Day Four 06/21/16

Woke up this morning and asked Dad what time it was. He says, “Nine Thirty” I go, holy cows, it’s time to get up and out of the tent! I don’t sleep this much at home even. Must have got at least ten hours of sleep! Now it was time to get the coffee percolated and the pancake batter mixed up. Went into the food pack and grabbed the yellow food bag. That was our breakfast bag. It had our coffee, creamer, and coco mix because Dad likes to make mochas when enjoying a coffee. It’s good to be up in the Boundary Waters with Dad because he is the Pancake King! I got the batter all mixed with water, in the same pot we just brewed our morning coffee in, and handed it over to Dad. He was ready to get that spatula flipping pancakes! Bam! First pancake is off the pan and slammed down right on my plate. I can’t say this enough but best decisions are made on pancakes. We all talked about today’s day trip and where we wanted to go. Our trip would take us north, up and around Tiger Bay so we could check out the campsite Dad, Scott, and Scotts son Pete stayed at on a 2013 trip. I got to explore the camp and was comparing every little detail to our campsite. The one we are staying on has a better canoe landing and way more space. I jumped back into the canoe and we headed back out into the big part of Lac La Croix. Dad pointed out a tall rock formation called Warrior Hill. Dad first saw it in 1981 on a canoe trip up here. Now the wind started to really pick up as we started to paddle East to Bottle Falls. We looked out and could see the white caps across the lake. Hugging the shore line, we didn’t have to paddle much at all because the wind was pushing us along. Clicking around at 6 – 7 mph and we come to an open part of the lake. I yelled “On our left” and pointed out a canoe that had two people in it, they were just sitting and not moving at all. That was a campsite they were staying on. Scott could see them right away but Dad never saw them. Next, we get to the middle of the lake and the waves turned into swells with white caps on top. They were building up all around us and in every direction, you look. Now, I been on some rough water while canoeing with good friend Greg Negard on our 2013 Woodland Caribou trip. The waves today were the most dangerous water I have been in, on a canoe might I add. The wind was pushing us and there was no stopping our momentum. We looked off to our right and we could see the Ranger Station, but we were heading into the gap of Bottle Falls. Skipping along, Dad and I were paddling hard, Scott wasn’t saying much, he was concentrating on keeping the Seneca 3 canoe straight. Boy, am I thankful we have a large light weight and stable canoe right about now. We are shooting the gap! If we got turned around now, we would for sure go in the drink and have some serious problems. I for sure was sweating bullets and was relieved that we were now in the body of the river. The river current was flowing out into the lake, but from the wind pushing us, combined with our canoe speed coming off the lake, we didn’t even notice it. At last, we landed the canoe on shore, with a great view of Bottle Falls. It had better be worth it, because we were literally living on the edge getting into this place. I immediately tied on my rapala and casted out from shore, into the sweltering waters. Bam! Fish on, Finally! It was a 14” Walleye and Scott got him off my line for me. He noticed a parasite growing on the dorsal fin, he cleaned them off and released the fish back into the water. Now it was time for my second cast, Bam! Fish on! Another walleye just like the previous one. A person could easily limit out in no time at Bottle Falls. Dad and Scott wanted to get going in the canoe and I looked back toward the lake and said “No way! You guys are crazy!” As white caps and wind had my gut feeling telling me those are not safe waters. Dad was getting impatient and I could tell I was holding up the both Dad and Scott. The wind had slowed down some but I was still a little leery. Dad says, “Let’s go” and I could see Scott putting on his life jacket and I knew we had to do this. After all, we had to get back to camp and cannot sit around here all day. I put my trust in Dad and Scott and we all climbed into the canoe and headed straight into the wind. We were paddling with adrenaline as we came to the mouth of the river, where it looked as if the River was battling it out with the Lac La Croix. It was a mixture of white caps, swells, and straight on winds that we had to paddle through. I remember thinking to myself, “This is just what I wanted to do today!” But there was no turning back now, as we were in the thick of it. We all let out a few grunts and holy cows as we kept on moving, cutting through the waves with the Seneca 3. At one point, Dad almost got thrown from the canoe as we went head on to some huge waves. Dad bounced out of his seat, and then came down with a huge force and a lot of splashing water. We all dug in harder and kept paddling away from the mouth of the River. The goal was to head East to the Ranger Station, there was a portage at the end of the bay. Except, we couldn’t just crank the canoe in that direction. Scott navigated us out far enough and then slowly started turning the canoe East. We could have all gone in the drink if we didn’t stay on top of the waves. Timing was everything and I could see the calm water in the bay just ahead. I must say, it’s not that I didn’t trust Dad and Scott’s decision, it’s just that every time I looked at the mouth of the River, it looked like it could devour an entire canoe. There was a window of opportunity and we took it! Like I said before, these guys have a combined 129 years of canoeing experience. We paddled against the wind the rest of the way back to camp. The kind of wind when your paddling your dandiest, and you look over at the shore line, only to find out that you are inching your way along. Making it back to the campsite for cocktail hour was much appreciated by everyone. Scott got out the tequila and made us all margaritas, as he sang and danced a song while preparing the drinks. Dad and I both laughed at the site of that! We all sat on our chairs and talked about the day trip. Scott said we are the “LAC LA CROIX VOYAGERS” Today was another great day, one for the adventure book!