Day 4: 17 Miles, 2 Lakes, 1 portage (139 rods)

~Iron Lake, Crooked Lake.

Today was a big travel day, and the plan was to portage across Curtain Falls Portage and paddle to... somewhere between Friday Bay and Thursday Bay. When we got there, it was only lunch time-ish, so we just ate and kept going. We sort of went way farther than we wanted to, but by the time we passed Thursday bay, we didn't like this or that about all the campsites. We finally settled into a site just north of Wednesday Bay on the US side. At that moment, I wanted to continue paddling, but I was out-voted. We stayed put.

I need to backtrack a lot. One lake I have always wanted to get to is Iron. Its location is central to so much. Well, we made it to Iron, and sadly we had to leave. We never tried to paddle up 'The Chute' below Curtain Falls. We don't do fast current, and I dislike swimming. We hit the long portage and the trail was breathtaking after exiting Trease Lake Portage and the Sundial PMA! Every time I heard rapid water I thought it was the Falls. But then I heard the thundering sound up ahead. Curtain Falls! Apparently I was really excited to be there because I got a little emotional when I first saw the Falls. It was sensational to be there! We lunched a bit, took pictures and video, and moved on before the wind kicked up on Sunday Bay.

We shot over to the West Pictograph site on Crooked. There wasn't much to see there, but interesting. The information I have previously read said little about the drawings. Mostly, I agree with my research that there is not much to see, let alone describe. For sure there is a lot of red wash, especially on the left 5/8. Just right of the wash, I see a canoe with a single occupant standing up, holding a net, an axe, or a paint brush. To the right are some more drawings that are... not quite red wash... but not quite figures or specific shapes. Possibly they are fish, and the man in the canoe is netting them. If memory serves, there are two fish blobs and either more red wash or tally marks on the far right.

Moving across Crooked Lake was a pleasure. I look forward to the parts south of Wednesday Bay the most!