Boundary Waters, Trip Reports, BWCA, Stories

Kawishiwi L.-Beaver-Makwa-Malberg Loop or I want to Basecamp next trip
by Mashuga

Trip Type: Paddling Canoe
Entry Date: 08/08/2016
Entry & Exit Point: Kawishiwi Lake (EP 37)
Number of Days: 7
Group Size: 2
Day 2 of 7
Tuesday, August 09, 2016 Although the night started clear, there were on & off showers during the night. Nothing heavy but enough to wet everything. We had breakfast, broke camp and were on the water by 10 a.m. We were seeing other canoes on Malberg from our camp. The sky was overcast and we had light winds, again helping to push us along. We had lunch near the north end of Adams L. The only site we passed on Adams was the island site which was occupied. The morning was a very pleasant paddle. The afternoon not so much. The map did not seem entirely accurate with the portages from Adams to Boulder. Although we made steady progress we did a lot more paddling through shallow lily areas than what I thought the map showed. We made it to Boulder where we hoping to camp on the island site and do a layover day. We passed 2 of the 3 sites on Boulder and both were occupied. I did not want to go back to the SW site as the wind was a bit stiff from the south. We decided to move on and hope the Ledge L. lone site was open and adequate for us. The portage north resembles a “T” with the 135 rod N/S portage intersecting the E/W 200 rod portage at about the midpoint making for a 235 +/- rod portage for us to Ledge. No big deal…at least the start of the 135 rod wasn’t. At about the midpoint you come to a black, shoe sucking quagmire pit. The actual portage cuts west at this point. About 30 yards west you then come to a creek about 20 or so feet wide. We were doing 2 trip portages so we brought all the gear to this point. We put the canoe, loaded with the gear, in the water for our one stroke crossing. One the north side the trail goes up, steeply! After doing the first big up there are several more ups on the trail. Have I mentioned I’m not in prime shape and I’m 62. After we got on the E/W portion the trail was relatively flat although not well used. On the Ledge lake end I was totally spent and out of fuel. Chris went back to get the last of our gear while I laid flat on a rock. When Chris arrived we started loading the canoe. There was a short section of black quagmire with a 3” diameter log laying over about 3 feet of it to facilitate crossing. Of course I lost my balance. My left foot was on solid ground but I knew I was going to get at least mud covered on my right leg up to my ankle and maybe my calf. BIG surprise. My right foot and leg kept going and never hit bottom. The only thing stopping me was the vast expanse of man land and the back 40. Yes, I was actually up to my crotch in a nano second. Here is the full mental picture: My right leg is straight down and my foot not touching anything solid. My left foot is still flat on solid ground. My left knee is about even with my face. Undesired gymnastics for a 62 yr. old. I had earlier called this spot a quagmire but a more fitting description is that it was a swirling, sucking, cesspool of black vile, vomited up by something evil. And, it had me in it’s grasp. I held my arm out for Chris to use to pull me from the pit of dispair. He pulled and nothing happened. When Chris didn't suceed on his first pull I saw a surprise look on his face that turned to fierce determination. I had no time to say anything but, I knew one of two things was going to happen in the next second or so. On his next pull he was either going to pull me free or he was going to tumble backwards with my detached arm in his hands. I'm typing with 2 hands so the outcome was in my favor. We made it to the site on Ledge L. which turned out be a darn nice site. I washed my pants off in the lake and me as well. After an exhausting day we had dinner and turned in fairly early to a mostly clear sky and a fantastic sun set.

Malberg L - 68R - Kawishiwi R - 26 R - K. River - 30 R - Beaver L - 90R - Adams L - 10R - crk - 20R - Boulder L - 235R - Ledge L.