Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Couldn't help but feel a bit of melancholy this morn'. We would be packing up & leaving this great site soon. Once again most everything was wet. Instead of Vista, we decided to push for Lux or Carl lake today. So we were in position for a quicker exit tomorrow.

While somewhat gloomy, there wasn't really any wind so the paddle across Winchell was very pleasant. Our neighbors the mergansers came out to bid us farewell. As did several immature loons along the way. A bald eagle soared overhead & we seen this little guy loping along the north shoreline.
We retraced our voyage all the way back to Jake lake. There we turned south into Lux lake. A good trail gradually climbs most of the way before dropping down to Lux. The landings are terrible. Especially on the Jake side. Loose rocks make it very difficult to find firm footing even in the water.
We stop & check out the site on Lux. Vickie thought the rock chairs were a novel idea. With few other ammenities we hoped the site on Carl would be a little more hospitable. We then paddled across Lux to the portage into Carl.
Though short, there was a substantial climb over a well worn trail. The landings were much better at this one. Once on Carl we were admonished by a trio of otters who hissed their displeasure at our intrusion. We sat & watched them play their games. Vickie hoped the moose she'd seen swim over towards Carl lake was still hanging around this area.
The site a Carl was a bit better than the one we passed up on Lux. A decent rock slope landing. The site itself was full of scrub & brush. Still there were a few decent tent pads & the firgrate area was kinda neat.
We had Chicken fajitas for dinner. I set about gettin' some firewood put up & trying to get things somewhat dried out. I didn't even bother setting up the tarp. As I was choppin' some firewood, Vickie yelled that I should come down to the lake shore to take a look at something. Vickie said, "I think we're gonna have an awesome sunset?" Indeed it was shaping up to be just that.
Appropriately our last night in the wilderness gave us a breathtaking, if all too brief, sunset. We lingered by the lakeshore awhile. We could hear something large occasionally moving through the brush just across this narrow lake. Unfortunately we never got to see the source. As it got darker we retreated back to the warmth of the fire. We don't consume much of our remaining ardent spirits tonight as we wanted to get an early start in the morning.
Winchell Lake, Gaskin Lake, Horseshoe Lake, Vista Lake, Jake Lake, Lux Lake, Carl Lake