Detailed Log - Boundary Waters

August 9 through 18, 1999

A narrative report for this trip is also available

date time paddle distance portage distance Chronology of Canoe Trip, BWCA 8/9/99 to 8/18/99, Crane Lake Entry

 
miles rods
9-Aug-99 Mon 10:35 am leave trailer at Silver Rapids Lodge, drive the Echo trail to Crane Lake, BWCAW entry pt 12. Not a good entry point, but all we could get.
12:21 pm reached the Crane Lake trail parking area
1:10 pm start paddling in Crane Lake
2:10 pm adjust the load in cross-winds, we need to be a little stern-heavy to track well.
2:10 pm at the "Vee"
Drizzle all day
4:45 pm 8.9 35 at portage to Douvre Lake; left canoe and portaged packs only
6:07 pm camp set up on Douvre Lake, firewood gathered, in dry clothes
Dinner was 5.3oz pkg of Mtn House Freeze Dried Oriental Spicy Chicken w vegt & sauce
7:30 pm Dinner over
9:00 pm In bed
10-Aug-99 Tue 8:00 am Helen up
wind seems very strong at campsite. walk back over the portage to main lake to test the wind and waves, no packs. Wind direction is perpendicular to the long narrow lake - so the water is surprisingly calm. We'll paddle.
12:05 pm 35 got back to Douvre Lake site to pack up and leave
12:55 pm start paddling. It is sunny and relatively calm.
2:10 pm stopped for lunch, and a small snooze.
3:16 pm 80 reached the portage to Loon Lk, a dock and telephone booth, a railroad for taking boats over portage! -- we walked
3:43 pm Helen is across with red pack
3:40 pm Dave finished second trip across
3:51 am start paddlng.
4:25 pm 9.5 stopped at first campsite on Loon Lake.
4:40 pm setting up camp
5:19 pm camp all set up but the fire
Dinner was spaghetti w TVP, Shilling Spagh flavoring packet, diced dried tomatoes, mushrooms, parm cheese
8:07 pm dinner over and dishes done, bear bag hung
watched beaver swim past site
watched young loon try to fly - took long path over the water
10:00 pm clouded over; in bed
11-Aug-99 Wed 7:30 am wake-up call for Helen
misty morning
8:49 am breakfast over, mostly packed up
9:25 am start paddling
10:41 am 275 start crossing portage to Heritage Lk portage is labeled 220 R on Fisher map. I measure 275 on Topo 2.0, and also by recording walking time and paces.
11:30 am Helen across
12:15 pm Dave finished last trip across, brief rest to follow.
black butterflies, white and blue edgings, some have red dots
? start paddling in Heritage Lk
clear and sunny, light wind
1:15 pm 73 Helen start walking across the portage to Lynx Lk; portage labeled 100 R. on map - but low water extension not needed.
1:54 pm paddling Lynx Lake
2:00 pm 4.7 at campsite, Lynx Lake; a short paddle day, but we have time to spare, the lake is pretty, and our one mile of portaging today was tiring (first long portage in almost two years); took a long nap after setting up camp. Dinner was lentils and rice with bacos. We watched the stars come out after dark, until it clouded over. Rain started during the night.
12-Aug-99 Thurs. It rained all day. We holed up in the tent and didn't move. Didn't cook - ate from our no-cook snacks and lunch materials. Rain continued on through most of the night
13-Aug-99 Fri. 6:30 am The sun rose over a misty lake.
9:26 am start paddling
9:40 am 280 at portage, Lynx to Ruby. Lotsa mosquitos - apply mosquito repellant to all exposed skin; we brought headnets but never used them - DEET did the job.
10:03 am start walking
10:37 am Helen across
11:08 am Dave across second trip
11:19 am paddling Ruby Lake
11:31 am 10 at portage to Hustler
11:42 am paddling Hustler Lake
12:12 pm 283 at portage to Oyster; Fischer says 240 R. portage measures 283 R. on Topo 2.0
12:16 pm walking
12:52 pm Helen across
1:28 pm Dave across second trip
1:43 pm paddling Oyster Lake
2:17 pm stop at promising campsite. An Outward Bound group is having lunch there, but say they are leaving soon. We paddle on down to another nearby site, but like the first one better.
3:00 pm 4.0 putting up tent at first site. Freeze dried Chili-mac for dinner. Not quite enough. A beaver swam past at dusk. We were in bed shortly after dark.
14-Aug-99 Sat. 10:37 am start paddling.
10:59 am 65 at portage to Rocky Lake
11:27 am across portage. This portage was through old-growth forest - wending between between huge white pines, cedar, and hemlock
11:35 am Paddling in Rocky Lake
11:55 am 85 At portage to Green Lake
12:04 pm Helen walking
12:17 pm Helen across
12:31 pm Dave across second trip. Swarms of mosquitos on this portage, and we had to launch through a boulder field - both on shore and in the water.
12:40 pm paddling
1:13 pm 120 walking portage to Geb-e-on-e-quet Lake
1:31 pm Helen across portage
1:50 pm Dave across, second trip; wild sweet woodruff along portage trail; also lots of bluebead lily and ground dogwood (bunchberry); yellow monkey flower, white spikes of spirea along trail. Blue sky and white fluffy clouds, with a light South wind. Yesterday, a couple of the portages felt like they needed to be rebuilt with center dividers and passing lanes and then staffed with traffic cops. On one portage, we passed six canoes going the other direction. Today, we saw no one all day, except for one occupied campsite along the way.
2:02 pm start paddling on Geb-e-on-e-quet Lake
2:16 pm 3.4 at campsite, unloaded
2:57 pm tent set up. Starting a late lunch. Clouds are filling in - perhaps more rain? Time for a nap. Dinner was a quick-cook Konrico red bean soup mix (purchased at the factory in Louisiana last year), with added dried pork shreds and instant rice. We guessed right on quantity for a change - just enough, with no leftovers. Easy to hang the bear bag tonight - a single rope over a huge spreading branch of an old-growth white pine. We're in a beautiful campsite, with the fire ring on exposed granite with a panormic view of the lake - an island a mile away in front of us, with inviting inlets leading off to unseen bays on each side of the island. The campsite is very lightly used - not trampled down and with firewood nearby. We sat up late, enjoying the ambience and warmth of the fire and watching the stars. Later, we heard distant thunder, but the storm passed by several miles away - no rain here.
15-Aug-99 Sun 7:30 am up and loading gear
9:21 am paddling;
9:44 am 35 at portage to Geb-e-on-e-quet Creek
9:48 am Helen walking
9:53 am Helen across portage
9:58 am Dave across, second trip. Pretty portage along a tumbling stream; fairly steep, but we're going the right direction - it's mostly downhill
10:05 est. paddling the creek distant thunder again
10:33 am dragged over a beaver dam, got out rain jackets.
10:52 am paddled into Pocket Lake. Still no rain.
11:40 am 51 at portage to Finger Lake. Fischer says 90 R. Topo 2.0 is 51.
11:44 am Helen walking
11:57 am Helen across portage; Another pretty trail along stream, with attractive waterfall alongside. Heavy clouds, distant thunder.
12:19 pm start paddling Finger Lake
? 9 at portage to Thumb Lake
1:00 pm paddling Thumb Lake
1:49 pm 200 begin long[portage to Beartrack Lake; rain, thunder, lightning
2:16 pm finish portage
3:00 pm 7.0 at campsite, tent set up; rained off and on all night until about 4 a.m. Didn't cook - had salami, cheese, crackers, for combined lunch and dinner.
16-Aug-99 Monday 8:00 am up and packing. Initially cloudy, but by 9 a.m., sun was out. Moderate onshore wind whipping our drying clothes strung on a line along the lake.
10:19 am begin paddling
10:36 am 30 begin portage to little Beartrack Lake
10:51 am begin paddling Little Beartrack Lake
11:05 am 30 begin portage to Eugene Lake; A grouse led dave over the trail - walking along just ahead.
11:26 am paddling Eugene Lake
11:55 am 45 at portage to Steep Lake
12:02 pm Helen across
12:12 pm everything across. Pit stop and rest.
12:22 pm Paddling Steep Lake; some sort of weather front blew through - big change in wind direction and cloud patterns. Rain threatening again.
12:39 pm 1.8 pulled into a campsite, racing the approaching rain
1:15 pm camp set up, everything in tent. We beat the rain by minutes; ate a late lunch in the tent, and skipped supper completely. Rain continued sporadically during the night.
17-Aug-09 Tuesday 7:00 am up and packing. Overcast, but not raining. We're out of instant breakfasts, so took the time to build a fire and cook pancakes and sausage. Delicious, even without blueberries.
9:32 am paddling
9:34 am 120 at portage to South Lake
9:58 am Helen across portage
10:16 am Dave across, second trip.
10:20 am Paddling South Lake
10:30? 52 At portage to Section 3 Pond; a very unpleasant mucky landing
10:48 am Helen across portage
10:59 am Dave across portage second time
11:06 am Paddling Section 3 Pond
11:16 am looking for 52 R. portage; Didn't find it, but doesn't matter - the stream turns out to be paddleable the whole distance except for a very short portage at the end. Finally saw a bunch of pitcher plants in bloom along this marshy stream - had been wondering why we hadn't seen them earlier. Also saw interesting cotton grass (?) - tufts of cottony material on the tips of the grass.
11:33 am 5? short portage into Slim Lake. Helen's back is acting up again - Dave will carry all packs from here on.
11:53 am Paddling Slim Lake
12:26 pm looking for portage
12:35 pm 173 walking portage
1:06 pm Helen across portage
1:28 pm everything across. Large moose tracks on portage trail. Rest a bit at end of trail
1:44 pm Paddling Little Loon Lake. Saw a canteen. Left conspicuously at portage landing. Earlier, we found a life jacket and hat at a campsite landing. And at another campsite, a couple paddled in and asked us if we had found a camera they thought they had left there that morning.
2:00? Into Loon Lake - no portage.
3:15 pm 8.5 unloaded at campsite. We've completed a loop. This is the same campsite we were in on the second night, and from here on, we're retracing our route.
3:48 pm camp set up, fire going. Skipped lunch and cooked an early supper - sort of a beef stroganoff - a Lipton dry mix, with added dry mushrooms, leftover cream cheese, but no beef. A relatively dry evening. Listened to geese honking somewhere near; a beaver swam by at dusk.
18-Aug-99 Wed. 8:40 am paddling
9:14 am 80 at portage.
9:44 am across portage and paddling Loon River
9:57 am crossing "56 Rapids"; no sign of rapids
11:32 am entering narrows to Little Vermilion Lake; hard rain begins
12:06 pm stop - pit stop and bail canoe.
12:15 pm underway again
12:50 pm in narrows at north end of Little Vermilion Lake
1:30 pm stop for lunch and rest, on a little rocky island. What country are we in?
2:21 pm paddling again
4:00 pm 18.5 At Crane Lake takeout; Tired - the longest day we've paddled in years
4:43 pm Loaded up and driving; we beat the rain by minute - and it rained for the entire drive back to the trailer.
TOTALS 66.3 2166 rods
6.8 miles
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