Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness
Page two
Mike started preparing the stoves for supper and ran into a problem with the newer of the two. It wouldn’t pressurize enough to ignite, so I built a cooking fire under the grating. From this point on we would have a wood fire to help cook with. There were plenty of dry materials in the area to use as fuel, and the white birch bark made excellent tinder. Our meals were from freeze dried trail foods after the fresh food we brought was used up. We had figured to have at least one supper of fish from the lake, but it seemed as though no one was catching any fish. When the meal was done we relaxed on the edge of the water. This would be our first night of “Looney Tunes”.
The cool evening air brought with it a series of hoots and warbles from the Loons that inhabit the bay. There’d be a group of six or more talking among themselves, then a new one would be heard across the water and they would swim over to engage it in conversation. It was a pleasant sound, and was reassuring when the sun set, letting the darkness surround the campfire. That night we stayed up late, gazing at the constellations in the sky. We could easily pick out the misty path of the Milky Way. During the night Mike was sure that we had a visitor in the camp; he heard either a bear or deer walking around the tent, then it snorted near the entrance before heading back into the woods.
Saturday would be our first day of real fishing. We canoed down to the far south western end of the bay and cast Hula-Poppers, Rapalas, and all sorts of lures into the water, with no success. After about two hours the only wildlife we had seen was a painted turtle sunning itself on a log. As we headed back our camp we stopped at a smaller island for some driftwood and found wild blueberry bushes. Mike and I gathered a bag full for the next morning’s breakfast pancakes.
Sunday began slightly overcast and windy, as we pigged out on the “berry-good” pancakes. Later that morning we were visited by 2 female Rangers who were checking on the site, and our permit to be camping.
They were very pleasant and left after a few minutes. We had planned on exploring a ridge on the shoreline about a half mile away, but the waves and wind were indications of a difficult ride, so we decided to stay on the island unless the weather improved.
While gathering firewood we chanced upon a family of grouse. It looked like Mama was showing the youngsters what humans looked like, and they came within a few feet of us. Later that day they appeared in the campsite and I had a chance to sit down and photograph them. In the afternoon we retired to the tent, as Mike was glowing from a case of sunburn on his face and neck. We played a few games of Yahtzee, and Mike was declared the champion. Later towards evening we ventured out in the canoe to fish on the leeward side of the island, but the fish must have gone on vacation. Supper that night turned out to be beef stroganoff, but as Mike was pouring out the sauce mix I recognized the deep orange color as a cheese derivative, and opted for a couple of PB&J sandwiches. That night we started packing for the return trip.
The wind was at our backs when we started back up Jackfish Bay. Not as many boats were visible, this being a work day for most people. We made a stop on the bend going into Pipestone Bay to look for more blueberries (for Jean) and to have lunch. When we resumed our trip we were bucking a headwind. A campsite about a mile or so later looked promising, so we headed for shore. It turned out to be the best of all.
It was a grove of very tall pine trees with the branches missing for the first 40-50 feet, then a canopy of branches, which Mike called “Munchkin-land”. You could have fitted a dozen tents on this site, and the ground was slightly softened by the fallen needles and grass. Soon after we set up the tent a light rain began to fall. It eased up enough for us to make supper, and then returned later in the evening. Meantime we waved to passing boaters and listened to a couple of campsites on the opposite shore as the darkness descended.
Our last day on the water began at 6:00, as we wanted an early start before the wind came up. We headed for the first portage, the longer of the two. This time we knew what needed to be done to secure the wheels, and it went smoother then before. We headed for the second portage as the wind began to rise. The waves were beginning to take their toll on my efforts, so I told Mike we’d stop and have a snack before we began the land crossing. A couple of people were coming through from the other direction, so we talked with them for a little while before pushing on.
Finally we pushed off into Fall Lake, our last section to cross. The wind was brisk, and when we were less then a half mile from the landing the wind and waves started in earnest. It was a fight to the finish, and we were both sprayed with water from the bow plowing through the white caps. We had returned to civilization after traveling more then 32 miles by canoe!
After the supplies were packed in the car and the canoe tied to the top we stopped back at the café for a hearty lunch. We picked up a souvenir or two and started the drive home. Mike said we would use the route that went down the shore of Lake Superior, and the views were beautiful.
We stopped at The Grand Casino on the way where Mike treated me to a steak dinner. While we were waiting for our table we did a little gambling with the slot machines. When we hit Minneapolis we dropped off the canoe at Jim’s and were back at Jean’s about 10:00 pm. Sleep followed unpacking and repacking (for me), and we went out for breakfast the next morning before my flight. They dropped me off at the airport with plenty of time to catch my flight. Everything was going fine until we were descending into Charlotte airport. The flight attendant was announcing the gates for connecting flights, and she mentioned Washington, DC Dulles Airport, but not Reagan National. Suddenly I had this weird feeling in my stomach, so I grabbed my flight schedule. Sure enough, I had booked out of National, but my return flight was into Dulles! Oops!
When we landed in North Carolina I called home and with the help of Erik got a message to Maggie that she needed to drive to the other airport. It worked out pretty well in the end. My thanks to Jean and Mike for a wonderful vacation!
