Ely!!!!!

This afternoon we arrived in Ely. It is always exciting driving into Ely. I don't know if it is the anticipation of putting into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, the fact that there is a canoe on every other car, or that it is just such a neat town. Ely is the major jumping off point for the BWCAW. There are dozens of outfitters along the main drag and many more out in the sticks. It just makes me tingle all over.

We are camped at Fall Lake Campground, about 8 miles east of town. We will be here until August 27, when we are scheduled to put into the BWCAW for 15 days. Fall Lake is a major BWCAW entry point. The campground here has been completely renovated since we cruised the loops a few years ago. It has newly paved roads, all new bath houses, tables and fire rings. Most loops have 30A power and a few even have 50A. Ironically, there are no water hookups at the sites, and there is no waste dump in the facility at all. The nearest dump is at the Chamber of Commerce in Ely.

One reason we got here early was to have some work done on my boat. We have stopped at the Spirit of the Wilderness outfitter many times, and the owner Steve claims he can do miracles re-gelcoating the bottom of composite canoes. He can completely patch and re-coat the bottom, adding only 6 oz to the weight of the boat, for about a hundred bucks. Where I come from the materials would cost that much. In the BWCAW, where portages can kill or maim a paddler, every ounce counts. It takes a few days to do the work and allow the resin to cure, so we wanted to make sure we had plenty of time to finish the boat. I dropped the boat off this afternoon. Maybe later I can post some before and after photos.