Day 7, June 6, 2008
Travel this day was only 3 miles over Emerald, Hustler, Ruby and ending at Lynx Lake with 3 portages (338 r). On the water 8:10 AM and stopped for the day at 11:15 AM. Camp was made on the northern most site on Lynx Lake.
Overnight it poured and the wind howled. It was not a night for man nor beast, and good thing that us beasts were nestled in our REI caves. Now we know that the tent is good under wind and rain. I do not sleep well in the wind but managed a few good hours. Fortunately there were no real large trees over our tent area, or any sleep would have been fitful. For breakfast we had Cache Lake Biscuit and Gravy (2 packs that serve 2). The mix was good but not as efficient (or good) as our traditional biscuit and gravy. Never-the-less, the stuff stuck to our ribs and helped us do the things that must be done.
We hit the water at 8:10 for the short jog across Emerald and the portage to Hustler. With the wind out of the east, we flew down Hustler to the short portage into Ruby. I think this was the spot where we missed an opportunity to omit the portage and float across into Ruby. I blame this on the wind, because it had us up against the shore before we could scout the low land between the two lakes. The portage was knocked off quickly. We could almost throw the packs to the other side. On the water, we once again flew along the lake toward the west and the 280 r portage into Lynx Lake.
The portage into Lynx took us 1hr 20 min. On this one we pushed across with no break or leap frog of gear. This portage also cuts across several wet spots. (On our crossing they were small creeks). Between the two portages of Oyster-Hustler and Ruby-Lynx, I think the shorter Ruby-Lynx was more demanding of us. When all was gathered together on the Lynx side, we knew from the wind that finding a camp early in the day would be the prudent thing to do. Besides, we were where we needed to be to get out the following day. It looked like the wind had already shifted from the east to a more southerly direction. We were going south and really not keen on paddling into the wind to find what?
We took a chance and headed NW from the portage to the northern most site on the lake. The camp should have been visible to our eye from the portage, but we saw nothing, and took that as a sign of vacancy. The site was empty and we put ashore at 11:15 AM, and this was good because the rest of the afternoon saw nothing but an increase in wind from a S-SW direction straight up the lake. The rest of the afternoon also saw a continued trickle of canoeists who rounded the point south of us, saw no vacant camp sites to the north, paused, consulted maps, and eventually made their way either back into the wind or the 280 r portage out of Lynx.
Our camp provided plenty of places to pitch our tents but all the flat ground was also under several large pines that were swaying to and fro pretty good. I think that more time was spent observing the behavior of the trees in the wind than actually putting up the tents. I felt uneasy, but committed to staying put. The rain was pretty much over with only occasional short-lived showers. The real problem for us was not having protection from the southerly wind, and that got old real quick. The tents got up and we anchored them down with rocks and tree limbs.
As the day wore on, we could see that Danielle was more concerned about this situation than we were. At issue was the question whether we would be able to get out of there in the AM. Her folks were expecting a phone call the following day, and Danielle was tied in knots about fulfilling her need to call the folks at the appointed time. Her Grandmother would be worried sick if the phone call failed to come in. Danielle never told them that a delay in getting out was always a possibility, and not to worry if a day or two goes by before contact.
Food was not a problem and we had enough food for a couple more days. So, with confidence that tomorrow would be a great day, we spent the afternoon making soup, eating our tuna wraps, and brewing coffee. Of course we all kept one eye on the swells and mentally calculated what it would take to get from where we were to the west and lee side of land. Supper was Beef Stroganoff and blueberry cheese cake. Quite yummy. I think we skipped building a fire because of the wind, and it was another night to retire early into the tents.
Pictures: 1) Ruby-Lynx portage; 2) Weather watching at Lynx Lake Camp; 3) Lynx Lake