You are taking your wife, your son and daughter and their spouses, on a 6 day trip to the boundary waters, entry 55, saganaga lake off the end of the gunflint trail. You do not own a vehicle big enough for all 6 of you, so you borrow your wife's brother's Durango, and tow your canoe trailer, with all gear, and 3 canoes, from St. Paul, up to the boundary waters. On Entry day, 15 miles up the gunflint trail, the engine overheats, and you blow the motor.

You're able to limp downhill back to Grand Marais, but the engine is shot. What would you do?

Side note, the last time your daughter went to the boundary waters, was for the 1999 blow down. She thought she would never go again. But after 15 years or so, she decides to give it another try, and this happens. Not that it will affect what you decide to do, but it also happens to be her birthday.

It's about 8 am on a Saturday in June. What's the plan now??

engine shot = several thousand $ repair and at least 5+ days to fix. Your stuck anyway so why not spend it in the Bw as planned. You could possibly make arrangements to get hauled to your EP and picked up on your return , maybe with the dealer or repair shop or an outfitter.

You could also act like an elected official and quickly assign blame to someone else and spend the time ragging on them.

What is the plan now? Move forward with the trip!

I will get on the horn with my brother-in-law and give him the lowdown. Develop a plan with him as far as the vehicle goes. Another in my party is on the horn with an outfitter to get us back up the Gunflint Trail to our entry point, cost is irrelevant. Our permit is for this day, so there is a time constraint.

Now, as the leader, I need to keep the morale up. With the engine failure, there has to be some complaining going on. “Again? My last trip was the blowdown and now this?!” “This is just my luck.” And so on. Keep the group positive by focusing on the situation at hand and moving forward. Goal? Getting on the water! Crack a few jokes, loosen the mood. Get the group singing happy birthday.

We have been planning this trip for 6-12 months, if not longer. Most importantly this is sort of a redemption trip for my daughter. The experience from the ‘99 blowdown has to be replaced with another memorable trip on the other extreme! I feel responsible to make it happen. And I will. I mean, am I going to let a motor (of all things) impede a canoe trip? F$#* no. Pardon my language, but it is “go time”.


This is what I would do.

JW

"Proceed as planned!" sounds like a good plan, but how exactly does the party proceed? They have to advance all that gear and the paddlers to their entry point. Then they have to arrange for a pickup.

I suggest going to bwca.com and launching a flare. Maybe one of us up there could have helped.

I think our initial repliers got it covered. Limp back to Grand Marais...get it to a shop to start repairs, for which I'm paying for. Another party member is meanwhile arranging with an outfitter to get a ride up the trail and tow your canoe trailer. Proceed with trip as planned. Get ride back to Grand Marais at end of trip and hopefully the vehicle is repaired.

I would do my best to not spend my entire trip reflecting on my decision to try and take a Dodge all the way to the end of the Gunflint.

Speckled: "I would do my best to not spend my entire trip reflecting on my decision to try and take a Dodge all the way to the end of the Gunflint. "

Laughed up some coffee, well done. Man that would be a tough check to write too.

Like others have said. Arrange to have yourselves and your trailer delivered to your EP and have a fun trip. Even with the cost of a new engine, which I assume your brother-in-law will help pay for, your cost of this BWCA trip is still less than most vacations for 6 people for a week. There are a lot of great outfitters on the Gunflint that would help you out.

Yep I think everyone nailed it.

Being in the woods for a week is a perfect time to get the vehicle repaired, if your brother even wanted to bother (sometimes a repair like that can be cost prohibitive if it's an old vehicle).

It would certainly be a scramble to find an outfitter to drag you all and the trailer to the end of the gunflint with an hours notice, but if you're ok paying a premium, I'm sure you could find a ride.

JWilder: "What is the plan now? Move forward with the trip!


I will get on the horn with my brother-in-law and give him the lowdown. Develop a plan with him as far as the vehicle goes. Another in my party is on the horn with an outfitter to get us back up the Gunflint Trail to our entry point, cost is irrelevant. Our permit is for this day, so there is a time constraint.
"

This is what I would do as well. Though I would not say that cost is not a factor, and I would be looking for the ride in Grand Marais too, not just the outfitter. It is going to take them an hour or more to come pick you up and the outfitter is likely to charge you more. Obviously you contact the outfitter and see what your options are, but shop around other places too. If a place in town can give you a ride, it will get you on the water much quicker.

The other big one to figure out is who is going to pay for repairs if they happen at all. Maybe my perspective is skewed being younger and without significant savings, but there is no way I would be able to afford repairs on a blown engine just like that. It would be an uncomfortable conversation but you do need to determine how much of this is your responsibility as the one borrowing the vehicle and how much is the owner's. If I could afford it and the vehicle was worth saving, I'd probably end up splitting the repair bill. Depends on what the mechanic says though about if it was the driver's fault or something the owner was already aware of.

Happened to my cousin 2 years ago his own vehicle 5000.00 in repairs.

They went ahead with the trip.

Nobody had much fun.

All the adults on the tip said they should have canceled.

Each to his own.

R1verrunner: "Happened to my cousin 2 years ago his own vehicle 5000.00 in repairs.


They went ahead with the trip.


Nobody had much fun.


All the adults on the tip said they should have canceled.


Each to his own.
"

It tainted the whole trip huh? Shoot. Sorry to hear that. Was it a long weekend trip or a week +? I could see canceling a weekend trip. Not so much a week+ trip. Was it a Dodge they were driving? :) just kidding.

In my mind I have two choices: both have one constant: a failed engine.

Choice #1) Our bags are packed and we are on the doorstep of paradise. Go on the trip.

Choice #2) Wave the white flag and surrender. In the end I would regret this choice. I would look back and wonder what we missed out on...


JW

It’s easy to armchair quarterback this and say go on the trip and have fun. But I wouldn’t continue on the trip and I’ll explain why. I’ve been up there many times before with car problems over the years. At least 4 times with tires, one alternator, one battery. I’ve had to search for someone who is 1) open, 2) capable of working on my vehicle, 3) has parts to fix. Last summer I was camping in Tettegouche state park and had a flat tire on my truck. It was a Saturday afternoon. Vertical nothing was open. I was pulling a camper and I wanted a fixed tire. I had to put the spare tire on and drive to Duluth to fix it. With a blown engine I would want my truck towed to a large city to someone who has done things like this before.

I can guarantee there is no one up there that will have a engine to swap a blown engine in 6 days. You are talking weeks with shipping to get an engine and then there is availability issues. Dealerships don’t just have engines laying around. So your next real option is to find a place to stay for the night, and to feed the group.

This will give you time to figure out your next problem, transportation. If you are from the state maybe someone can pick the group and gear up with a van or two vehicles. This will take them a day or two to get to you. Or option 2 is to find a rental vehicle big enough for your people and gear. Has anyone else seen a car rental place up there? Me neither. The group is getting hungry again. You need to feed them again. Just kidding but you get the point.

I will be the negative Nick here and say trip is over.

Don't ever buy, drive or borrow a dodge

This is why I don't like borrowing or loaning out a vehicle. In the case of an accident, mechanical issue, wear and tear or whatever else, there are bound to be hard feelings on one side or the other (or both), regardless of fault. Whenever I don't have a vehicle suitable for a trip, I rent something (I realize that presents a problem in the OP's scenario because most rental companies don't allow trailers).

Porkeater: "This is why I don't like borrowing or loaning out a vehicle. In the case of an accident, mechanical issue, wear and tear or whatever else, there are bound to be hard feelings on one side or the other (or both), regardless of fault. Whenever I don't have a vehicle suitable for a trip, I rent something (I realize that presents a problem in the OP's scenario because most rental companies don't allow trailers). "

I forgot about the no tow hitch on a rental, good point. You better know a friend with a vehicle hitch that will tow your trailer home.

I am interested in the milage.before casting several thousands into a repair. Also, the warranty if any for the vehicle. I am not sure if I borrow a car, that it should be capable of being used according to proper standards. I stand more on the side of taking care of the necessary logistics of getting on with the trip and then how to get home at the end. The vehicle will not be ready in a week and may have to be towed or possibly traded by the owner. Insurance anyone? It is quite likely we would be using homeward bound transportation at our own expense since we borrowed a vehicle in the first place. There is likely to be some hard feelings and negotiations in good faith will be necessary. This why a rental is worth the extra cash to start with.

Four years ago, I had a thread separation issue and limped to a shop which could not fix or replace the tire and the others found to be at fault. We limped on and enjoyed our trip and limped to Duluth where we found a shop to replace all 4 tires. I paid the price, which was reasonable, myself as owner. In the shop for 4 hours until they were able to get us out the door. We were more than happy.

I think the general feeling is continue with the trip after dealing with whatever you can at the time to make the situation better when you return.

The part about what to do with the Durango, alot more info would be needed. What does blown engine mean? That's a subjective term to the general public. Is it a head gasket replacement or something else, is the engine truely beyond repair? What's the age of the vehicle, mileage, approximate cost to repair, approximate valuation. Overall, informed decisions would need to be made. Did I let it overheat and cause the damage? It might set you back, but I'd feel obligated to make the owner of the vehicle whole, whatever that means. Maybe I'm ending up owning a Durango.

I too don't like borrowing things out and don't like borrowing things from others, for these and even much more minor issues.

Would put me in a real quandary!
As for paying for the engine, did you put in diesel instead of gas, or throw sugar in the gas tank, run it without oil etc. The engine was going to blow anyway, unless it was my negligence I wouldn’t expect to pay for a new engine. I also wouldn’t expect for someone to put an engine in my vehicle.

Sheepishly I will tell you I wrecked a van while staying in a cabin in the BW. Ran into a tree. I bought a Caprice Classic station wagon in Ely for $500. We named it Big Blue. Got us through that and ran for many years after. She was a honey. It was a company van. My boss just laughed at me. That’s no sh**.

Speckled: "


I would do my best to not spend my entire trip reflecting on my decision to try and take a Dodge all the way to the end of the Gunflint. "

Laughed my ass off on that one!!!

Speckled: "I think the general feeling is continue with the trip after dealing with whatever you can at the time to make the situation better when you return.


The part about what to do with the Durango, alot more info would be needed. What does blown engine mean? That's a subjective term to the general public. Is it a head gasket replacement or something else, is the engine truely beyond repair? What's the age of the vehicle, mileage, approximate cost to repair, approximate valuation. Overall, informed decisions would need to be made. Did I let it overheat and cause the damage? It might set you back, but I'd feel obligated to make the owner of the vehicle whole, whatever that means. Maybe I'm ending up owning a Durango.


I too don't like borrowing things out and don't like borrowing things from others, for these and even much more minor issues. "

Ok, I'll expound a little more. When you make 50 trips to the end of the gunflint trail, you're bound to have some car trouble here and there. I think I've had more than my share, some is self-inflicted.

1. One year, riding with my Dad, we had one of those old pickup type trailers. Those ones where they use the back half of a stepside pick up for a trailer. We had a big wooden box inside the trailer,and then put canoe racks on top of the wood box. We called it the albatross. One trip, we were about 3 miles from Seagul outfitters, when I watched my dad look in the rearview mirror and gasp loudly. I looked back, to see our aluminum canoes flipping down the gunflint trail. It was horrible to watch. They actually survived. A couple pieces of duct tape over some popped rivots and on we went. One corner of one aluminum rack cracked through, got loose, and allowed a canoe to tilt upward sharply. Once the wind caught the underside of that canoe, it was game over. I'm not real sure how you would prevent it, other than to not rely solely on the canoe racks. We should have had secondary ropes or straps as back up.

2. 1988 My future wife, had just told me I had an 5 week old son. (there is a big drawn out story about this one, but I'll spare you those details for now). I borrowed (here we go again) my older brother's 1970 dodge dart (yeah, another dodge), and headed up on a solo trip. My future wife, hadn't told anyone about our son. We had been split up thru her entire pregnancy. She was going to adopt him out, and was having trouble going thru with it. She told me about him when he was 5 weeks old. He had been at the childrens home society, but you have 8 weeks to change your mind. It was alot to drop on a 21 year old. I wasn't terribly mature. Either way, I needed to clear my head, and try to think clearly about our future. So I wanted to go to the boundary waters by myself, and have some alone time. Trouble is, I didn't sleep the night before. At all. I was fine until the sun came up. I had left at like 2:00 in the morning or thereabouts, and was now on the north shore and struggling to keep my eyes open. Somewhere around BeaverBay I lost that struggle. I woke up heading into the right hand ditch. It was a steep embankment. I cranked the wheel around to the left, and launched back up, and across the road. Had I just turned the wheel and corrected again, I might have been fine, but made the mistake of pounding the brakes once I was back on pavement. That left me with no control, and I slid into the rock wall on the southbound side. I bounced off, spun around, and hit the opposite side of the car on the same rockwall, in the same ditch. The homemade kayak that my brother had made, snapped in half. The rear axle came off the car. Everything was toast. Except me. I called my dad to see what he was doing. Anal: "hey dad, whatcha doin?" Dad: "Working". Anal: "Want to go fishing?" Dad "sure, when". Anal: "Right now, can you pick me up in Silver Bay?" (I was at the motel by that point). He left work, threw some stuff in the car, and headed up. We had a great trip. Oh, and we kept our son. Another story, for another time.

3. 1991. I was broken up with my future wife (my fault), and decided to go on a solo boundary waters trip. Had no car, and virtually no money, so I borrowed (yeah, yeah, I know, I didn't always borrow a vehicle) my best friends 1970 Monte Carlo. Sweet ride. When I got to Grand Marais, I could hear something rumbling front right side. It sounded a bit like a bearing. Thought to myself, I'll fix it when we get back. Well that was a mistake. I got to the same spot where the canoes flipped off, and the bearings burned through, and so did the spindle. The whole wheel laid down. That trip, I called a tow truck, had them come get the vehicle, fix the problem, and it was ready for me when I got back. I just had to hitch hike back to grand marais when my trip was over. There's more to that story too, but...

4. We won't count the 1999 blow down that's not vehicle related.

5. So I borrow the Brother n Laws durango. This was 2012. I think it was like a 2003 Durango,and had 160,000 miles on it, and was starting to get there. But still in ok shape. The longer version of what I told you at the top, is that we started having problems in North Branch. I hadn't noticed that i was running hot, and a passing car, waved me over. The hood was steaming, but I couldn't see it. We pulled into a way side rest to take a look. Durango's of that year, the radiator cap, is actually built into the top hose. It T's in, and the connection broke loose. We let her cool down, filled her up with water, and ducttaped her as well as possible, and limped into Pine City. I should have called my brother in law, or brother when i first had trouble, and had them switch out vehicles with me. But I didn't. We stopped at a NAPA in pine city, but they didn't have the proper hose. So we had to limp to Duluth. I bought some clamps from Napa, and got it fixed pretty good, but not perfect. Where the leak was, it was hard to get a clamp around that part. Duluth had a dodge dealership, but they were also sans the proper part. We hadn't been having any more overheating issues, so we grabbed some dinner in park point, and our permits from the Duluth pak, and headed on up to grand marais. We stayed overnight in a pre-reserved motel (east side), and were having a good time. We like to cross sag as early as possible, so we were up at 5 am. By this point, i had forgotten all about the radiator hose, and didn't think to top off the coolant. Horrible mistake. As you know the first 15 miles of the GFT is straight up hill, at a fairly decent grade. It's alot of work for a 6 cyl durango, full of 6 adults, and pulling a full trailer, and 3 canoes. Somewhere along the way, I noticed she was getting hot, but we were on the upslope of a hill, near the crest, and there was no shoulder. I couldn't stop in the road, in a no passing lane, that would have been very dangerous for traffic. I thought I would just get to the top of the hill and turn around and go back to grand marais. Well, aluminum heads don't like to be hot. We didn't make it to the top of the hill. She started knocking, really loud. We let her cool off, and limped back to GM, but I had to keep shutting the engine off on the downhills, because it was clear she was toast. When we got to GM, we parked in a parking lot over behind Sven and Ole's and pondered our choices. I was upset with myself. I was on a mission to go on this trip, the first my daughter was willing to go with since the blow down, and it was her birthday, and I was a stupid bulldog. There were so many better choices I could have made. But now what?

So we walked up to the auto dealership/small engine place up the road, a little north of town. They had a couple vehicles we could rent, but nothing 6 passenger with a trailer hitch. So then I considered buying a vehicle, which either of these options still don't resolve the problem of what to do with the durango. He had a Aerostar mini-van with a hitch, but a check of blue book, and he was about $4,000 high. There was no way I was paying that. I didn't mind if he made some money, but I figured there was a number we could both be happy. I think he figured he had me by the nuts, and could charge whatever he wanted. Besides it was Saturday, and he was closing in half an hour, so he probably wanted to make good money, or not bother with it. I wasn't doing that.

LIke Missmolly suggested, I considered putting up the white flag on BWCA.com. I don't recall if I did or not, but as it turns out, my resolution/rescue, was one phone call away. I called my brother darren, to see if he had any ideas. This man drives over the road for UPS. He had just gotten back from his usual week long run. Without hesitation, he hopped in his pickup, went to Oakdale rental and got a flatbed trailer, put his wife's chevy blazer on it, and hauled it to Gm. He swapped vehicles with us, and towed the durango back to the cities. I owe him a debt, I may never be able to repay. He's dead tired and put in an 11 hour day to rescue us. I am forever grateful.

So he got to us about 5 pm. We headed up the trail, and were on the water by about 7pm. My stupidity hadn't ended yet. We were base camping on Zephyr and I was determined to get there. It's really not possible to paddle aluminum aircraft carriers from the end of the gunflint trail, to Zephyr in 3 hours. So the last hour was in the dark. I no my way, and it was a gorgeous evening, with calm weather, so it was a pleasant paddle, even if we couldn't see anything, but if we didn't get Zephyr, it was going to make for a crabby group. We pull up to the Zephyr portage, and there is yellow tape across the portage. What??? We get out of the canoe, and there is a sign, "portage closed" something about the pagami creek fire (note, i just realized this trip happened in 2012. So I guess it had been 13 years since my daughter last went, not 15). Either way, at first we were sickened about the closed portage, but then we realized that the pagami creek fire had been the previous August, and they must have never taken the tape down. They had closed the portage, because they were using Zephyr to stage firemen. I think if you looked at a satelite view of the zephyr campsite, there was a big circle to the NE, where they created a heliport. I've seen the circle, but just made an educated guess. I haven't actually verified that yet. So there we were, portaging into zephyr at almost midnight. We set up camp in the dark, and were eating steak dinner at 2 am.

It was one of the most unusual set of circumstances I've experienced up there. In this case, I like to think God was trying his best to help me overcome my stupidity, and make things as pleasant as possible for my daughter. You know that mosquito airforce you usually encounter at dusk. This was June 2nd, 2012, and there were NO mosquitos. None. You know how it normally cools off quite a bit after dark that time of year. It stayed fairly warm and was quite pleasant. There was a stack of wood already cut, and sitting there. And more importantly, they had put yellow tape across the portage, and "reserved" the campsite for us. It turned out to be a very pleasant trip. We had no rain, and no bugs. The fishing was slow, but my daughter caught a couple nice smallmouth. I can't thank my brother enough.

As for the durango. I didnt have 3k to fix it. A different used one, with the same miles was about 4k. I offered to buy him a different one, and make the payments, but he wanted his. It cost $2,700 to fix it. At the time, i was a little miffed that he didn't want to pay for any of it. After all, he was getting a totally rebuilt engine, when his engine already had 150-160k miles on it. But now I can see his side. I should have at the very least, called him the first time it overheated. I just knew he'd want me to get it towed on the spot, and I was worried about getting our permit and motel reservations etc. I feel more sorry for my other brother , If I had called him from North Branch, he would have just brought me the Blazer, and it would have saved him 9.5 of the 11 hours of driving. That would have been the right move in the first place. Or here's an idea "Check your fluids before you go".

Sorry for the Rambling dissertation... and no, my daughter hasn't been back since.

scat: "Sheepishly I will tell you I wrecked a van while staying in a cabin in the BW. Ran into a tree. I bought a Caprice Classic station wagon in Ely for $500. We named it Big Blue. Got us through that and ran for many years after. She was a honey. It was a company van. My boss just laughed at me. That’s no sh**."

It's nice to know I'm not the only one.

Savage Voyageur: "It’s easy to armchair quarterback this and say go on the trip and have fun. But I wouldn’t continue on the trip and I’ll explain why. I’ve been up there many times before with car problems over the years. At least 4 times with tires, one alternator, one battery. I’ve had to search for someone who is 1) open, 2) capable of working on my vehicle, 3) has parts to fix. Last summer I was camping in Tettegouche state park and had a flat tire on my truck. It was a Saturday afternoon. Vertical nothing was open. I was pulling a camper and I wanted a fixed tire. I had to put the spare tire on and drive to Duluth to fix it. With a blown engine I would want my truck towed to a large city to someone who has done things like this before.


I can guarantee there is no one up there that will have a engine to swap a blown engine in 6 days. You are talking weeks with shipping to get an engine and then there is availability issues. Dealerships don’t just have engines laying around. So your next real option is to find a place to stay for the night, and to feed the group.


This will give you time to figure out your next problem, transportation. If you are from the state maybe someone can pick the group and gear up with a van or two vehicles. This will take them a day or two to get to you. Or option 2 is to find a rental vehicle big enough for your people and gear. Has anyone else seen a car rental place up there? Me neither. The group is getting hungry again. You need to feed them again. Just kidding but you get the point.


I will be the negative Nick here and say trip is over. "

You nailed alot of the logistical problems. Not many good options. My brother truly came to my rescue. At one point, I had my head in my hands in despair, as I was struggling to find a solution.

Crazy trip report!

All jokes aside Analyzer, I appreciate you sharing your experiences. You definitely have a few stories to tell.. I was really rooting for an awesome trip, aside from the vehicle issues. Sounds like you all had a good time?

You mentioned God working hard to combat your mistakes. His Word says, "He works for the good of those who love Him." So that says something about where you stand. We all make mistakes every day. We are who we are. One of my favorite scripture quotes is "By the Grace of God, I am what I am."

I hope you make it back up to canoe country soon. Trouble free.


JW

analyzer: . I called my dad to see what he was doing. Anal: "hey dad, whatcha doin?" Dad: "Working". Anal: "Want to go fishing?" Dad "sure, when". Anal: "Right now, can you pick me up in Silver Bay?" (I was at the motel by that point). He left work, threw some stuff in the car, and headed up. We had a great trip. Oh, and we kept our son. Another story, for another time.
"

Agreed - you've certianly had your fair share of automotive issues. What a story though! One last comment...I think I would find a new way to abbreviate your moniker, lol.

I was reading that part quickly and nearly spit coffee all over my computer!! Really need a different abbreviation, lol

The common man, dan cole, on sports radio KFAN in the twin cities, used to have people call in, and they would make up a moniker. Monday Night Football Guy, mouth guitar guy, whatever. When I called in, I was analytical, so I became, analyzerguy. In fact, it was right about then, that the internet came out with email. I didn't know email was going to become such an integral part of our life, I just thought it was another silly fad. So when I signed up for yahoo mail, i put in analyzerguy@yahoo.com. Despite being one of the early ones to sign up, there was already some geek named analyzerguy, so I had to put in hyphens...

So ever since, my email has been anal_yzer_guy@yahoo.com. Little did I know, that hundreds of people would end up using that email to contact to me. That's all well and good, until you try to put that on your resume, or your coaching a girls 12 and under fast pitch softball team.

Parents at first practice: "What's your email address?"
Coach Garrett to parents: "A N A L underscore...."

Funny how many parents stuck around for practices.

I have had a engine die in a car. I'm not sure what I would have done. Depends on the mood of everyone. Either give up and go home or do the bwca trip. That call is hard.

Analyzer, buy your own vehicle to use.

When I wrecked the company van after literally running off the end of the Fernberg Trail, it took a car shop in Ely 4 months to fix it. Big Blue was my company car and main vehicle from June to October that year. A vintage, I think it was a 1972 Caprice Classic station wagon I bought for $500 in Ely at a gas station. It was either that or take a plane back to Chicago, and that ain’t cheap. Amazing how that worked out. Was a great car, the kids loved it, had the rear facing seats in back just made for 4th July fireworks and cruising with the rear window down. Took it on the family vacation to Crivitz. Memorable. When it was finally fixed me and my buddy went back up to Ely, stayed at the same resort for a night, he drove her home to Chicago and she ran for many years after. I got her back for a stretch in between jobs. Great car. I ended up selling it to a carpet guy for $600 who needed a car to park on Lake Shore Drive to unload his product, trucks not permitted. Long may she run.
Cheers, scat

JWilder: "Crazy trip report!




You mentioned God working hard to combat your mistakes. His Word says, "He works for the good of those who love Him." So that says something about where you stand. We all make mistakes every day. We are who we are. One of my favorite scripture quotes is "By the Grace of God, I am what I am."




JW"

There are many times, I think God took one of his angels, and asked her to walk thru life with me, to keep me out of trouble. Sometimes I think her purgatory, is being married to me. I wasn't a very good husband in our early years. I'm working hard to try to make up for my past deficiencies.

Zwater: " Analyzer, buy your own vehicle to use."

Yeah, no sht, right!

I often owned vehicles, it just wasn't the right vehicle. We went to the boundary waters for our honeymoon in 1993, but we owned a 91 mustang LX. so we traded her father our mustang, while we took his ford ranger to the boundary waters. Her father, and her brother, then drove up in the mustang, and met us at the entry point and we switched back. So they went for a week, right after our trip.

So when i've borrowed others vehicles, sometimes they actually get an upgrade in the interim. We've owned a Honda Pilot since 2016, so we have a vehicle plenty big enough to carry 6 or 7 people, and pull a trailer.

And I own all the camping gear, so my brothers lend me vehicles, and I lend them camping gear, trailer, canoes etc. It's not a one way street.

scat: " Was a great car, the kids loved it, had the rear facing seats in back just made for 4th July fireworks and cruising with the rear window down.
"

Rear facing seat, reminds me of my parents station wagon. We had 6 in the family. My older brother and older sister got the middle seat, and my younger brother and I got the rear facing seat. We loved it back there. We were out of reach of mom or dad's backhand. We did get car sick once in a while, facing the wrong way.

One memory that sticks out.

August 16th, 1977. We were on the way up to the boundary waters for our annual 18 day trip. We just had to be back for school after labor day. The station wagon had the big trailer behind it. It was the back half of a pickup truck, with a big wood box inside it, and canoes on top. We called it the albatross.

We stopped in Duluth to get a bite to eat, and as we were getting back into the station wagon, Dad and Mom got in up front, the older brother and sister got in the middle, and me and my younger brother started to get in the back. However, we were a little behind the others.

When my Dad got in the car, he turned on the radio, and just then, they were announcing the death of Elvis Presley. My Dad was a HUGE Elvis fan. He was devastated, and wasn't thinking about the status of his two youngest sons, when he started to drive off. We hadn't gotten into the back of the car yet. We were standing there with the door open, between the back of the station wagon, and the trailer, when dad started to pull away. I shoved my brother head first into the car, and jumped up onto the trailer tongue. We both yelled, and Dad jammed on the breaks. Well that brought the door slamming shut on my brothers legs. if you're lying on your stomach, going head first into the back seat, it's almost impossible to get your legs in quickly, and the door came slamming down on him. he was ok, but left a couple nasty bruises. It could have been bad. He was close to running us both over.

That was one quiet,eery ride up the north shore. None of us talked. We just listened to the radio broadcast.

Just about everyone knows where they were for 911. I sure many of us can remember the day Elvis died.

analyzer: "

JWilder: "Crazy trip report!





You mentioned God working hard to combat your mistakes. His Word says, "He works for the good of those who love Him." So that says something about where you stand. We all make mistakes every day. We are who we are. One of my favorite scripture quotes is "By the Grace of God, I am what I am."





JW"

There are many times, I think God took one of his angels, and asked her to walk thru life with me, to keep me out of trouble. Sometimes I think her purgatory, is being married to me. I wasn't a very good husband in our early years. I'm working hard to try to make up for my past deficiencies."

God’s Grace is correctly defined as "undeserved love". Ephesians 2:8-9 says "For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is a gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast." Paul also states in Galatians 2:21 "I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing."

Paul is telling us to not focus on making up our past, present or even future iniquities, but to trust, hope and and faith in Christ. You cannot earn heaven. It is a gift (God's Grace).

I digress.

JW

Cool story. One of seven kids. We had the station wagon with the fake wood on the sides. Pretty sure it was an Oldsmobile. We all piled in. Don’t remember having assigned seats. Might have been more jockeying for position than was necessary, but that’s how it was. Every kid for them self. I’m not even sure my parents counted when we left somewhere.