Winter #68
by TuscaroraBorealis
Trip Type:
Snowshoeing
Entry Date:
01/20/2011
Entry & Exit Point:
Pine Lake (EP 68)
Number of Days:
4
Group Size:
5
Discuss Trip:
View Discussion Thread (13 messages)
Day 3 of 4
Saturday, January 22, 2011
I was the first one up this morning. As anyone who has ever camped knows, there is an unwritten rule (doubly true in winter) that the first one up must get the fire going. So I did just that. Apparently the sound of the fire cracklin made it impossible to sleep any later? :) As everyone else was up shortly thereafter.
John had brought along some eggs he had broken then vacuum sealed and frozen. He coupled that with some tasty breakfast sausage.
Nothing like a hot drink and a warm breakfast while winter camping. 
After breakfast I finished chopping the wood we had on hand. We were definitely going to need some more. Mark & Keith were gonna go exploring around the lake and brought a tobaggon with that they would load up with any downed timber they came across.
Later I headed down to the lake to finally try some fishing. We already had one hole augered from which we got our water. Tried a number of other holes. The wind had picked up some. While not bothersome to me personally, it really made jigging (without a shelter or wind block) a real pain in the a$$. Line froze up instantly. I brought my vexilar along but never marked fish in any of the holes I punched. Though I kept pretty close to camp and didn't punch too many holes. Not really giving it the all-american effort. Since I was the only one who was fishing I lost interest quicker than I might of otherwise. Plus I felt a little guilty that others were out gathering firewood etc. I set out a tip up and went to explore the nearby shoreline for awhile.
Mark & Keith were seen in the distance heading back towards camp. They were both pulling the tobaggon indicating they had a nice load of firewood.
It took a group effort to get the tobaggon up the hill around the various trees and into camp. Once there we took turns chopping it up. We now had more than enough firewood for the duration of our stay.
Mark set about preparing our dinner. He commented to me that bringing the glove liners was a brilliant idea. When I told him I had an extra pair he offered to buy them on the spot! I told him I wouldn't sell them, but he could use them. They proved invaluable for preventing cold fingers while turning the knobs on our stoves, manipulating zippers, striking matches, and several tasks that required more dexterity than our bulky gloves or mittens would allow. One of the stoves Mark brought was somewhat of a family heirloom. A Coleman stove circa 1962 that his Dad had giving him. While not the most efficient, it still served us well boiling water for coffee, cider, & hot chocolate.
While our meal was being prepared I wandered the woods. It was amazing how much snow clung to the branches of the trees.
It really gave the area a feeling of a winter wonderland. Soon soup was on with polish as well. The stew the night before was more like soup with this soup was more like a stew. We all shared a good laugh about that.
Afterwards Mark began making a dessert. It was a mixed fruit cobbler topped with an oatmeal crust.
I considered all the food we ate on this trip very good. But, in my opinion, the cobbler was off the charts. Having more than we could possibly eat was also an enviable problem. Keith suggested we save the leftovers to top our oatmeal tomorrow morning. 
After eating we went out to the lake to fill our water bottles for the evening. No luck at the tip up. But at this point, with the scant amount of time I'd put in, I didn't have any real expectations that there would be. It seems there are just not enough hours in the day sometimes?
We all gathered down by the lakeshore as the sun was setting. It was a clear evening sky blanketed with innumerable stars. Providing a nice scene for our final evening. 
We sat up awhile enjoying some mixed beverages. Since the overnight low this evening was to be warmer than the previous night. We all went to sleep tonight giving little regard or concern of our sleeping comfort. In fact, I purposely left the hood of my bag open a bit.
Pine Lake
Though I hoped beyond hope that this issue wouldn't arise. Inevitably the urge to urinate overcame me in the wee hours. It was more a mind over the elements thing. Though I'm sure it was below zero? It really wasn't all that bad. It was just a matter of making up my mind to go and do it.
I was more than satisfied with the performance of my sleep system. I used a footprint from a very small REI tent I have as my ground cloth. On top of that I had a Z-lite closed cell Thermarest pad. Finally was my Marmot CWM -40 below bag. Believe it or not? I actually was getting to the point of being too warm! I wound up opening up the hood a bit to regulate the temperature. Besides my boot liners I also brought my outer fleece, mittens, & camera inside the bag with me as I slept.
John had brought along some eggs he had broken then vacuum sealed and frozen. He coupled that with some tasty breakfast sausage.
After breakfast I finished chopping the wood we had on hand. We were definitely going to need some more. Mark & Keith were gonna go exploring around the lake and brought a tobaggon with that they would load up with any downed timber they came across.
Later I headed down to the lake to finally try some fishing. We already had one hole augered from which we got our water. Tried a number of other holes. The wind had picked up some. While not bothersome to me personally, it really made jigging (without a shelter or wind block) a real pain in the a$$. Line froze up instantly. I brought my vexilar along but never marked fish in any of the holes I punched. Though I kept pretty close to camp and didn't punch too many holes. Not really giving it the all-american effort. Since I was the only one who was fishing I lost interest quicker than I might of otherwise. Plus I felt a little guilty that others were out gathering firewood etc. I set out a tip up and went to explore the nearby shoreline for awhile.
Mark & Keith were seen in the distance heading back towards camp. They were both pulling the tobaggon indicating they had a nice load of firewood.
Mark set about preparing our dinner. He commented to me that bringing the glove liners was a brilliant idea. When I told him I had an extra pair he offered to buy them on the spot! I told him I wouldn't sell them, but he could use them. They proved invaluable for preventing cold fingers while turning the knobs on our stoves, manipulating zippers, striking matches, and several tasks that required more dexterity than our bulky gloves or mittens would allow. One of the stoves Mark brought was somewhat of a family heirloom. A Coleman stove circa 1962 that his Dad had giving him. While not the most efficient, it still served us well boiling water for coffee, cider, & hot chocolate.
While our meal was being prepared I wandered the woods. It was amazing how much snow clung to the branches of the trees.
Afterwards Mark began making a dessert. It was a mixed fruit cobbler topped with an oatmeal crust.
After eating we went out to the lake to fill our water bottles for the evening. No luck at the tip up. But at this point, with the scant amount of time I'd put in, I didn't have any real expectations that there would be. It seems there are just not enough hours in the day sometimes?
We sat up awhile enjoying some mixed beverages. Since the overnight low this evening was to be warmer than the previous night. We all went to sleep tonight giving little regard or concern of our sleeping comfort. In fact, I purposely left the hood of my bag open a bit.
Pine Lake
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