This Ain't Last Year

A year ago on St. Patrick's Day it was 80 degrees. On this year's St. Pat's, it was considerably less than that. Tangerine Boy and I left Duluth on Friday morning and headed north on a cool, cloudy day. We cruised up the Gunflint Trail and set up the canvas tent and wood stove at my favorite out of the way campsite. We then drove to a lake I have passed a thousand times and never fished. Well, Tangerine Boy was game for a new spot and we found ourselves in a nicely plowed parking lot with a shot downhill path to the lake. Tangerine Boy discovered that his fishhouse and gear did not pull very easily. The lake seemed to have very little traffic on it, so there weren't many packed snowmobile trails to follow. So we made a short drag through deep snow and slush to a nice looking, steep point. Our depth checks revealed it was 30 to 35 feet deep, which sounded good to us. Tangerine Boy soon caught a 15" lake trout, but I told him to toss it back, that we could do better. Should have kept my mouth shut. That was the only fish of the day. We made the drag back up the hill and then drove to a local hangout for supper, then went back to the tent for a few laughs around the wood stove.

On Saturday we drove to a lake I have fished several times, and we set up on a proven spot. I never caught a fish or even had a nibble, but Tangerine Boy caught a very nice, 25" lake trout. The wind grew throughout the day and was really whipping at times. It was a chilly walk back to the truck. We had some potato soup for supper.

Sunday was cold and breezy again. Definitely not 80 degrees. We hemmed and hawed about where to fish considering our limited mobility. We decided to give the lake we had fished on Friday a full day's chance. Well, we had action, reeling in five trout, but none were keepers. Maybe it will be a good lake in a few years. It was pretty spot and very quiet. Tangerine Boy saw a deer come off the shore and start across the lake...we were hopeful a wolf pack had chased it onto the lake and that we would finally see a live wolf kill, but alas, the deer just turned around and went back in the woods. It was salmon chowder for supper. The wind switched to the south and grew in intensity in the night and we ended up with a major backdraft from the wood stove. Tangerine Boy woke up to a tent full of smoke...he quickly detached the pipe and got the stove outside. He then got the tent aired out. I...never even woke up.

On Monday morning and we packed quickly in an effort to beat an impending snowfall. We didn't beat it, so it was a slow drive down the north shore, but we made it safely. It was a good trip without the best fishing, but saw some new water. Next adventure will be the last weekend of the month. With all this snow, I don't think the ice will be gone like last year.

Nature Moment: This one will be a favorite...On Saturday night I woke up when Tangerine Boy came back into the tent after peeing. He told me that I should pee too. Sounded good to me, so I went outside and had the most scenic pee of my life...the northern lights covered the entire sky in big waves of color. Spectacular. One of the few times I have seen them when they cover the entire sky to all horizons.

Hubs' Flub: There weren't any screw ups that stood out, so I'll go back in time for this classic...The Colonel, his kid, Gunflint Jones, and I went fishing a few years ago in late October on a rainy day. We left Duluth early in the morning and cruised north, ending up on some forest roads to our chosen lake. When we got out of the truck we discovered that somehow we had left the tailgate of the truck open the entire way. We had so much stuff that I couldn't see it in the rearview mirror. Despite the miles and the bumps, we didn't lose a single item. Lucky.

Quote of the Trip: David Alan Grier, as Teddy Pendergrass, singing on the Adam Carolla Show, "I am gonna ^*&*%%^# your &*%#$## in a granny knot, baby!" I guess you had to be there.

Frosty the Snowman

I had an interesting little winter camping trip last weekend. It was a solo event, which can be really relaxing, but can also get a little long. I left Duluth Friday morning and headed up the Gunflint Trail. I left the main road and went to a little pull off spot I know about and set up the tent and wood stove. I then hopped back in the truck and drove to a nearby lake that has easy access and is stocked with lake trout. There was a cold east wind as I set up the portable fish house on a reef I had caught fish on a couple years ago, but the propane heater soon fired up and warmed the tent. No one else was fishing the lake as far as I could see. I caught two lakers, one was pretty small, but the other one was a decent fish. Not too bad for right next to the road. I headed back to camp at dusk and heated up some potato soup while listening to podcasts. I'm no tech head, but podcasts on the I-pod make solo trips much more fun for me. It was getting pretty cold when I went to turn in. I went outside to turn on the 10 pound propane tank, as I like to run my heater at night when it is below zero. The handle on the tank would not open. I twisted, banged, tried to warm it up in the tent all to no avail. Finally I said forget it, how cold could it get? It could get to minus 20 degrees, I found out the next morning. I awoke in the dark shivering, despite my two sleeping bags. Went to pee and was delighted to see a sliver of light to the east. Thank goodness, morning was arriving. I got pretty chilly overnight. When I got home later, I learned my sister was also up at 5:30am Saturday morning, singing Frosty the Snowman with one of her kids. I felt like Frosty the Snowman.

March is a different animal than January and February, however. By the time I drove to my lake of choice for the day, the sun was already warming the snowpack and the winds were calm. I loaded my fishing gear on the sled and took off across the lake, heading for the far side. The snow was deep and fluffy on the lake, but old snowmachine tracks made for easy walking. Only the last 100 yards of the 1.25 mile trek was on fresh snow. Under the snow I found slush and frozen slush. This made for tough hand drilling the holes. Once water from the slush gets into the hole you are drilling, it doubles the resistance. I didn't drill a lot of holes, but I was confident in my spot on a subtle point. It was a slow morning as the sun continued to warm. By 11am I was fishing outside in 20 warm, calm degrees. When I moved my tip up to a shallower hole (I started in 43 feet and moved to 25 feet), I immediately caught a nice lake trout, about 27 inches (about five pounds?), I gutted and gilled the fish and buried it under the snow. I caught another trout on the that tip up, a smaller fish that I released, in the same hole, so moved my jigging operation in shallow water and started working the depths with my tube jig. I caught two 25 inch lakers, both released. I also had one nice fish get off my hook just under the ice. Mid-afternoon, two Canadian Conservation Wardens zipped up to my on snowmachines (I was fishing in Canada, the lake is on the border). Under my conservation license, I can only keep one lake trout. When they saw I had already kept a fish, they went through all my gear and dug under any disturbed snow looking for another trout. Of course they didn't find any, but they did find my can of beer I had brought along. They informed me that I was lucky it was unopened, because, and I quote, "It is illegal to drink beer in Ontario." Now, I have spent a lot of time in Ontario, and based on my anecdotal research, beer is definitely not illegal in the province, and plenty of it is being drunk by its residents. I wanted to laugh, because how he said it was so funny, but I didn't laugh because I knew that isn't what he meant. The rule must be you can't drink beer on the ice or in public or something like that. I had heard some rumblings about that rule before, but thought that if I was in my fish house, I was legal. I'll have to look it up. The wardens took off and I was glad to see they ran their snowmachines past the next point down, which is where I wanted to fish the next day. Easy walking after they packed the path. I fished until dusk in rapidly dropping temperatures, then hoofed back to the truck. I decided to save my self from cooking and doing dishes and had a sandwich at the restaurant just past camp.

The night was again colder than forecast and I was awake shivering again at dawn on Sunday. Thermometer said -15. I got my gear loaded and headed back to the lake I fished the day before. It was a longer, but easy walk to the next point down. It looked like a good spot and I fished in 34 feet of water at the tip of the point. It was sunny and warmer than the day before, but the east wind was kicking in a little bit. Long story short, I fished the hell out multiple holes on the point and never even saw a fish on the graph until about 1pm. It watched that fish come in on the graph, chased my jig a short distance and then felt the strike. Missed him! The hook never found the jaw. I then watched my minnow, which had popped off the jig during the strike, slowly sink towards the bottom. I then, on the graph, watched the fish head downwards after the minnow and eat it. Damn! I quickly put another minnow on my jig and sent it back down and saw the fish come up for it again (hungry fish!). This time the hook set was good and I pulled the hungry trout through the hole, a decent laker. I let it go to catch again someday. It was only fish I saw all day. I packed a bit earlier and headed back to the truck. I had planned to fish near the vehicle until sundown, but I ended up running into a guy I knew and we ended up chatting and I watched him fish for awhile, and the sun was disappearing when I hit the road. I had another restaurant supper.

Monday morning was much warmer at 15 degrees above zero. I packed up up the gear, a process that is easier when I am solo because there is less to put in the truck and I can used the passenger seat to hold gear as well. I was home by 1pm and got the gear in the house, did some work things, and attended a City Council meeting that night. It was a good trip.

New Features of the Blog! I am adding two new elements in addition to the Nature Moment. The first is called Hubs' Flub. The content will be about the most significant screw up or equipment failure I had during my trip. The second new element will be the "Quote of the Trip." It will feature the best quote I heard on the trip.

Hubs' Flub: I already talked about the propane tank failure, but that wasn't really my fault. No, this trip's Hubs' Flub stands alone. On Sunday afternoon, as walked back to the truck, I was about 3/4 of the way back when I glanced back at my load on the sled behind me and noticed I was short one rod and reel. It must have worked itself loose and fallen off the sled. I unhooked the sled and walked back on my path to find it. I went about a 1/2 mile before I found it, so I added an extra mile to my 1.5 mile trek. I'll load better next time.

Nature Moment: When on the road near camp, I noticed moose tracks on the side of the road. This is not unusual. What was unusual was, when upon closer examination, there were wolf tracks as well. Moving up the road the snow on side of the road had a lot of disturbance...A moose/wolf fight had occurred. There was no blood and no hair, though. It appeared the battle had moved into the woods. The moose tracks were small...If it was a calf, I think we know how it ended. One less moose in an already shrinking population.

Quote of the Trip: This one is a slam dunk - "It is illegal to drink beer in Ontario" - Conservation Warden on Saturday afternoon.

The Adventures of Gunflint Jones

I headed up the Gunflint Trail this past weekend to do some lake trout fishing. We stayed in a comfortable cabin, living the good life without the confining winter tent. Joining me were the Captain, the Chief, Rocket Man, Ice, and the newly renamed Gunflint Jones (she had been Officer Friendly). We arrived before noon on Friday and got the gear settled, the snowmachines running, and the sleds loaded. We all took off in different directions and set up our portable fishhouses on the lake, which had a little over 2 feet of ice and a good amount of fluffy snow on it. I fished with Gunflint Jones so that I could get her up to speed with the laker fishing operation. We only had one bite all afternoon, and it spit Gunflint's hook after a few seconds. It was quite cold and windy that day. Other members of the party all caught at least one lake trout. We met back up in the cabin and enjoyed some appetizers, a martini, and some wild rice hotdish (aka "casserole" for you non-Minnesotans). Apparently there was some snoring in the night, but I didn't hear any.

Saturday morning dawned much colder than forecast.... minus 32 degrees. We took our time getting ready to fish hoping for a quick warm up. We finally got the machines running and hit the lake. Gunflint Jones decided to fish near the cabin, the rest of us took a fairly lengthy run to a favorite point. The sun was out and the wind was calm, so it warmed up nicely during the day. The fish didn't warm up, and we only caught 1 or 2 fish apiece. I didn't get one until the last second...I had everything packed up except the rod - I left the jig down while I packed. When I went to reel it in to quit fishing, a fish nailed it on the way up. Not a big fish, but it was fun to catch it at the last possible instant. It was a cold run back to the cabin where we found out that Gunflint had shared her spot with a bunch of other people and didn't get any trout up the hole. We enjoyed chili that evening and had some laughs.

On Sunday, it started cold and clear, but a strong south wind was blowing and the temp was rising. We cruised up the lake and dropped Gunflint off at a proven spot and then moved to a far away point. Rocket Man caught the biggest trout of his life - a heavy 31 inch lake trout. We all had action through the morning and early afternoon getting some pretty decent fish. I had a flurry late in the day, getting four trout in short succession. It was blowing and snowing as we packed up and cruised back to pick up Gunflint Jones. She had her best trout day ever-five nice fish, including a 27" or so fish. She had several other trout on, but they spit the hook, so she had some really fast action. She had been visited by the Game Warden...I wonder how many times he visited an ice house and find a woman, fishing alone, with a couple of nice lake trout gutted and gilled on the ice. Pretty cool stuff. We decided the Gunflint Trail was a good spot for her, so Gunflint Jones became her name (the Jones just fits it well). We cruised back to the cabin and relived our productive day. We had a fried lake trout and Northern Waters Smokehaus salami appetizer and then a tasty lake trout jambalaya.

We all fished close to the cabin on Monday morning, with a couple of trout caught. It was warm and a drizzle began to fall as we packed up the snowmachines and gear. We hit the road and stopped for lunch before cruising back to Duluth. The icy drizzle caught a few people as several cars were in the ditch between Two Harbors and Duluth. We got the gear sorted out and we went on our separate ways. It was a fun trip even though the fish only really cooperated on one of the four days. It was fun to see how excited Gunflint Jones was on her big fishing day.

The next trip will likely be the first weekend of March, not sure where I will be headed yet.

Nature Moment: It was quiet on the lake for the most part, but on the way home we did spot a Great Gray Owl on a tree top along the highway. These interesting birds sometimes come down from Canada in winters when the mice and vole population dips north of the border. They are big bodied birds, but they weigh very little, which helps their silent hunting flights.

Relaxation Destination - Ontario

I had a fun weekend up north of the border last week. The Colonel and I left a day earlier than others due to a work thing I did on the way to the border. We crossed the border in the truck and, again, we were delayed and searched. I can't ever get through there cleanly. Of course, there was no issue and we were soon on our way. We had considered doing some fishing that evening, but the overnight low had been -36 and it was still -15 when we arrived at the lodge. So we scrapped fishing and got the room organized, talked with the owners a bit, broiled some ribeyes (we couldn't grill them because the propane had gummed up in the extreme cold), and had some laughs.

Friday dawned cold and sunny after a night that brought about 5 inches of fluffy snow. The snowmachine started, but it was a chilling ride to the chosen fishing spot. The Colonel got set up on a proven point and I did some exploring nearby, but finally set up near him. he caught a decent lake trout after a bit and we were off to a good start. The sun soon disappeared behind clouds and the day became quite cold. The others (the Lieutenant, the Captain, the Chief, and a new member, the Rocket Man) joined us later that afternoon. The Colonel caught a dandy 30" lake trout soon after they arrived, the biggest trout he had ever caught. The Captain also caught a very nice fish. I caught only two tiny fish all day, the others went fishless. It was an extremely cold ride back to the lodge at sundown. We caught up with each other around the table and enjoyed a tasty pasta dish.

Saturday morning was warmer and cloudy. We got organized and took off down the lake to a spot I hadn't been to before, but the Chief said he had been with other friends that had done well there, even getting a big muskie through the ice the year before. The Colonel and I had a heckuva time finding a fishy looking spot that was out of the cold wind. We finally settled in an area with a subtle point and shallow bay nearby. We didn't have a lot of confidence in our spots. That feeling came true for the Colonel, he didn't sniff a fish all day. I was luckier fishing directly in front of the bay in 40 feet of water. I had 9 fish hit over the course of the day, but only managed to get three lake trout through the hole, a 29", 28", and a 25". Lake trout are very good at shaking the hook, especially when trying to get their head started up the hole. My luck changed how I look at lake trout spots...I may look for bay mouths in the future. The Captain also caught a nice trout, but all the others were skunked. Pretty slow day overall. The sun came out, low on the horizon, just as we were heading back to the lodge. The Colonel had slow cooked a bone-in shoulder ham while we fished, and it was delicious with mashed potatoes, stuffing, and sauteed cabbage. The cabbage was a brave move...

It was sunny and warm on Sunday, pushing 30 degrees. The trout should have been snapping, but again it was slow. I had lost a fish right away, but only had one more bite until I was packing up my gear at sundown. I saw some activity on my flasher screen right before I was going to shut it off, and I ended up getting a 27" laker. The Colonel had a similar experience, getting his only trout while he was packing. The Chief got a nice trout and had a few hits, as did the Captain. The Rocket Man only had one bite and it turned out to be a very large muskie that he had all the way through the hole when it shook, cut the line, and disappeared back down to the depths. Shucks. The Lieutenant also was fishless after losing a couple fish after hook up. It was a nice warm trip back to the lodge riding on the new fluffy snow. It was lasagna for supper.

Monday morning was warm, but damp, and even a drizzle at times. I fished right out from the lodge and had a fish on for a second before losing it, but that was the only sign of fish for the entire group. We got packed up around noon, loaded the machines, and hit the road. I arrived home to my Awesome Wife and Super Kid, which is always a good thing. It was a fun weekend with great friends, but fishing was slow. The Lieutenant and the Rocket Man didn't land a fish in four days, and they are talented anglers. The rest of us caught a few fish, but less than we are accustomed to getting. We may have to give that lake a break for a while.

Nature Moment: On Sunday, we had all agreed to go to a certain bay to fish. Some folks went around an island to the west, some went to the east. I went the east way, but set up to fish near the west trail. I noticed that the west trail users' snowmachine tracks were wet and filling with water. Then I noticed the tons of otter tracks around the area. A concentration of otters in winter can only mean one thing - open water. They need the openings to access the lake to fish. I examined the area closer and there indeed was some very thin ice and some open water. The users of the west trail had come close to taking a swim with the otters. This was an area that, when looking at map, is not an obvious spot to have open water. Goes to show you need to be careful at all times.

Sorry for the Lapse...Here are Some Reports...Including Alaska

To my many fans...sorry I have been lax in posting, it has been a busy six months. I'll be better about posting as the winter season progresses. Here are some reports from late in 2012...

In August, we had the adventure of a lifetime as Awesome Wife and I left Super Kid with my folks and met my in-laws in Alaska. We spent 8 days on the Nepenthe, a 60 foot boat out of Sitka. It was just the 6 of us, the Captain, and a cook. The trip was perfect, as we lucked out with great weather and unbelievable wildlife encounters. We toured the southeast Alaskan mountains, channels, waterfalls, hot springs, and villages. We got up close to bears, whales, Orcas, porpoises, sea lions, sea otters, and more. We met a few true Alaskan characters and, of course, caught some fish. I hooked into coho, chum, and pink salmon as well as rockfish and other smaller species. We ate several of the catch right on board. Pictures are worth a thousand words, so I suggest you go to the following sites to see video slideshows:

Short, Scenic Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oar_z69nbVY

Longer, More Informative Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_SOvcONsc0

I recommend Captain Mike and the Nepenthe to anyone wanting an intimate, real experience in southeast Alaska at a price that is more affordable than nearly any other tour boat in the area. Go to: http://alakadventures.com/

September ended with a traditional trip to the Gunflint area in Cook County, Minnesota, for a little lake trout fishing. Unfortunately, that is just what I found...small lake trout. I was joined by Captain K and his son, and we did have a lot of fun with good weather.

In October I went with several of the gang to the Chief's remote cabin. We had snow and unseasonably cold temps, so fishing was not a primary activity, but we did catch some northern pike. We also test fired some guns, checked out deer stands, and the Colonel resurrected the camp's cast iron cookware. It was a fun, relaxing time.

November brought house projects and family events, but I did get out in December. Early December found me camping solo with the canvas tent and wood stove at a walleye/perch lake, but a snowstorm drove me home before finding the fish. I rung in New Year's in the tent as well, ice fishing just north of Duluth and enjoying the wood heat in a cold snap. I caught a few decent walleyes among many tiny ones and my friend who joined me for a day caught a 15" crappie. It was a fun time and being able to drive the truck on the lake made it easy to camp on the island.

Watch for more reports soon!

Family Fun

We had a good family camping trip last weekend. We went with a neighbor family whose daughter is a buddy of Super Kid. We got packed up Friday morning and then cruised up the North Shore for a bit before going inland to a Forest Service campground. It was a nice, breezy day as we got camp set up and unloaded the canoes. We grilled brats and hot dogs over the fire for supper. After we ate, the other Dad and their 7-year old daughter joined me for a little fishing. The kid was really into it and talked a good fishing game. We ended up getting 4 walleyes and 1 smallmouth bass. They weren’t big, but she was excited to catch her first walleyes.

On Saturday, it was another beautiful day. After breakfast, I took Super Kid, the other Dad, and the 7 year old out for a canoe ride…we caught nothing. After listening to the Twins and get some rest, we all went swimming and shorefishing. We caught one decent smallie and the kids enjoyed the water. It was pesto pasta for supper and then we had a campfire and s’mores.

Sunday morning we went ahead and packed up after eating pancakes. It was an uneventful drive home on a warm and sticky day.

Let's Talk Moose to Moose

In June 2012 Camp Shitstorm went Moose (Lake) to Moose (River) in eight days of fun. The trip was notable for its rain-while we got wet, people back home in Duluth dealt with a deluge. Many areas flooded in the biggest rain in recorded history. A recap:

Day 1: The Colonel (formerly the Smoked Fish Guy) and I (Private Phillips) spent Thursday packing and prepping. The Iowa guys and Fran Tarkington Fan arrived to Duluth that evening. The Iowa van included Wear-Some-Shorts, Tick Check, and Gatorade, as well as a new tripper-The Bull. The Bull is a high school senior and broad at the shoulders...he’ll get the Big Ugly pack. On Day 1 (Friday) we got up early, heralded the arrival of the final team member, The Lieutenant, packed the gear in the vehicles and hit the road. We cruised up to Ely and zipped over to the tow boat dock. We had struck a deal with the tow boat operator to shuttle our vehicles over to our take out point about 40 miles west. We hit the water in the tow boats and headed into the BWCA...we did a truck portage into the next lake and were dropped off at the end of the motor zone. It was a beautiful day as we transferred the gear into the canoes and paddled north. We ate Smokehaus Italian sadwiches as we drifted on the pleasant breeze. We made our way around a point and were pleased that, despite the fact it was now Friday afternoon, our preferred campsite was open. It had a nice beach garage, a good swimming rock, and a great view. After getting camp set and taking a quick swim, we loaded up the fishing rods and set out to augment our supper. Wear-Some-Shorts and I put on flutter spoons and headed for the deepest hole in the lake in the hope of getting a lake trout. It wasn’t to be, we had no strikes. We worked our way home fishing the shallower shoreline and hooked a few bass and a couple eater walleyes. The others reported good luck-The Bull and Tick Check caught several nice smallies and the others caught several nice walleyes near camp. We had a great meal of steaks, fried fish, mushrooms, and asparagus and hit the sleeping bags after a picture perfect first day.

Day 2: It was sunny, but clouding up, when we packed up camp and ate our breakfast burritos. We hit the water and soon found some white caps and a quartering wind. Before long, we were hitting shore and making the first portage. This portage was the longest of the trip, but it was generally flat and had good footing. We made a few more portages and soon had all four canoes rafted on a narrow, river-like lake. We were discussing which campsites to head for as we watched rain showers heading our way. We headed down the lake fishing a few likely holes and getting a few walleyes. Finally our luck ran out and the skies opened up in a downpour. After shrugging our raingear on, Wear-Some-Shorts and I headed north and found The Lt. and Gatorade on a campsite we hadn’t planned on taking. As the rain continued to fall, the site began looking better and better. We shared some mohitos and laughs under the tarp until the deluge stopped. The Colonel caught a couple eater fish (including one sauger) to add to the pot and he whipped up some dirty rice with andouille sausage for supper…a new favorite.

Day 3: We enjoyed sunshine as we packed up our damp camp and headed down the large, winding lake. We found a few walleyes in several different narrows and I also caught an ancient old rod and reel someone had lost overboard. Wear-Some-Shorts dawdled behind the others a bit and we were pleased to come around the corner and see our partners setting up camp on our preferred site. It was amongst some larger pines and had good rain tarp options, tent pads, and garages. It was only missing a good swimming rock. We almost immediately discovered that the site had two resident red squirrels that had become good at finding snacks in packs and helping themselves. The Lt. made sure they got a clear, strong, rock-like message that their behavior wasn’t acceptable and they didn’t bother us again. After getting set up and taking another swim, we hit the lake to scare up some more fish for supper. We had some success, finding a few more walleyes, a few nice smallmouth bass, and one decent northern pike, which we kept and ate in the coconut Thai rice that accompanied the fried walleye. It was a beautiful day.

Day 4: We decided to stay in this camp one more night and so we switched up partners. I fished with Lt., mostly trolling crankbaits along shorelines. We had decent luck with walleyes that had a good average size. I even caught my biggest walleye ever…a chubby 27 inch fish (I know that isn’t big personal best for someone that fishes as much as I do…probably an anomaly). We dodged some thunderstorms all day but finally did have a pretty good rain late that afternoon. Others also had good luck either trolling spinners for walleyes or casting to shore for bass. It was gourmet mac and cheese and panko fried walleye for supper as we listened to a wet forecast.

Day 5: Under darkening skies, we pack up and headed west onto waters I had never explored before (that is getting to be rare in the BWCA for me). We trolled some shorelines without much luck and donned our raingear just before the showers rolled in. We continued to fish in a steady rain and were passing a weedbed when I felt my Rapala stop dead. I thought I had looked a log, but soon felt the “log” swimming away from the canoe. It took some time, but I finally battled what turned out to be a 38 inch northern pike to the boat and grabbed it. Wear-Some-Shorts snapped a few photos and I slipped the big “gator” back into the water. It was the only fish we landed all day. We made our way on a portage around a roaring cataract that was at water levels more reminiscent of spring thaw than mid-summer. It continued to rain as we looked for our friends and we were glad to see they were on the closest campsite to the portage. They reported generally slow fishing all day, but The Bull and Fran Fan each caught 27 inch walleyes. We set up rain tarps and set up the tents in breaks in the rain, but for the most part, it was a steady shower. The site was getting pretty muddy and few of us were dry anymore. There were some rousing hands of Euchre played under the tarp and we made a simple meal of mashed potatoes, veggies, and fried fish.

Day 6: The previous day’s rain must have taken some spark out of us, because we all woke up after 10am. Even so, it was still raining. We had a lazy breakfast of Quetico Supremes (grilled elk summer sausages, swiss cheese, mustard sandwiches) and decided to stay in the same site for one more night and wait out the rain. It stopped around noon, but the sky continued to threaten rain all day. We made it out to some fishing and Gatorade and I found a mid-lake reef that wasn’t on the map. The reef gave up several nice walleyes to spinners with white blades. The others found some walleyes as well. We tried another new meal, fried fish and black bean tacos. I liked it.

Day 7: We set an alarm in order get up earlier, and we greeted a bright sunny morning. We had our damp camp packed up and we were on the water at 8:30am. It was a nice sunny day, but the wind picked up as we made our way across the only portage of the day. We paddled on, using islands as windbreaks. Every single campsite was taken as we headed for our preferred site on a bay that is out of the main travel route. It was open and very nice…pine trees, good swimming, nice kitchen. We got camp set up and set out to a nearby deep hole to try and get some lake trout. Only smallmouth bass and northern pike were around. It was camp pesto pasta that evening-a last night tradition.

Day 8: We packed up camp and made our way to an incoming river-our route back to our vehicles that had been dropped off by the outfitter. The initial river section was supposed to have some rapids to fish under, but the water was so high the rapids were covered up. The third set of rapids had to be portaged, as were the several rapid sets upstream. The normally placid river was up into the trees and it was slow, hot paddling slog to the parking lot, but we eventually reached the cars. We loaded up and had some burgers and beer at a local tavern. It was late when we got back to Duluth, where we heard all the stories about the flood. I said goodbye to the crew and headed home. The other guys hit the road the next morning. Despite the weather, it was another fun trip.

Nature Moment: There were a few encounters with wildlife on the trip, including a fox in camp on night 1, a very well fed garter snake on the last portage, and lots of loons and eagles. The insects were particularly interesting on this trip. We observed several different kinds of mayflies hatching and we witnessed dragonflies crawling from the water, shedding their exoskeletons and eventually flying away to eat some of the abundant mosquitoes.