Wind and rain again.

We spent the morning doing more of the same. I was realizing that none of my day trips might happen. By lunch time, a few of us were getting cabin fever. There appeared to be a break in the wind. Also, one of us managed to get a cell signal and the weather forecast looked like it was improving. We decided the least we could do is make a break for Thunder Point, which was probably <1/2 a mile away.

As we rounded the point of our peninsula, it was clear the wind had picked back up. With uncertainty, we pressed on. We made it to Thunder Point and hiked up. The view was nice, but somewhat tainted by worry over the return trip into the wind. We waited a while, but there was no break. With dinner approaching and no real cold-weather gear, we decided to make a break for it.

By the time we reached the middle of Knife, the wind and waves reached a peak. It became increasingly difficult to keep the unloaded canoes pointed into the wind. Eventually, the wind caught one of them and sent two of us swimming. Very fortunately, the wind was pushing us toward an occupied camp. The other boat dragged the two swimmers to shore, where the strangers were extremely hospitable, allowing us to warm by their fire. Meanwhile, our capsized boat was blown not too far down the shore.

We spent the next 4 hours warming up and collecting our gear from the shoreline. We were only about 1/2 of a mile from our campsite and the wind had died down slightly. However, nobody wanted to swim again and the party was slightly panicked to be cold, wet, and separated from their gear. So we waited for the waters to be very calm, which happened as the sun began to descend. We then made the very easy paddle back to our camp.

Lesson Learned: Respect the wind. At the very least, stay out of big water and stay close to shore.

Lesson Learned: A dry bag with some warm clothes and a few other survival items should come on every trip, no matter how small.

Lesson Learned: Minnesota 2's, like most large canoes, handle better with a bit of gear. If heading into the wind, trim with a lower bow.

Lesson learned: A sat phone or similar device isn't a terrible idea.

Lesson learned: Solitude is nice, but having neighbors can have benefits.