The wind was in our favor today, coming from the NE. The view atop the Vera to Ensign portage was lovely! Paddling on Ensign Lake was like old home week. First, a group waved us over to their campsite. It was the moose encounter scout group that had floated near us in silence. We chatted and shared about the awe and nervousness at ending up so close to it. Then on the portage out of Splash, we caught up to our mud buddy scout group who we had towed through the muck before Cacabic. We joked that they owed us a tow down Newfound. However, they headed north to get a peek at the Canadian border before they were due to meet another group at the Moose landing in the afternoon.

We were feeling strong and efficient today. Only took us 1 hour, 7 minutes from the last portage to the Moose takeout. Loads of people coming and going today including some Camp Widjiwagen groups. We loaded up, changed clothes and headed to the Chocolate Moose for lunch. Since we had to go to the Gunflint Trail to pick up Joey from Camp Menogyn the next day, we set off for Grand Marais then up the Trail to the Iron Lake campground. Nap and then dinner at Trail Center finished off our day.

Distance: 11 miles Portages: 213 rods Time: 3 hours 20 minutes

~Vera Lake, Ensign Lake, Splash Lake, Newfound Lake, Moose Lake