Sunday, September 26, 2010

There being no blanket in the sky. The under armour proved it's worth yet again. Still it was tough to want to crawl out of the tent this morning. As we approached the firegrate area we quickly came to the realization we had a visitor in camp overnight. And apparently had gone through everything!

Jack Frost was his name. And there was clear evidence he'd stopped by as he left his calling card strewn about everywhere.
The first order of business was to get some water boiling for coffee & hot chocolate. Fortunately the fire took off right away and we huddled around it. The sky was clear and the sun was ever so slowly working it's magic. The lake was like a sheet of glass. Breakfast was once again leftovers from supper. Before too long it had warmed up sufficiently as to neglect the fire. We packed up Vickies' Duluth Pack in preparation for a trip to Davis lake.
Still quite crisp as we headed out. Paddling helped keep us comfortable. There is a neat island rising up out of the water as we paddled for the portage to Omega lake. As we paddled through, we trolled the length of Omega without success. There was only a little ripple on the water so the going was quite easy. Soon we were upon the portage to Kiskadinna. There was an overhanging birch tree above the trail. Seemingly serving as an archway? While only 35 rods long, this portages bite was definitely worse than its' bark! Started out nice enough but soon the steep ascent & equally steep descent on the other side made a person take notice. I was glad it was dry as there were a few large unavoidable areas of rock face that assuredly would have been quite slick in wet conditions. There is even a makeshift staircase on the Kiskadinna end.
We stopped to catch our breath a bit on the Kiskadinna end. Laughing, as that trail took us a little by surprise. There is a fairly decent landing on the Kiskadinna side though. As we were preparing to push off the stern of the Pearl was ever so slightly catching on a boulder. I told Vickie she could hop in. (the bow) She countered,"Aren't we on a rock back there?" I said, "Yes. But this end will rise up quite a bit when you get in so don't worry about it. I'll move it when I get in." It was immediately obvious that was not the best choice of words I could've used! Perhaps taking this whole Captain Morgan thing too literally? Vickie was using alot of language normally associated with a sailor. "OH! The canoes' back end will rise WAAAAAY up when I get in the front!" That wasn't the intention of that statement & regrettably I had to laugh........rather vociferously. Fortunately the better angels of our nature prevailed and we paddled on down Kiskadinna.
Kiskadinna seemed to me a minature version of Winchell. Long & narrow higher on the south shore lower & all the campsites on the north. We checked out both sites. The first (east) site wasn't much to get excited about. But the next one was quite nice. The best landing is back to the east a few rods from the front of the site. The firgrate area wasn't the best but everything else was really top notch. Lots of flat ground.
The portage into Davis was right where our map said it would be. That said it was a little difficult to discern where the trail starts. There was a small beaver dam just before the trail which started out on the right (west) side of the small brook that parrallels the trail for the first 100 rods or so.
The trail quickly crosses the brook at a very rocky intersection. In my opinion this is absolutely one of the toughest portages in the BWCAW. There are no long grueling climbs. Instead there are several shorter steep climbs coupled with a path generally in poor condition especially where the trail ran lose alongside the brook. Very rocky & wet. There were a few spots where it was tough to find the trail. Common sense prevailed. The trail improves the closer one gets to Davis lake. We saw several tracks along the way that we later identified as that of a Canadien Lynx. Davis lake was sparkling with diamonds providing a memorable & welcome initial unveiling.
Fishing on Davis was uneventful this day. We covered alot of water.....no luck. At least it was a beautiful day to be out on the water. I dare say it was hot. We pulled off to have lunch at the eastern most site. This was an absolutely awesome site! A great parking garage tht will provide a safe harbor in windy conditions. Superb tent sites & firegrate. There is a long walk to the latrine. Evidence of the 2006 famine fire is clearly visible nearby. But the site itself is unscathed. There were even various mooseplums scattered about the perimeter. I can't imagine there are an over abundance of visitors here? Tough portages in & out.
After lunch we proceeded back towards Winchell. Came across the first people we'd seen all day on the portage from North Cone into Cliff. In fact the trail was saturated with travelers heading the other way. Memorably a couple of fellas really struggling to get over a fallen tree. It was a pleasant paddle the rest of the way home.
After getting back to camp & settling in. I pulled out a 6 pack of beer I had smuggled in. One, of many, great things about trips at this time of year is that you are almost always assured of a cold drink. We toasted to having been together for 1 year. We enjoyed the twinkling evening sky with a nice fire glowing nearby.
Winchell Lake, Omega Lake, Kiskadinna Lake, Davis Lake, North Cone Lake, Cliff Lake, Wanihigan Lake