10.7 miles 7 portages (457 rods)

Up at 5:37. It is misty and still. Temperature 39 degrees. DAMP! We have last night’s planned Mountain House beef stew for breakfast, with the one surviving egg. Of course we have the usual Tang, too! The sky is clear and we hurry to make the portage to Jackfish Bay (again.) We are on the water at 8:13. I really enjoy this morning paddling across Jackfish in calm waters. At 9:00 we enter the Range River.

The stream narrows down and winds around. We stop at what looks like the portage, but it is an old logging road. There are boats stored there and a small docking area. Another couple arrives as we are deciding that it isn’t the portage and getting ready to leave. Back on the river, to wind around a few more bends and here is the portage! There is a group of nine ducks who don’t appear at all disturbed by our presence.

We portage, then paddle down more stream, over a few beaver dams, etc., then make the long portage (not a bad one) to Tin Can Lake past Sandpit Lake. There are some large parties of people on the portage. One girl makes her companion (who is gasping for breath) pose with the canoe on the plank bridge. I found her OBNOXIOUS! She has clean white DRY tennies and long polished nails and is wearing a bathing suit—keeping beautiful while her companions do all of the work! Neil thought it was funny that I hoped she would fall into the lake! [Actually, I wanted to push her myself, but that wouldn’t have been nice.]

[Butterfly at the portage to Tin Can Mike Lake.]

Paddled from Tin Can Lake to the portage into Horse Lake, then portaged into Fourtown Lake. There was another large group of people at the first portage: 9 people, 6 Duluth packs, 9 duffles, 4 5-gallon pails, 2 coolers (!) and assorted fishing equipment. One lady remarked that we have learned to travel light!

Saw a nice family of loons on Fourtown Lake. Mother and Dad and two chicks; the father leads us away and acts as a “decoy” to get our attention. There are lots of turtles sunning themselves, also we see ducks, herons, otters and/or minks. The last campsite as you leave Fourtown looks super-nice and I wonder as we make the portage if we will find anything as nice when we want to camp. The 30- rod portage to Boot Lake is easy and I am glad as I am getting really tired.

We check out the first campsite on Boot Lake and are not impressed. Now I am really wishing we had stopped. The second campsite has 15 resident ducks, but we don’t decide to stay. The third campsite is over-used but is very large and exceptionally pretty. It takes up the whole point, with both a sunset and sunrise view, which is nice. We decide to camp, in breezy and sunny weather. Tired—lots of portages and enough paddling for today.

There is thunder and a sprinkle about 5:15. We have turkey tetrazzini, noodles Alfredo, dried fruit and marshmallows for our supper. There is a chipmunk messing around our pack.

I sit on the point until sunset enjoying the colors of the sun in the water. There are nice reflections and I hope to have gotten some effective photos. A pair of fishermen in a canoe is out on the lake, so we aren’t alone tonight.