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andym
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07/22/2018 12:03AM   (Thread Older Than 3 Years)
My health had kept us from doing an overnight camping trip since 2012. It had been a long journey, my third time through chemo, a bone marrow transplant, another relapse, more cells from my donor, and dealing with complications kept me either too immune suppressed to risk a trip or too fatigued to take one on. But after several years, we finally felt up to it.

This was a special trip and very different than our usual 10-day trips deep into the interior of the boundary waters. We had taken our niece and her then boyfriend on one of those trips in 2006 and they had wanted to go back since then. This time we took them and their 4 and 7 year-old sons on a 3-day base camping trip on Lake One. It turned out to be the shortest possible distance as we got the new site just east of the main channel from Kawishiwi Lodge. I was a little nervous about getting a site because we had never camped on an EP lake before and so we were happy to stop even though we had only gone a few miles.

It turned out to be fantastic with gorgeous views, great swimming, and a fun day trip to the nearby rapids and around that end of the lake. From our site we saw a pair of loons, 3 eagles, a pair of geese with a gosling, two ducks that even wandered into our camp to check out the screen house, and a beaver that splashed around the final morning. On the day trip, we saw a pine marten who swam across in front of our canoe and then climbed onto a rock and posed for photos for my wife. There was also some weathered scat at our site that I think was likely to be from a lynx as it was about the right size, had weathered down to just hair, and had blunt ends. Plus, we found some wild blueberries.

One of the most interesting wildlife moments was a stare down between one of the eagles and the loons. The eagle settled down in a tree on an island just across from our campsite where it liked to sit while the loons rested in the water below it. This went on for about an hour and we think it went like this... Eagle: I'm watching so you will show me your nest. Loons: Not gonna happen. We're staying right here until you go away. And the loons stayed until the eagle went back to its nest for the night and then they swam off and probably snuck back to theirs.

It was really great to make these memories with our great nephews, especially because they have been living near us for the past 5 years but are moving back to Israel at the end of this month. It was a bit challenging at times as the younger one is autistic and the older one is ADHD. Given those challenges (both diagnoses mean they don't always listen) it was good to have 4 adults along so that our niece and her husband could chase them around the campsite while we did most of the chores. So we were able to keep them safe and it is clear they got a lot out of their first wilderness experience. And the older one did help make muffins with our bakepacker and also fetched water to filter while he was swimming.

While the camping trip was short, it was part of two weeks we spent at our cabin with them and other relatives who came and went. So, there were many other good north woods times too. Hopefully longer trips will be in our future next year. But it was great to break the ice and spend some time in our tent again.
 
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thlipsis29
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07/22/2018 06:37AM  
Congratulations! Always good to hear that someone battling cancer has overcome and been able to get back to what they love doing. It's also good to know that you made some great memories with and for others. Pray you beat this cancer for good. Thanks Andym.
 
07/22/2018 06:37AM  
So glad to read this report, andym, and to read about your joy in being back in the BWCA again. Congratulations! May there be many more trips, long or short. In the grand scheme of things, as you found out, it really doesn't matter that much. Any time in the canoe country is precious.
 
07/22/2018 06:41AM  
Good to hear you all got back in and I hope you have many more great trips.
 
campcrafter
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07/22/2018 09:18AM  
Great story Andy, thank you for sharing.
Would love to see picture of the pine martin.

May you enjoy many more nights in the Northwoods.

Blue Skies!
cc
 
mastertangler
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07/22/2018 09:51AM  
Wow, what a long tough road back. Sounds like your trip was very satisfying. May you enjoy many more!
 
07/22/2018 10:01AM  
Having just returned from my first trip with 2 of the young grands, I know how enjoyable it was for you. What i can only imagine, is how satisfying for you it must be to be able to do the trip at all. Congratulations.
 
07/22/2018 10:12AM  
Sounds like a great trip! I find the woods to be a regenerative experience anytime that I'm up there and I'm sure you did too :)
 
07/22/2018 10:24AM  
Glad to here your back in the saddle again. Sounds like a great trip to start out again.
 
billconner
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07/22/2018 12:20PM  
By all means congratulations and best wishes for many more trips.

But I'm curious. New campsite - what kind of thunder box? One of those newer whitish, larger, and squarish ones with a lid? I seem to see more of those. Still prefer the simple clear coat stools without lids.
 
Savage Voyageur
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07/22/2018 05:46PM  
Great to hear Andy, so glad you are back on the mend.
 
andym
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07/22/2018 07:13PM  
Thanks everyone! For me, being in the wilderness, away from buildings, cars, roads, and motors, makes a huge difference to my feeling of being grounded and in touch with nature. Day trips from our cabin have been great but waking up, even at 4 AM when the birds get noisy, in a tent is truly wonderful. It is precious and we've been needing that.

To answer the burning question.... one of the new square ones with a lid. A lid that when dropped by little boys sounds like a gunshot went off behind your site. Man, I jumped the first time they did that.

I still need to download the photos and will post one of the pine marten.

Actually, it is especially waking up at 4AM when the birds get noisy that is precious. One of those mornings we got right up with them and so did the beaver who started splashing around and towing branches.
 
dicecupmaker
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07/22/2018 07:40PM  
Glad to here it Andy! Enjoy every moment!! Peace!
 
07/22/2018 09:00PM  
I smiled reading the news of your post, awesome to hear you were able to do a trip this year!

T
 
Zwater
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07/22/2018 09:51PM  
That's great! God bless
 
07/23/2018 06:29AM  
You looked pretty happy to be in Minnesota.
The real question was, did the new canoe keep up with the wifes rowing? She kinda had the look of just try and keep up as you loaded it. Haha.
Come back when you can stay longer.
Very happy for you...
 
07/23/2018 07:17AM  
That's awesome!!!! Thanks for sharing.
 
ozarkpaddler
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07/23/2018 09:58AM  
ducks: "That's awesome!!!! Thanks for sharing."


Yes, that really gives me hope too!
 
07/23/2018 10:19AM  
Nice to hear andy.

Where are you planning on retiring, California, Minnesota?
 
andym
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07/23/2018 11:08AM  
The Summersong smoked her rowing rig like it was left on the beach. But, to be fair, it actually was left on the beach. With so much family visiting, she never managed to get out rowing and I only got to paddle solo a couple of times. We're hoping to get back at the end of August when it will be just us and we will definitely have time to row/paddle together.

Retirement.... I don't know if we would actually leave California. It is pretty nice here and we live a short walk to the ocean with mountain hikes through the redwoods just a few miles away. But the northwoods is pretty tempting. I definitely expect we will start spending much more time up there.
 
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