Day 4 – Thursday 09-29-16 What an awesome day! This day was the kind of day I dreamed of when planning my trip. Winds were calm, overcast days, and perfect traveling weather. My plan was to travel north to Knife, but knew that this would depend on the weather, especially winds. I could not have asked for better conditions to cross the large lakes in this area, Little Saganaga, Gabimichigami, Ogishkemuncie, and Knife. Lots of travel was a major goal for this trip, and man did I get it. 
My morning routine was really starting to get smooth and I was quickly heading north. The day was filled with beautiful scenery both on large and small water. One of the highlights of the day was traveling through the burn area of the 2006 Cavity Lake Fire. The Rattle Lake and the north end of Little Sag had the feeling of a mountain stream above the timber line. I ran into three guys and a dog on the Mueller side of the portage from Agamok. They were dropping off one of the guys who was taking a day hike on the Kekekabic trail. Maybe someday I will hike the Kek trail, sure would be a different way to see the BWCA. Right after meeting this group, I found a blue jay feather on the portage to Ogi. This beautiful contrast of color in a forest losing its color to the changing season adorned the bow of my canoe for the next week.

I knew at some point I would start to run into more fellow travelers, and I surely did when I reached Ogishkemuncie. That was by far the busiest lake I paddled. I ran into one last pair of guys portaging out of Knife Lake into Eddy Lake. They would be the last human contact I would have for almost three full days. I had now found the solitude I had been seeking.
Knife Lake brought about a new scenery I had not yet seen on this trip. The combination of the vast vistas provided by this long lake and the tall peeks was very impressive. There was a beautiful waterfall out of Eddy into Knife. I’ve seen more impressive falls, this one was hidden by thick brush and choked with downed trees, but this one was more special for the journey. I tried my hand at trolling a shad rap as I paddled down the now glass length of Knife lake, with no luck. I found more and more on my trip that I would much rather just paddle and travel than fish. My goal for the night was site 1441 which offered a view of the Canadian border. I was unsure if there was an unmarked portage near site 1445 or if the long peninsula pointing west as actually an island, offering a water passage to its north side. My tiring muscles were glad to find a small stream with an easy portage of not more than twenty feet, saving me probably four miles of paddling. This back bay had a unique feel to it, reminiscent of Rattle Lake. Perhaps I was seeing the lasting effects of the 1999 blowdown.  After nine and a half hours of travel, and the early fall sunlight running short, I was relieved to find my desired camp site unoccupied. As I pulled into camp, a bush plane flew overhead, heading towards Canada, a sign to me that I was where I was meant to be for the night. This site did not have many tent pads, more suited for a solo or small group. There was a steep climb from the boat landing to camp, but this provided a gorgeous view over the lake. I set up camp and paddled to a couple small islands just north of camp where I found plenty of firewood. A meal of pancakes, bacon, and eggs over a small fire made a great dinner after my longest day of travel yet. I figured this more involved meal would be better suited for dinner and I would stick to oatmeal or granola bars for breakfast. The western sky cleared just enough and just in time to allow the last rays of sunshine to shine through over my campfire for a perfect end to an amazing day.