Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Sep 2016 Trip 2

Faithful readers will remember that we did an easy 8-day trip to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness last month.  On August 29 we put in for another even easier 8-day trip.  In addition to our long time paddling partners, we were joined by Jim and Ann and Sunshine, a relative of Matilda.

We put in at Moose Lake and paddled through Moose Lake, Newfound Lake, Sucker Lake and into Birch Lake, where we camped on one site for the duration.  A dam was built at Prairie Portage in 1902 by a logging company which raised the level of these connected lakes by about 15 feet.  That meant no portages.   YEAH!!!

Group photo at Moose Lake put-in

The weather forecast for the day of our put in was terrible: rain and storms.  As it turned out the actual weather was much nicer than the forecast.  We enjoyed a mild tail wind all the way to Birch Lake, and it didn't rain on us until after we made camp and had dinner.

Loading up at Moose Lake put-in

There is always a bit of chaos when we put in.  "Hey, where's the toilet paper???"  "Hey, have seen my sunscreen???"

Matilda is ready to go

Hey girls, smile for the camera

Where's Dorcas?

Finally, a canoe dog picture not featuring Matilda.  Meet Sunshine, Matilda's auntie.

Lunch break on Newfound Lake

Lounging at camp on Birch Lake

We had great weather all week except for the first day and the last.  Temperatures ranged from highs in the mid 70s to lows around 50.  On our coldest night the temperature plunged to 46.

Sunset on Birch Lake

A common loon on Birch Lake

A brace of common mergansers

Our American symbol

We saw a lot of eagles on our camp.  Well, actually I think we saw a few eagles a lot of times.  There was a pair with at least 2 immature eagles hanging out. They were frequently flying overhead and fed on some rocks across the lake.

Jim's circus tent: big enough for 6 adults, 2 dogs and all our gear

Lounging at camp ... again

Another view from camp

Wayne cooking the bacon

It's a wonder Matilda ever falls out of the boat

A beautiful sunset

Dorcas enjoying some hammock time

The ladies doing yoga by the lake.  Sunshine and Matilda are helping.

We burn a lot of wood

Where did everybody go?

One day we battled back across Birch Lake and up to Prairie Portage.  Prairie Portage is a border crossing and entry point to Quetico Provincial Park in Ontario.  There is a ranger station there as well as a store selling t-shirts, hats and patches.  We also got a weather forecast there for the next day, the day we paddle back to Moose Lake and take out.  It was an ugly forecast.

The ladies are going shopping

Dorcas and the ranger at Prairie Portage

Many lakes in the BWCAW share a border with Canada.  Monuments such as this one are common.

These guys were apparently excited about returning to the USA

We saw a LOT of boats on Birch Lake

A dreary morning.

It rained for a bit the last night of our trip, but it later cleared up and the stars came out.  It started raining again during breakfast but we could all huddle under Jim's super tarp.  We packed up mostly in the rain, but by the time we left camp it had pretty much stopped.

The winds were predicted to be heavy and out of the SW, a headwind for this leg of our trip.  The winds were light when we started, but, as the forecast predicted, rose to about 15 MPH as we paddled.  The last hour or two of our trip was against a heavy wind and waves approaching whitecaps. 

Catching a tow

Motor boats are allowed on Moose, Newfound and Sucker Lakes, the three lake leading to Prairie Portage and Birch Lake.  Many folk catch a "tow" from Moose Lake to Prairie Portage to save about 7 miles of paddling to Quetico.

The map below traces our trip from Moose Lake to Birch Lake

This map details our day trips on Birch Lake and to Prairie Portage.

Overall we had a great trip.  Fishing was extremely slow.  This is the only trip in 20 years where we haven't cooked fish.   Our total distance paddled was 28 miles including day trips.

Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Aug 2016 Trip 1

We put into the BWCAW last Friday on Brule Lake.  This trip was going to be a little different from past trips.  Wayne and Lynda want to do easier trips (meaning no portaging).  They intended to stay on Brule Lake for 7 nights without moving.  While Dorcas and I can't do what we used to do, we still want to move a little bit.  A compromise was struck.  We would each get separate permits so we could   camp separately, but would spend the first night of our trip on Brule with Wayne and Lynda, then split away for a fairly easy trip.

Putting-in at Brule Lake

Brule Lake is a fair distance, almost 3 hours, from Ely and Fall Lake Campground, where we base camp and leave the RVs.  On Friday we got up before 6:00 and moved the RVs to the nice paved supervised parking lot at Fall Lake and headed to town for a traditional big breakfast at Britton's Restaurant.  After breakfast we headed north and east up MN 61 along the Lake Superior north shore.  We unloaded our gear at the Brule landing and then shuttled the Element to Homer Lake, where Dorcas and I would take out after 8 days.

Matilda says "Is it a good camp site?

We found a very nice camp site on the point of an island on Brule, which had a lake view to the north and south.

Our camp on Brule Lake

Since Wayne and Lynda were not going to portage, they carried gear much like we carry on river trips: 3 tables, two steel folding chairs, a Coleman 2-burner stove, a 50-quart cooler and 2 kitchen sinks.  Dorcas and I were traveling much lighter.

Matilda always hams it up for the camera

The next morning Dorcas, Matilda and I moved to Juno Lake and spent 2 nights.  Then on to Vern Lake and Homer Lake where we spent 2 nights on each Lake.

Beavers on an evening prowl

Are they on a a date?

Common loons off our camp on Homer Lake

A glorious sunset

A pretty portage path

A rainy afternoon

Dorcas sleeping in on a lay-over day

Making a firewood run

Firewood was scarce at the camp sites.  Several times we paddled across the lake to gather firewood.

Our kitchen on Juno Lake

Pre-s'mores

We kept some marshmallows out before we hung the food pack.  What better place to hold them before we burned the egg carton.

PERFECT!!!

A view from our camp on Homer Lake

Daddy, is that a fish?

A medium sized Northern Pike.

Fishing was generally slow.  We didn't fish too hard, but did catch a few.  This one was good eating size, but we caught him just before a portage and decided to let him go.

Pancakes and country ham 

Paddling through the lilies

A "sincere" wood pile.  We may have upset the beaver from whose lodge we stole the wood.

A misty morning on Vern Lake

Our view from Homer Lake

Is it Canine or Ursine?

At our camp on Homer Lake we found some scat on the path to the latrine.  At first I thought it was bear, but later I thought maybe it might have been coyote, wolf or even a large domestic dog.  I didn't pick it apart to see what the critter had been eating.  Matilda was very skittish at this camp.  She would bark at something back in the woods to the right, then to the center, then to the left, as though something was circling our site.  We never did see or hear anything ourselves, but did keep a can of bear spray handy.

We're likin' the lichen

One of our few portages

We think these are Eared Grebes

Our Route

It was a nice, easy, short trip.  We only traveled a total of about 19 miles.  We had nice weather, with just a few showers.  The temperatures generally ranged from highs in the mid 70s to lows in the upper 40s.  All was well when we got back to the car at Homer Lake and to the coach at Fall Lake.  We checked in at Fall Lake CG for 3 nights.  Tomorrow we will put in for another 8-day trip at Moose Lake.

Life is good!

Flashback Friday: BWCAW, The Whitley Way

In September 2013, in response to many questions I have had from friends about the Boundary Waters, I posted an essay on the Whitley Way of doing the BWCAW.  It is long and detailed.  If you are not an outdoor enthusiast or camping gear head, you might want to pass.

If you think this is your cup of the, click here.

Enjoy. We'll be back online in about a week.