Today was our BWCA permit put-in day at entry point 33 Little Gabbro Lake - 6 people, 3 canoes, 5 days - and countless leeches, minnows and crawlers. The forecast for the next 5 days showed a good chance of showers today, and our return day, but otherwise looked good. However, as the trip dates got closer and closer, the forecasted temps kept going down. We were a little worried about the temps for today, and we hoped that the Bandits would come prepared for some cold water paddling. To be sure, Gary contacted the Bandits, who had left the Twin Cities at their appointed 7 am time, and told them to swing into Ely if they needed extra layers, especially waterproof gloves and hats.
For our part, Gary and I packed up the minivan and stopped at a cafe for morning coffee and a quick breakfast at the counter. Then we headed down to the outfitter for canoes and bait. Gary had brought his canoe up to Ely, and we all agreed to rent two additional lightweight canoes from an outfitter, which would make a big difference with us old duffers on the portages rather than hauling the heavy aluminum canoes we could get at home. Gary had decided that he could haul all 3 canoes on his minvan if we strapped 'em in good and took it easy from Ely to EP 33.
Gary's a pretty tall guy, so he set about strapping the canoes to his vehicle while I sort of stood around, helping where I could. Most of the reaching and looping and tying required someone taller than me (which pretty much everyone is), including the stocky young outfitter gal who brought us out our two canoes. After that, we headed in to the store for some bait and last minute shopping. Gary shopped for some additional cold weather gloves since his hands have problems in the cold, and asked to be sure I had enough protection. Well, I had some gloves stashed somewhere in my gear, but I wasn't sure exactly where, and I wasn't sure they would be enough if the temps dropped into the lower 40's in the rain on an ice cold lake. So, at the last minute, I grabbed a nifty pair of light-weight heat-conserving gloves that really saved my butt on the lakes.
It all took awhile, but we were finally on our way out of Ely for the 25 minute drive to the entry point. Prior to the trip I had loaded Gary's Garmin GPS with the route to EP33, as well as the portage locations and all the campsites on the lakes we were either passing through or planned to camp. The GPS helped us avoid a couple false turns and got us to the entry point parking area at around 11 am. I believe that most BWCA entry points have the water right near the parking areas. However, EP33 required a 200 rod portage (about two-thirds of a mile, 320 rods=1 mile) right from the parking area. The benefit of this is you could just start hauling crap right from your vehicle, but the downside is you couldn't determine if everything fit in the canoes until you got everything there! I wasn't sure whether I could portage the lighter canoes, but it turns out that the portage path itself was very well maintained, so I was able to portage both rental canoes before the Bandits arrived, while Gary portaged his canoe and other stuff. Anything we accomplished now would help us to get on the water sooner.
I didn't know that the Bandits had actually arrived until my return trip from the 2nd portage, when all of a sudden I encountered Steve heading down the trail towards me, loaded to the hilt with.....3,4,5 Duluth packs? I had trouble counting them all! All I saw of Steve was a head of hair and some feet - he looked like an olive-colored fruit of the loom guy. After yelling out my typical greeting, "STEEEVE-O!!!" (coined by Joe, clever that), Steve informed me that everyone was just standing around talking in the parking area after the long drive, so he just started grabbing stuff and walking. Well, good for him - let's get the show on the road!
Joe recently had knee surgery, so all his portaging would be limited - one pack, one-way only (no return trips) using hiking poles to ensure solid footing so as not to reinjure himself. Joe was quite apologetic the whole trip, but we were all very supportive of his decision to go light - one false step, and the entire trip would end for all of us. Fortunately Joe brought a special medicinal bag that housed 18 multi-colored cans manufactured by the Surly Brewing Company, each containing one dose of a specially made elixir sure to set things right should he, or any of the Bandits, have a physical, mental, or emotional setback.
We all portaged back and forth a couple more times until we had everything at the water, then we loaded up the canoes in a light rain and set out. It was about 12:30 pm by this time. Gary and I teamed up in his canoe, Steve and Jeff in another, and Joe and Chuck in the canoe with a mind of its own! More on that later...
Our goal this day was to navigate 5-6 miles through a string of lakes (Little Gabbro, Gabbro, Bald Eagle), do another similar length portage (200 rods), and end up at a campsite on our walleye-fishing destination lake, Gull Lake. If time or weather did not permit this ambitious plan, our maps and GPS indicated many campsites available along the way - if they weren't occupied of course. My big concern was that after a long portage to Gull Lake, it had only 4 campsites, and really only one or two that past campers had rated decent. So, if campsites were all taken, we'd be on a lake with very little options but to portage on to another lake, or portage back the way we came. Prior to departing the launch site a couple paddlers were returning from that very lake, and they said that they had just vacated one of the nice sites that morning, so we had hopes that we could snag a good site.
Navigating Little Gabbro shouldn't have been too difficult being it wasn't that big of a lake, but trying to read the heading and the various island landmarks can be difficult, then throw in a light rain to cloud the view a bit. We ended up going too wide left, skirting a big island then having to cut through some weedy shallows to get back on the main track. Using Gary's GPS, I was having difficulty with the screen because of the rain and general brightness of the day, so I wasn't being much help. As a matter of fact, I struggled with the GPS most of the trip as Gary and I attempted to agree on our location - me with his GPS, him with his map and compass.
Little Gabbro ended at a minor spillway flowing in from the next lake, Gabbro Lake. Hmmm... this was unexpected. I had done some online research about the route we were taking, and this was never mentioned. With canoes loaded to the hilt, we had to paddle hard through the flow to keep straight and make headway. I was worried what would happen if any of us would get turned sideways - it would not bode well to dump a canoe so early in our trek, and the water was freezing cold! Speaking of which, it was clear that we would be wearing our life jackets 100% of the time we were on the water, even if the weather was nice. No doubts about that.
Gabbro was a much bigger lake, with lots of islands and contours, and beautiful wooded shorelines. We were fighting a slight headwind, and tried to stay along the northern shore to block it. We stopped at a shoreline campsite for some food and a potty break, then continued on across the lake taking a southward jaunt to the location of the entrance into the next lake.
Now, the spillway between Gabbro and Bald Eagle Lake I *had* certainly read about - it was too big to paddle, and would require some sort of pull out to circumvent the water flow. But I had read conflicting reports about where the best/easiest spot would be. Also, it depends on the lake levels at the time - they can be high or low depending on time of year, rainfall, snow melt, etc. There were two mentions of a secret pull out spot "about 150 yards south" that was so short you could just lift a fully loaded canoe over some flat rocks and be tucked away in a little backwater area of the new lake. I had even marked the spot on the GPS unit based on coordinates I had found online.
Well, we found the massive water flow easy enough - it was flowing quite strong. We pulled up to a steep, wooded outcropping near the flow, wondering if this is the place that we should be. The length of this particular walk-over was relatviely short, and it was clear that others had used it, but it would require us to empty the canoes, walk the gear 50 feet up and then down a steep incline, and load the canoes up again. Unfortunately, my GPS coordinates were not lining up with our exact location on the lake, so of course any coordinates I had stored for an alternative portage were suspect.
Still, hoping to find this easier spot, Steve and I explored south on foot through major undergrowth, only to give up when we reached an impassable marshy area. Still undaunted, Gary and I hopped in a canoe and paddled even farther down around the landmass we were standing on, just to be sure there wasn't something tucked away farther back. Sure enough, we came to a minor spillway with a spot that was separated from the other lake by a mere 5 steps over a flat rock area. This had to be it! We returned to the bandits and told them to follow. With 6 guys, we were able to haul out each canoe one at a time (hand over hand at first), walk it the 5 steps to the water line, then hand over hand the canoes back into the water. Sweet!
As we emerged from this secluded backwater around a string of islands, we found ourselves looking at the expanse of Bald Eagle Lake. GPS and compass told us that the portage we were looking for was somewhere part way down the shoreline to the north, so Gary and I agreed on a general direction and started out across the lake. There wasn't much wind to impeded our progress, which was good. You might think that rain is the bane of a canoeist, but rain can't hold a candle to wind. Nothing will discourage a canoer and put limits on the day like a good wind, even if it is not a headwind. And think about it - a canoeist is prepared for rain because everything is packed with the anticipation of getting wet (e.g, dumping a canoe). But you can only deal with wind to a certain degree.
The GPS helped us get very close to the general vicinity of the portage site between Bald Eagle Lake and our final destination, Gull Lake. I didn't mention that there was a short river passage and another 40-rod portage before actually entering Gull Lake. By the time we reached the portage site it was 4-5 pm. We talked about whether we should continue on, or maybe just get a campsite in Bald Eagle Lake and proceed further in the morning. It was decided that we'd send an advanced party to scout the portage, the short river paddle, the final small portage into Gull Lake, and then scout a campsite in Gull before returning and reporting back. Based on this information, we'd decide what to do next. It would take time for sure, but we felt that the hour or so of lost time would be worth it.
Steve, Gary and I made up the advanced party, and lugging nothing but a single canoe we headed out. Wow....this particular portage was much more difficult than the first one we had done from the parking area. There were lots more water hazards, and several spots with downed trees caused by burn areas and winds. It would really be a struggle for us to portage this section. At the other end, we 3 set in the canoe for a short river paddle to the beginning of another portage, short for sure, but very difficult with much blow down blocking the way once again.
Once on Gull, we set about scouting for a campsite. There was one identified on the map not too far from the portage site, and we found it unoccupied, with a great view of the lake and some good spots for tent pads back in the trees. Undaunted, I wanted to scout deeper into the lake for another, more highly rated campsite that my research had described. I really thought that the other people we had encountered at the entry point were describing a different site as their ultimate site. Steve was adamant - no! A bird in the hand, dude. I argued that it would only set us back another 10-20 minutes, Steve argued that it would be getting dark soon, we had a tough portage to do, and we better get back and get started. In the end, Steve won, and thank the gods he did. More on that...
So, back we headed, retracing our steps. Jeff had walked the long portage and greeted us at its 'end', where we left the canoe, the four of us walking the portage back to where Chuck and Joe awaited word. Yes, we would continue on! So, we all grabbed some gear and started humping, the two other canoes going first. The portage was even harder now, weighed down by the various packs and containers. Some of the treefalls were so high that I could not step over them with my short instep. I had to leg over, gingerly straddle and shimmy, and then step down and over. There was one spot where I had to do this three times in a row! Fortunately the wood was rubbed smooth by other portagers or else I would have....I don't know, set the gear on the other side, step over, and load it back on again? There's nothing like a tough portage to make you appreciate how nice a previous portage had been. In comparison, the original portage from the parking area was a 4-lane interstate highway compared to this!
It took about 3 portages for each of us to haul everything through, Joe standing guard at the far end lest some marauding chipmunk walk off with our gear. We all ate something at various stages of this long portage, and as we packed up the canoes for the short river ride to the next portage, it started getting dark. The next portage was short, but just as difficult as the previous one with fallen trees and other obstructions, and we quickly loaded up and headed out across Gull Lake, hoping our campsite was still available.
It was not too far, and the first two canoes got ahead of Gary and I as they paddled for what looked like the island with the exposed slope that signified the site. It was pretty dark by this time, and I couldn't see the other canoes ahead of us, but it sounded like they were veering too far right. The first time here we noticed an outcropping (not our island campsite) that LOOKED like a campsite spot, and I knew to avoid it. However, the first two canoes had steered right towards it. They actually stopped there and looked out over the lake as Gary and I canoed past at a distance. Previously while paddling they couldn't hear me yelling, but now that they were stopped they could see our dorklights in the dark and hear me telling them to keep paddling along! For my part, I could barely make out the correct island campsite in the fading light, but we all arrived safe and sound. We quickly unloaded the canoes, dragged them up the slope a bit, then set about looking for tent pads. The campsite had a nice, smooth rocky slope to the water with a flat spot for a fire pit, and still another flat spot higher up that would serve best as our kitchen. Just above this, and before the woods began, Joe and Chuck set up there. Back a ways Jeff and Steve found a spot a few yards down a trail, and Gary and I found another site farther yet. Our site was high on a hill with a great view overlooking the lake, but it was very exposed - if we got some wind, it would be hell up there.
Gary and I went about setting up and securing the tent as best we could. At one point I heard the guys rummaging through the barrels looking for food. Since I knew where everything was, I asked Gary if he would mind finishing the tent while I went and helped the crew. We grabbed something quick to eat while the rain continued to hold off, not even bothering to sit and relax. I dug deep for the SIGG of Bookers, each of us taking a snort to signify that WE MADE IT! It was a lofty goal we had set for ourselves, especially after we learned about the second portage. But by making it here in one shot, this would be home for 4 straight nights!
We were all beat, and all excited by the prospects of slaying the walleye and bass in the morning, so we didn't hang out too long. The sun sets pretty late this far north at this time of year, so you can imagine how late it was when we arrived in the dark. We did have one order of business to attend to besides securing everything in case there was heavy wind. The BWCA requires bear proofing your campsite. Big Bear and Little Bear were official bear canisters, but they are not that big. Big Blue and Little Blue are pretty secure, but not bear proof. Thus, we decided to take all smellables and set them next to Joe and Chuck's tent. If their smell didn't scare the bears away, the snoring would.