Sept 7, 2015 Day 4: We were up early and had granola for breakfast, this time we were on the water by 7:30. A short portage into Kiana Lake, followed by a quick paddle across. We started noticing the wind picking up as we approached the 180 rod portage into Thomas, what a haul! We popped energy gels as we hit the landing and had a bite of granola bar as well, slammed some water and started across on our first trip. We have been taking the larger packs with hand carry stuff like the tackle box and paddles on the first trip so we can acquaint ourselves with the portage before I bring the canoe over and Laura carries the food pack and day pack together. This system worked well for us, and Laura was doing great on this long portage. It wasn’t especially steep, but just seemed to keep on going as we went across it. Once onto Thomas we pounded more Gatorade and then rigged for trout. I had two deep diving crank baits on, with different wobbles and colors to see what the fish would like. We moved our way up the lake and noticed the campsite we had hoped for was taken, so we took the next available one because we were fighting a healthy wind blowing down the lake. No fish despite seeing some hopeful pockets on the sonar. The campsite wasn’t great, despite having a good view of this portion of the lake. It was high on a rock face and was getting pounded by the wind; however, just inside camp it was quite hot as the wind went up and over. We hung the hammock and set up the tent and let things dry out from the night before since we had to pack up the tent wet in the morning. We tried going out fishing for a while but the wind was getting intense. I tried fishing from shore but nothing was biting. No fish YET AGAIN. We decided on Jambalaya for dinner, which was pretty good, except the rice didn’t cook all the way, a lesson for the next time I make it. Milky way bars for dessert, and then popcorn next to the campfire. The popcorn was a first for me; I put a little Crisco in the pot, added the kernels and then just shook the pot with the lid on. This worked really well and soon we had a nice kettle of popcorn to munch on. While we munched Laura looked across the lake and said “look at that!” I looked over and saw it. The Aurora Borealis. It started with just a faint shimmering pillar of light. That soon gave way to rolling sheets of dancing green light, and then I looked up and there was a halo like effect with ribbons of dancing light coming down from it. It was absolutely awe inspiring, majestic. Words can’t quite state how beautiful it was. We tried taking some pictures and video of it, but I don’t think they were showing up very well, the video wasn’t showing anything at all. In our minds though, it will always be there. It was a very special moment for us that I will cherish for years to come. We watched for quite a while, eating popcorn and taking it all in. Later that night I poke my head out of the tent and it was still going! What a show!