bwca: day 4
friday
- 2 lakes
- 1 portage
- (muddy portage)
- 1 ginormous campsite – 3.5 stars
- no moose
- a few loons
- lone cignet
i filled my pad a little too full and tossed and turned all night. like i said – i will throw money at whoever makes a decent sleep mat.
this morning was early – pancakes and coffee made it a little acceptable. we headed out in a split team and made good time across lac lacroix.
we headed back a different way through a little side river full of boulders – it was picturesque: just around the river bend! once through the boulder maze, it was time to figure out where the portage was in the muddy marsh. after about 10-15 mins we found it and had to maneuver quite a bit to get the packs and canoes on shore. the portage was a bit of a hike – maybe 1/3 mile – but it was relatively flat and deposited us on lake agnes, skippping a portage entirely. our campsite was almost immediately around the corner from the portage. it reminds me of camping in the hills – tall pines and needles on the ground, wind rusting and howling through the trees, the smell of pines. i’ve been walking around with no shoes on and the bottoms of my feet are just full of sap.
these early camp stops are nice – you do 4-ish hours of non-stop movement, then put up camps, then rest. i’m famished almost all the time. being outside all the time is nice, but it is tiring when you’re constantly packing and unpacking. i do like just one point of “home” when camping. taking down tents is such a drag.
last night was another stargazing night. we were looking at the eastern sky and saw the milky way arc across the whole sky. i took a bunch of different pics of locations of the sky in hopes of doing a composite pic. here’s hoping.
now i’m debating taking a swim. it’s early in the day, and i could use a rinse off, but it’s a lot of work changing in and out of a suit. oh, first world problems. wah wah.
i had to wash off my tattoo using dishsoap. 3 days of grim and sunscreen is doing it no favors and it’s still healing. ugh i hope it’ll be ok. i’ve warn sunscreen sparingly except for the tattoo, and no burn but a pleasant looking tan.
i’m bummed that charlie has a tbi. i think he would’ve enjoyed this. too much work for him right now though.
went for a swim!
the weather is warmer than expected. therefore, i packed poorly. but it’s close to 80ยบ right now and the air is warm. the heat is warming the pine needs and the smell is intoxicating. the walk to the vault toilet is like going on a hike through the pines of the black hills – camping at sheridan or custer.
i must be wanting to go to the Hills!
there is a sheer drop off one side of the peninsula we have, but it’s at water lever. like jumping into the deep end of the pool. it’s a good way to cool off. this would be a good site for a larger group. though good for us too!
i was out filtering water this evening and a loon paddled right up, waving his weird foot at me. he hung out for maybe 20 mins, long enough for lori to grab my camera so i could get a few of his pics. he ruffled his feathers, stretched, and gave a lone loon call (after a preliminary meep). finally he decided to swim off. no diving or taking off. he just paddled away, leaving a wide wake.
then i decided to do some fightmaster yog on the granite slab leading to the lake – my fave sequence to bird of paradise. it ended up being hot yoga because it was so warm. it was tough on my knees, but it worked out well.
tomorrow i have to check the weather for the north shore before i head over there. if it’s going to be gross, i’m heading home tomorrow.
