It was only 8:45 but the sky was so dark that there was no available light.
We adjourned for the evening at 10pm …
Oh … the resupply is happening today as we had hoped. We've got our yellow pack liner out on the rocks as a marker … J & D have gone fishing … I've sorted through our stuff and decided which meals to save for the next leg (which is now 17 days instead of 15) and have started a resupply checklist … Now we wait.
It's been great to have others to banter with for a few hours. They showed us the rig they use for trout fishing and if we have time we'll give it a try this afternoon.
Jerry and Dave are very pleasant company … we shared our breakfasts … they made pancakes … we made cranberry sauce and cranberry bannock … lotssa cowboy coffee.
Another thing … we're back in an area of mature forest … have the gods been playing with us? … hot and sunny where there's no shade and now possibly cooler where there's plenty of shade to be found
I've got to finish my pre-resupply tasks so I'll sign off for now.
Oh … I just thought, …"this is the last instalment before our return" …I hope you've been enjoying this as much as we have. The trip seems have a rhythm of its own and our experiences have been wonderful. Our senses are much more attuned to nature and the outdoors.
Neither of us is looking forward to the return to city life … but we'll see you soon
August 23 – 2:05 pm
Not much has happened since our last chat … as you know we got resupplied on Welkin Lake … two days ahead of schedule. Once again Chimo Air came through without a hitch. This time it was calm enough so that the pilot dropped the stuff into our canoe and taxied out into the middle of the lake. He gave us our requested 15 minutes to complete our resupply tasks (see the need for a checklist?).
We loaded the returning items into a barrel and were just starting to paddle out when he refired the engine and began taxiing toward our campsite.
The returning items safely aboard the plane we chatted for a minute … thanked he and Chimo for their great service and said "We'll see you in Red Lake in about eighteen days" He taxied out to take off and we returned to the campsite.
I got a couple of pictures of the plane taking off and them we set to the business of sorting out the mound of food that we will need over the next 17 days.
Jerry and Dave had been out fishing and returned with two nice lake trout … about two pounds each.
What a dinner we had …appetizers of broccoli with hummus and lentil dips, cream of chicken soup, baked trout, biscuits, rice with mixed vegetables, cookies and coffee.
These are two guys we'd trip with any time … we'd slow them down considerably with our two pass portages but you couldn't ask for nicer personalities.
We sat up for a bit and watched the northern lights as we finished the last of the coffee and tired of swatting the mosquitoes that appeared
We were up early on the 22nd to so Kathy could check in with her office. Goodbyes were saved until Jerry and Dave passed us … it didn't take too long … the first portage, a 100m affair … they were completing as we were about to return for our second load. Goodbyes and good wishes exchanged we returned for our second load and we were back to our team of two for the next 16 days.
The next portage, a 550m, showed the effects of all the rain the previous thunderstorms had dumped. There were two boggy sections that were mostly standing water. Hopes of a dry shoe day were dashed again … my trip across with the canoe found me shin deep on several occasions.. I had hoped to reach Paull lake but we stopped to pick cranberries twice and Kathy was having a low energy day so we stopped on Aegean … not far from the 80m that leads toward Paull.
We're a day ahead of schedule so there's no need to push on. Again we fashion a campsite in a spot that hasn't been used … a real pretty place that looks out on the lake and is well protected. There's only enough room for one tent so I left the fireplace standing.
Today we're up early again … have coffee and granola in the tent … its another short day (as witnessed by the time I'm writing this). The passage to Paull is easy … we're here on Paull by eleven and have found a place to camp by noon.
We think this might be a busy place today so we're off in a bay by ourselves … again we've fashioned a campsite.
Tent up, fireplace built and coffee made we settle down to lunch. Fishing is on the agenda this afternoon … we want to try the techniques Jerry and Dave were so successful with.
I'm sitting in the bush behind our tent site as I write this … hoping a caribou or moose will wander by. It's been a long time since we've seen any moose … we do see tracks now and then but the country in this part of the park just doesn't seem to contain as many moose as the northern segment.
We're in the central part of the park now … just west of Leano Lake so this is a busy area … we've already seen three parties today.
Enough for now … It's almost 3 and I promised Kathy we'd go fishing. Gotta go rig up the poles and get ready.
Later …
August 24 to September 8
The fourth Segment of our trip - Days 46 to 61
August 28 – 4:45 pm
We're on Dragon Lake now … I'd like to say that we're enjoying a rest day but its 8 degrees and raining. It's been cold and rainy since yesterday afternoon. We're living in a fog bank today … mist in the air all the time … and raining softly about half the time. Last night it rained hard for a couple of hours. But … enough of the weather commentary … Lets get back to our trip.
We do go fishing on Paull … tried for trout first with no luck so we rigged up for pike and Kathy caught a nice one … Cajun pike and tabouli for dinner.
The next morning as we were finishing breakfast and getting ready to pack up a fisher visited our site. I haven't seen one in a number of years.
We were off to Talon and other than eight portages the trip we fairly easy. We arrived on Talon to a strong wind from northwest so we had to tack across to the west shore to get some protection before heading south.
An island in the south portion of the lake provided one of our most picturesque campsites so far with a gently sloping rock to the waters edge and a great expanse of rock. The sun was out and it was warm so we washed some clothes and took a couple of swims.
We're almost to the southern boundary of the park and you can tell it doesn't get many visitors.
The portages are not well tramped like those around Wrist and Hansen. I tell Kathy that we'll probably not see anyone for a week now at least until we work our way back north to Leano.
The next day's trip toward Bilko was more strenuous. The notation "Rock Garden" was no fooling – we had to portage about 150m over a boulder field – thankfully it was a dry day.
The event of the day – well, there were two – but the most pleasant was a beaver that entertained us for about half an hour at the first 125m portage. It didn't seem to notice that we were there as we returned for our second load.
It swam back and forth a couple of times and then proceeded to haul itself out on a midstream boulder and start preening. I got some pictures but a video would have been a real bonus.
The second event was the thunderstorm that caught us at 4pm just as we completed the 400m to Veronica Lake. We got the tarp up and waited until 5:30 for the storm to move off. There was an acceptable campsite here so the tent got erected and we prepared to spend the night.
Kathy said "You'll need one of your fire starters tonight" – I proved her wrong by finding some dry kindling in a thicket and starting a one-match fire. I was her hero for another day.
Everything was still wet the next morning as we started out for what we thought might be a really tough day. A lot of stream work lay ahead and we were warned that if there were dry conditions that we'd be doing some wading.
Everything was going OK until Kathy stepped in a hole on the 600m after Sylvia Lake and twisted her ankle.
We stopped for lunch and took the opportunity to soak her foot in cool water. After lunch her foot felt a little better so we continued – the stream was quite low so we had to wade a few times – we soon realized that we were not going to make it to Blueberry Lake today.
We stopped on an unnamed lake and Kathy slipped on a rock --- reinjuring the same ankle --- now I'm concerned. I got out the medical kit as she soaked her foot in the lake. We treated the injured area with Arnica cream, she took some Arnica tablets, and I wrapped her ankle. She slept most of the night that way and we rewrapped it the next morning.
We were falling behind our intended schedule so we wanted to get to Dragon Lake today. It wasn't the distance that was a problem … it was a lack of water in the stream we had to travel north on.
We did a lot of wading and dragging the canoe over gravel where there was just no water flow. As I said earlier, this section of the park gets very few visitors … the grass and brush on the portages has begun to close in … on the first of the 50m portages the tree with the blaze marking the start of the portage had blown down … only our experience led us to conclude that the portage must be here someplace.
In any case, by the time we got to Landing Crane Lake it had begun to rain… not hard … but enough so that we put on our rain jackets and put up the tarp as we stopped for lunch.
As we approached the 800m portage to Dragon Lake it began to rain harder and we could feel the air beginning to cool. We did the portage in a steady rain and headed off to a campsite that Albert had told us about … a nice spot perched up on a ledge about 30 feet above the lake.
In good weather this would be a fabulous campsite. We decide to take a layover day here regardless of tomorrow's conditions. Kathy's ankle could use a days rest and we've got two more rest days planned in the next ten days so it seems wise to use one now.
Well, the rest you know … cold … rainy … wind from the north … constant mist … not such a good day for a layover … plus our shoes and socks are a mess from yesterdays wading and rain. Drying them over the fire helped a little but with the rain they were quickly wet and cold again. Here I am hoping for warm weather when just ten days ago I was begging for cool weather … well, not this cool … maybe something around 20 degrees during the day for a few days.
Anyway, we're off to Kilburn tomorrow … Kathy's ankle has recovered well. Our next decision point will come as we approach Sydney Lake … it's a big lake and we'll see what the weather is like before attempting a crossing. It's 5km to cross so we need to be careful. I'm sure you'll hear about it later
Bye for now.
August 30 – 12:10 pm
Here we sit on the entrance to Sydney Lake … we arrived here yesterday at about 4:30 and decided to camp rather than attempt the approximately 2 hour crossing of Sydney.
The wind was … and still is … blowing from the southwest … which will make the crossing difficult.
Had we absolutely needed to get across we could have done it early this morning but since its an out and back trip to Rowdy Lake we decided to sit here and see what the weather gods had in store for us.
Our options are running out since we had intended to cross today and use tomorrow as a rest day. That would mean that we now need to cross Sydney on consecutive days, which is probably not possible.
With the shortening of available daylight we find that our days are getting too constricted so our second option is to head for Leano tomorrow with two days in hand.
If we take those hours and spread them out over our remaining days we'll be able to shorten each day and start looking for a campsite rather than pushing on to a planned destination. That would give us time to explore and fish a little … which has been missing for most of the trip … and fishing is good here.
At least it's warmer now … about 15 … sun is out … but swimming has turned into a cool affair. We continue to bathe every day but last night was a quick in and out affair due to the cool air and water combination.
Our passage from Dragon to here was interesting. The day was cool and shower filled.
The 600m portage out of Dragon toward Kilburn ends in a floating bog … kinda like walking on a waterbed … only the water is ankle deep. We pushed on through Kilburn to put ourselves in a position to get across Sydney early if possible … but you know the outcome … so here we are doing a wash … tending to personal hygiene … drying our footwear for the umpteenth time … trimming beard … shaving … and drying out our gear from the last three days of rain.
It's hard to believe that today marks our 52nd day out. We've both still got lots of energy and things have been going well. Sure we've had our bumps, bruises and setbacks … but we've kept it all in perspective … rolled with the punches and took turns having low energy days.
Our menu has been great … a good variety and generous portions. It'll be interesting to see if we've lost weight … I'm pretty sure I've lost some … the love handles are slowly dissipating.
Think we'll try to catch some walleye this afternoon … so that's all for now.
August 30 – 8:05 pm
Wind blew hard and gusty all day … decision made … we're off to Leano tomorrow … hopefully some leisurely days ahead.
September 1 – 5:30 pm
Well, as promised we left for Leano … but not before a short debate that was settled by a thunderstorm. Actually there were two storms … one passed to our south … over Rowdy … and the other to our north. We got a few drops … rain jackets used … from each.
he evening before we left Sydney a cow moose put in an appearance in a marsh behind our campsite. It was almost dark so I tried using the night setting on the camera but I think the picture will be too blurred to use … need to use the tripod for those longer exposures.
Another cow moose greeted us as we finished the 100m out of Kilburn toward Leano.
Couldn't find a campsite on Leano that wasn't overused so we made our own just north of the leftover exit from the lake.
We took it easy today but we're still here on Lunch by 2:30. At this rate we'll be using a lot of rest days or leaving early … and since we'll not be leaving early …..
Tomorrow we'll just go as far as Jake lake … it's only a couple of hours away. There we can spend a half day fishing or bathing … catching up on chores … although we just washed our clothes two days ago.
Looks like our schedule might be Jake, Mexican Hat, Rest, Optic, Onnie, Rest, out. We want to save a rest day in case the wind is bad on Telescope.
In any case … the trip of a lifetime is almost over … the weather has improved … neither of us wants to leave … we'd like a little more food at this point … I feel like I could eat the south end off a northbound skunk … I must have used up most of my body fat by now … Wonder what I'll weigh when we get out? Wonder how I'll sleep with all the city noises?
Geese have been flying south … large flocks … for the past few days … guess fall can't be to far behind.
As I said before … the temperatures have improved … it's about 20 this afternoon … sun's out … wind is almost calm from the southeast.
You can tell that we're in the well-used part of the park now. Portages are well worn, campsites are overused … you still get the wilderness feeling when you enter a lake … there's nobody around at this time of the year … but when you disembark to check out campsites the reality of the situation sets in. Island campsites are overused … I guess it's the bear paranoia … although I must say that the sites are clean … so at least people who come here are aware of good habits and practice them … we found only our second cigarette butt of the trip today.
Nuff for now … I'll muse on at a later date … gotta start dinner soon.
September 4 – 5:30 pm
All the news from Mexican Hat … no fish for dinner tonight … on a rest day too … just caught one small pike … and I really could have used a big fish dinner.
In any case it's been a beautiful day … sunny with blue skies … breezy from the south.
We're camped near the outlet of Mexican hat … the north .. because the winds were blowing strongly from the north when we arrived so we paddled into the wind until we could find a sheltered spot. It was cloudy and overcast yesterday … a misty cold day … and there was no chance to get my feet dry. The landings and put ins were such that I had to wade several times. Plus which I slipped on a rock as we were loading the canoe in Mexican Hat … dropped the Wabikimi pack in the lake … but all is OK … no injuries other than my pride. I couldn't seem to get warm last night … finally resorted to putting on my polar fleece shirt, pants and socks before I could fall asleep.
Well, as I said, today is a rest day. We went from Lunch to Jake and stayed there on a rainy nasty day One of those days we've gotten here recently … cold, misty … like living in a cloud.
We fished on Jake but only caught small pike.
The passage from Jake to Mexican Hat was done in a strong north wind, which made the trip along Burnt Rock a little difficult … although Burnt Rock is a pretty lake … just not enjoyable in a cold north wind.
Lots of flights of geese have been passing recently … especially on any north wind.
We'll leave here tomorrow and head for Optic Lake. We're still pushing a layover day in case the wind on Telescope is bad,
If we get to Onnie a day early we can choose to layover or call Albert and get picked up … I guess we'll wait to see what the weather is like … and how much we want that first pizza.
We've seen more people over the past few days than I expected … three canoes on Jake Lake and one on Mexican Hat.
September 7 – 1:15 pm
Well, our last full day … we're on Onnie Lake … Albert will pick us up at the access point at 1pm tomorrow. We've got three portages to do there 625, 30 and 300 so if we get up at our regular time of 6am we should be on the water by 8:30 and waiting at the access point at noon. We'll brew up a pot of coffee and wait for Albert's arrival.
The trip from Optic to Onnie was not that bad … steady breeze from the south east … not the best to cross Telescope but it didn't hold us up much … we still made the 8km crossing in two hours.
We arrived here at about 5 and found another little used campsite on a rocky point above the lake. We were set up and having coffee by 6:30. An orzo and pesto dinner followed the consumption of the last of our whiskey and jerky. We saved the cookie crumbs for tonight.
Weather is phenomenal for this date … temperature about 20 … breeze from the southeast … not a cloud in the sky.
We got up at 6 this morning and went fishing … Kathy caught two pike and a walleye .. we kept the largest pike and the walleye for tonight's dinner. I can taste that Cajun fish dinner now … a nice way to end our trip.
It's going to take some time to get the whole thing in perspective … the distance we traveled … the portages … the physical demands … the spiritual events that have followed us.
We saw our last pictograph yesterday … just before we got there an adult eagle was perched in a dead tree near the waters edge … I asked if it would be alright to take its picture … not out loud … just trying to communicate with my thoughts … I got some nice shots and as we passed there was an immature eagle on the ground … it sat in some bushes and let us get quite close before flying about 50m to perch and watch us.
Last night an eagle came sat across from our campsite as the sun was setting … a nice way to say goodbye.
The spirits have been truly kind to us. We communicated well … we traveled in peace and harmony … they provided guidance … safe passage … and some lessons along the way. I hope our offerings and spiritual attitude around their sites was appropriate and appreciated.
We've seen things not experienced by many. Our travels and hardships have reminded us that the life of the early natives here must been a constant struggle … and yet they had the time … and the good sense to give thanks for their blessings and to respect those lives they took in order to survive.
The support and assistance provided by Albert and Goldseekers has been more than excellent … as has been the resupply services tendered by Duane and Chimo Air.
Now that we have seen the size of the park and experienced the sights, sounds, highs and lows … we have a true appreciation for the work put in by Doug and Claire. On the one hand they have a huge park to manage … one that offers a true wilderness experience. On the other they must have budget constraints caused somewhat by the remoteness of the park and its limited number of visitors each year … a difficult situation.
More visitors might mean more budget but would lead to the degradation of the experience. Where is the balance point?
With Red Lake being a 24 hour drive from Toronto and with the reality that most people do not have more than two weeks to spend on a summer vacation … or by the time they do they're not inclined to seek the rigors of wilderness travel … I'm afraid that the park must concentrate it's efforts on an American audience … those within a twelve hour driving time of Red Lake.
It's too bad really … this park is such a gem … and yet over 85 percent of its visitors are not Ontario residents.
On a lighter note … we've planned to have dinner with Albert and Kelly tomorrow night … pizza!!! … we'll debrief after dinner.
Hopefully Doug and Claire will have some time on Tuesday to go over our trip.
We've invited all the participants to share a glass of champagne with us on Tuesday at 5pm so that we can get together as a group once more.
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