BWCA Trip, the third.

This year’s Boundary Waters trip occurred almost a month ago, classes and new job slowed me down, but nevertheless, here are the pictures and the run down (from my perspective at least):

The following characterized BWCA III:

1. Black flies. Wow. The numbers were staggering. They bit. Through socks and clothes. At times it felt as if you couldn’t do anything besides keep them off of you, if you did anything else, they would take advantage. By the second evening, B had devised a system where she stuck her feet and ankles into a dry bag and cinched it closed for a bit of peace. We were all jealous of her ingenuity.
2. Beautiful Weather. The first year was blisteringly hot, the second was soggy and windy. This year was just right. Sunny days, cool evenings, and beautiful sunsets made me feel lucky to be living outside.
3. An Easy Route. I never thought this would be the case, but we took it some what easy. There weren’t any portages longer than 250 rods, there were no blisters, there was no “Nice F---- Vacations!”, and for two days in a row we were in camp by 2 pm. One day we even did a day trip. It was great fun.
4. River Paddling. It was our first year putting in with a portage first and then a river paddle before we got to the lakes. I liked the river paddling, it was a great way to enter and really appreciate all the wildlife. The only bummer was how low the water was due to the serious drought occurring in that area.
5. Reading. I have always brought books with us on our trips and other than the occasional drowsy tent reading, I haven't really read that much. I have always just been so bone tired. This year, there were long periods of silence in camp when all of us were content reading to ourselves. There were even a couple of periods of reading aloud from various books. (I love it when you read aloud with other people- probably the teacher in me.)

6. Husband Up a Tree? There was a completely "boundary waters moment" when B and Jff were working on the "bear rope". The hiking boot went flying in the air, attached to the rope, and then there was silence. Oops. The boot was wrapped around a branch that was very high off the ground (this is where I got involved). After various rock throwing schemes, Jff took to the tree. Leave no trace (or boots).7. Well I could go on listing things, but it was a good trip. We were lucky to enjoy it with good friends.