All I can say is I waited way too long to go solo. My first trip went off without a hitch. I went in at Farm Lake on Wednesday and came out at Lake One yesterday. I can easily say it was the most relaxing and enjoyable trip I have ever taken.

My biggest fear was that I wouldn’t be able to sleep out there since sometimes, even at home, I wake up at weird times. The first morning I slept all night. In fact, I slept in until 10:39am. I couldn’t believe it. I usually can’t sleep past 6:00 am on the weekend. I made sure to set my alarm after that. All I know is I’m hooked now on going solo.

Congratulations and so glad to hear you enjoyed your first solo!

Happy to hear it all went so well. I am headed out for my 1st solo in just over a month and I am hoping it will go just as smoothly as yours. Anything you would do differently next time?

You drank the Kool Aid!! Welcome to the club!

Strangely, I also sleep very well on solos. Perhaps because I paddle and portage all day. Perhaps because some guy is not snoring next to me, or my own worry about my snoring waking that guy up.

The biggest reason is likely the fact that when I crawl into my solo tent, I am totally at peace and am able to let everything go and drift off into a peaceful slumber immediately. It is a wonderful feeling.

straighthairedcurly: "Anything you would do differently next time?"

I would bring less food. I seriously went overboard with the food.

Glad to hear it went so smoothly and was a positive experience. Solos are a different experience.

I'll bet the number of soloists who get the food just right the first trip could be counted on one finger.

Congrats! It is nice to be one of the first to travel in the spring, perhaps a double first? I have been mostly solo for over 20 years and still working on the food thing.

Congrats on taking the plunge. It’s different for sure.

Congrats! I'm doing my first solo at the end of the week. What was your experience with a solo canoe vs tandem?

Congrats!

Its great to have your 1st solo trip under your belt. Solo trips that will follow only get better.

Wally13: "Congrats! It's great to have your 1st solo trip under your belt. Solo trips that will follow only get better. "

Very true! My first four solos, I swore I'd never do it again after each of them. lol. But, I learned a bit from each one and learned how to relax and really enjoy them. It's true freedom when you solo, especially if you have no way to talk or text someone for a length of time.

Welcome to the world of extreme social distancing. Glad your first trip went so well. I still seem to always bring too much food. It is a wonderful feeling to push off from shore by yourself - all of the civilized world's control mechanisms over you are broken; you control your own fate 100%, subject to the whims of nature.

Way to go

Thanks everyone your all right I’m totally hooked now. I was a little worried how comfortable I would be in the solo since I had no experience in one. By the time I was 1/4 of the way across Farm Lake my fears subsided. I felt very comfortable almost right away.

Once you do it and you find that you like it, you will never go back! You'll still probably do your tandem trips, but the solo option will always be calling.

I'm very happy for you! Once you've been bitten by the solo bug, it's all over! Doing one's first solo requires confidence and can be a bit scary. The benefits of being able to do what you want to do when you want to do it balances against safety and very real self-sufficiency. Good for you!

I never sleep as well anywhere as I do in the BWCA. And for food...that's a very inexact science. So many factors: length of trip, weather, base-camping vs. moving, activity level, etc. Better to come back with some, rather than finding yourself short.

Mike

MikeinMpls: "And for food...that's a very inexact science. So many factors: length of trip, weather, base-camping vs. moving, activity level, etc. Better to come back with some, rather than finding yourself short. "

On my 3rd solo after a 12 year break, I remember burying excess food weight because I realized I had brought too much. Most of the time, I come out with a couple freeze dried dinners. I’ll eat all my gorp and trail bars before those.

I just finished my first week long solo yesterday. I thought I would be nervous about being alone, but it never happened. I was so busy having to do all the chores and fishing, the days flew by almost too quickly. I enjoyed the trip and will most likely do more solos, but I still have group trips planned.

I’m probably different from most solo trippers because I base camped. My primary focus was fishing, so packing up every day takes too much time for me. I did sleep very well and enjoyed being on my own schedule.

moray: "I just finished my first week long solo yesterday. I thought I would be nervous about being alone, but it never happened. I was so busy having to do all the chores and fishing, the days flew by almost too quickly. I enjoyed the trip and will most likely do more solos, but I still have group trips planned.

I’m probably different from most solo trippers because I base camped. My primary focus was fishing, so packing up every day takes too much time for me. I did sleep very well and enjoyed being on my own schedule."

Sounds like we had similar experiences congrats