September 13, Day 1: 8 miles, 7 portages, 594 r of portage trail. Lakes: Bower-Trout, Marshall, South Brule River, Dugout, South Brule River, Skidway, South Brule River, Unnamed pond, Swan, South Brule River, and Vernon. The longest portage was 292r. We were on the water at 7:20 and camped on Vernon Lake at 2 PM.

It is a little before 5 AM and Matthew and I are standing outside the SOB café waiting for the opening. At 5 sharp the doors open, we walk in, and it didn't take a sociologist to see that the locals call this spot breakfast. “Hi boys, coffee?” our waitress asks. For the regulars, she knows the drill and simply serves it up without a question. Smiles were everywhere, even for us “who ain’t from around here”. What a breakfast we had and it was served in a flash with plenty of SOB coffee. The SOB coffee is made to get you on with the day.

I guess we were on the way to Bower-Trout at 6 AM. It was dark, and the road was fogged in. I had driven to and walked the trail to Bower-Trout back in August under a bright summer sun. Now, in the dark and fog, things looked a whole lot different, and I got confused with the turn onto Forest Service Road 325 off the Gunflint Trail.

On pulling onto a road that looked like a dead end path to a gravel pit, my son asks, “Dad, you sure you know where you are going”? “Yeah, now I do, before, I didn't, the parking lot is just down the hill”. At the parking area, we found one lone vehicle. That was a good sign, now we know how many people are back there. It was now 6:45 AM, and we were glad that we got breakfast in early.

The trail to Bower-Trout follows an old railroad grade. It is a “super highway” of a trail, and we won't be seeing anymore like it. There were plenty of signs that moose were also very fond of this country. Matthew was first down the trail, and nearing the lake, he exclaims “what the hay is that doing here”? And there, occupying the only firm ground at the landing, was an aluminum row boat! Now that was a trick getting that monster in here over a 67r portage. But, why was it left blocking the path?

Picture of the row boat at Bower-Trout

How are we going to get around it? I think I’ll just swing the stern of that tin can out from the logs to make room for the canoe. Good Idea. And with words hardly out of my mouth, I stepped out onto what looked like solid ground. In a wink, I was swallowed to my thigh in bog. To keep from sinking, I grabbed a root with one hand and held onto the row boat with the other. In the process, my finger was gashed. Damn, the day started good, but that sure soured things. I was wet before we started, bleeding on the canoe, and really thinking bad thoughts about the owners of that boat.

With that behind us, we launched into the fog at 7:20 AM. Low visibility kept us hugging the north shore till we bumped into the portage on the west side. There are five short portages from Bower to Swan, and each rather pretty. From the look of the trails, the South Brule River also uses these portages on occasion. We could have used a few more inches of water in the river. There was one spot on Dugout Lake that nearly had us lining the canoe. That would not have been pretty considering the bottom had beach-ball-sized boulders, and the shore was lined with thick brush. We only squeaked through after considerable maneuvering and some removal of excess epoxy from the hull.

Under different circumstances, this string of lakes would be a great leisurely paddle. But, on this first day, we were all about getting to Vernon and not about smelling the roses on the way. Swan Lake was a pretty one, and had we been in our right minds, we would have stopped for the day. The paddle west up the meander was a gem. Most of the river bottom is sand, and on a hot summer day, it would be a great wade. There were times when we thought that we had missed the portage. But, magically the portage appeared on left when the river started to disappear into the brush.

The 292 lay ahead of us, and I do not have kind words for this trail. The trail was overgrown and basically cuts through brush the entire way. We were in a hurry, had not taken time to eat lunch, and we were possessed with making Vernon. Matt was as stubborn as I, and neither of us called for a break. He pushed me, and I pushed him. On the Vernon side, we ate our power bars and felt a new found energy. What do they put in those things anyway?

On Vernon, we found the north camp taken, but the SW site was open. It was now 2 PM, and there was no question, we stop here. Rain held off until just after supper, and then the sky opened up. We were not in the mood for putting up a tarp, and it was a natural to crawl into the tent at about 7 PM. In September under a stormy sky daylight is pretty well gone anyway. Our miles came with a lot of work today, and it did feel good to crawl into the sacks. It stormed most all night and a north wind picked up. The increase in wind caused me some anxiety, but as long as it stays from the north, our crossing of Brule should be OK.

Today we saw 1 party camped at Bower-Trout Lake and 1 party camped at Vernon Lake.

Pictures: 1) Morning fog on Bower-Trout, 2) East side of Bower-Trout, 3) Dugout-Skidway burn